Category Archives: WORLD

NORTH AMERICA, U.S.A, WORLD

A Northern California couple found $10 million worth of rare coins dating back to the 1800’s San Francisco Mint Coin

A Northern California couple found $10 million worth of rare coins dating back to the 1800’s San Francisco Mint Coin

A box with rare gold coins discovered by a couple of Californians walking their dog goes on sale with a $15,000 coin. Coins were priced at $11 million and were dated from 1847 to 1894. Several coins were auctioned at the Old San Francisco Mint and one of them — an 1874 $20 double eagle that is usually worth $4,250 — sold for $15,000.

A California couple found 1,427 Gold-Rush era U.S. gold coins in their yard when they were out walking their dog last year. The collection — valued at $11 million — is now on sale.

Don Kagin, whose firm is handling the sale, says most of the remaining 1,400 coins had gone on sale on Amazon.com and Kagins.com after the auction.

The couple, whom Kagin declined to identify, found them last year buried under the shadow of a tree on their rural Northern California property.

This image provided by the Saddle Ridge Hoard discoverers via Kagin’s, Inc., shows one of the six decaying metal canisters filled with 1800s-era U.S. gold coins unearthed in California by two people who want to remain anonymous.

Here are five things to know about the coins and their origin:

Why are they so Valuable?

Experts say paper money was illegal in California until the 1870s, so it’s extremely rare to find any coins from before that period.

Additionally, most of the coins are in mint condition, having been stashed away seemingly immediately after they were minted. They were valued by Don Kagin, a numismatist who is handling the sale and marketing of the coins.

Who Found them?

Kagin says the couple — a middle-aged husband and wife — does not want to be identified in part to avoid a gold rush on their rural Northern California property by modern-day prospectors.

They discovered the coins in eight cans buried in the shadow of an old tree on the property.

They plan to keep a few of the coins themselves and use the money from the rest to pay off bills and donate to local charities. Money from Tuesday’s auction will benefit the effort to turn the Old Mint into a museum.

Where did the coins Come From?

Most of the coins were minted at the San Francisco Mint, according to Kagin. It’s not clear, however, who put them in the ground or how they were obtained, though theories have abounded.

Kagin says people have linked the coins to stagecoach bandit Black Bart, outlaw Jesse James and theft at the San Francisco Mint, but none of the theories has panned out.

What is in the Collection?

The treasure consists of four $5 gold pieces, fifty $10 gold pieces, and 1,373 $20 double eagles. Among the coins that will be on display in the crown jewel of the collection — an 1866-S No Motto $20 gold piece valued at more than $1 million.

How Does this Discovery Compare to Other Coin Find?

Kagin calls this coin to find the largest such discovery in U.S. history. One of the largest previous finds of gold coins was uncovered by construction workers in Jackson, Tennessee, in 1985 and valued at $1 million.

More than 400,000 silver dollars were found in the home of a Reno, Nevada, man who died in 1974 and were later sold intact for $7.3 million.

Gold coins and ingots said to be worth as much as $130 million were recovered in the 1980s from the wreck of the SS Central America.

But historians knew roughly where that gold was because the ship went down off the coast of North Carolina during a hurricane in 1857.

NORTH AMERICA, U.S.A, WORLD

Long-lost Native American Fort of the Norwalk Discovered in Connecticut

Long-lost Native American Fort of the Norwalk Discovered in Connecticut

In the United States in Connecticut, there has been a remarkable discovery that might shift our attitude toward the Native North American Community. A fort believed to have been built by a tribe in the seventeenth century has been unearthed.

The find was made during a construction project and it is regarded as one of the most important discoveries in the north-east in recent years. It is believed that the fort will throw new light on Native American’s first encounters with Europeans and the mysterious Norwalk Indians.

Long-lost Native American Fort

This area of Connecticut was inhabited by an elusive tribe known as the Norwalk Indians. It is believed that they had a fort at the site during the early to the mid-seventeenth century and it was used for defence and trade.

The Norwalk appeared to have had some contact with the Dutch, who seemed to have trade arrangements with the tribe. The tribe later sold land to some English colonists and then they seemed to have disappeared from the pages of history.

In the 19th century, the ruins of an Indian stronghold were described in the area by a local antiquarian and it is believed that the discovery is this long-lost fort.

The site of a 1600s Native American fort in Norwalk, Connecticut being investigated by Archaeological & Historical Services.

Locating the Fort

The discovery of the fort occurred near some busy railroad tracks near the Norwalk River.

The fort was located during an investigation by archaeologists of the area before work began on replacing the 19th century Walker Bridge. This bridge which spans the Norwalk River had become unstable and had caused some trains to be delayed recently.

At present, the fort is being excavated by ‘the Archaeological & Historical Services Inc., a Storrs, Connecticut-based firm’, according to CNY Central. One of the company’s archaeologists, Ross Harper, and other experts are removing artefacts from the site which are being sent to museums for further examination.

AP News reports that the experts believe that the ‘’fort had wooden walls because what appeared to be post holes were found where vertical wood pieces were placed’’.

The walls would have been made of long wooden posts or stakes tightly tied together and may have been reinforced with structures such as galleries or even a watchtower, which are typical in other Native American forts.

Artists’ impression of a Native American fort.

While little remains of the actual fort, because it was constructed from wood, the company has found a treasure trove of artifacts. They have found spear tips, arrows, hatchets, knives, pottery, and wampum. What is intriguing the experts is that they have found items that date up to 3000 years old and they indicate that the site was inhabited for many generations. So far no graves or human remains have been unearthed.

According to VOA News, one of the experts working on the site declared that ‘it’s definitely one of the more important sites, not just for the area but New England in general.”

Attack on Native American Fort in western New York by Samuel de Champlain.

What makes this fort so unique is that there are so few sites from the Native Americans’ encounters with Europeans in the North Eastern seaboard. For this reason, the discovery of the fort has created great excitement among the archaeological and anthropological communities in the US.

Recently a group of experts has toured the site and they are eagerly awaiting the Archaeological & Historical Services Inc report on the site.

The company overseeing the work is collaborating with the ‘Mashantucket Pequots and Mohegans — the two federally recognized tribes in the state’’ report’s  AP News.

In the past Native American tribes have objected to the removal of artefacts from archaeological sites but not on this occasion. The tribes, who may or may not be descended from the Norwalk people called for great sensitivity to be displayed during the excavations of the fort. It is reported by Phys.org that members of the tribe have ‘’actively been working with people on the ground there for over a year to offer their expertise.”

Importance of the fort

The fort in itself is an important find and will allow experts to better understand the nature of Native American settlements during the first encounters with Native Americans. It can also provide some light on how they used goods such as iron and knives which had been unknown prior to the coming of the Europeans.

The site may also provide insights into the enigmatic Norwalk people, their history and why they simply appeared to have vanished from this part of Connecticut.

ENGLAND, EUROPE, WORLD

A couple find £5,000,000 in one of biggest ever treasure hoards

A couple find £5,000,000 in one of biggest ever treasure hoards

In an area in Somerset, in the West of England, a pair of metal detectorists found their existence when they uncovered a hoard of ancient coins worth about 6 million dollars. The historical discovery, which has been deemed to be one of the greatest hidden treasures in the UK, is to be revealed in the British Museum.

These coins could be worth up to £5,000,000 after being dug up in a field in north east Somerset

The 2,571 Anglo-Saxon and Norman coins were unearthed by Adam Staples ‘ and Lisa Grace Treasure hunters when they searched farmland with their trusty metal detectors.

The couples have described the hoard as “stunning” and “absolutely mind-blowing” in an interview with Treasure Hunting Magazine.

Adam Staples and partner Lisa Grace unearthed the ‘once in a lifetime’ find of almost 2,600 ancient coins that date back 1,000 years. Their discovery came on a farm in the northeast of Somerset.

They reported their find to the authorities as required by UK law, and the coins were soon sent to the British Museum for evaluation.

The British Museum has been assessing the find for the past seven months and is due to reveal more information about the coins to the public on Wednesday.

A spokesperson for the institution confirmed to the Daily Mail that the “large hoard” was handed over as possible treasure and that it appears to be “an important discovery.”

Under the UK’s 1996 Treasure Act, if a find is officially declared treasure, it must first be offered for sale to a museum at a price set by the British Museum’s Treasure Valuation Committee. If no museum can raise the money to acquire the coins, they can then be offered for sale at auction.

The owner of the land where the coins were found is entitled to half of the proceeds. The metal detectorists are keeping the exact location of their discovery under wraps, although the trove is called the Chew Valley Hoard after an area in North Somerset.

William the Conqueror (left) and Harold II coins. Photo by Pippa Pearce. Copyright the Trustees of the British Museum.

A coin expert at the London auctioneers Dix Noonan Webb has valued the coins at around £5 million ($6 million).

They include mint-condition silver King Harold II pennies, coins from the reign of William the Conqueror, which could be worth as much as £5,000 ($6,000) each, as well as pieces minted by previously unknown moneyers.

The King Harold II coins are particularly rare due to his short reign. The last Anglo-Saxon king was on the throne for just nine months before he died during the Battle of Hastings in 1066.

The expert said that the hoard may prove too pricey for museums, which might have to launch an appeal for sponsors to raise funds to acquire them.

The coins would have belonged to a wealthy person who probably buried them for safekeeping at some point after the Norman Invasion of 1066 and probably before 1072.

The biggest collection of buried treasure ever discovered in the UK was the Staffordshire Hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold and silver metalwork, but this latest find could worth $1 million more, and have as great or even more historic value.

ASIA, INDIA, WORLD

The Powerful Symbol of the Swastika and its 12,000 Year History

The Powerful Symbol of the Swastika and its 12,000 Year History

The swastika is a sign of the massacres of millions of people and the destructiveness of one of the most despised men on Earth. But it’s not Adolf Hitler who used the symbol first. It was actually utilized by many cultures and continents as a powerful symbol thousands of years before him.

The Swastika has been an important symbol for many thousands of years to the Hindus and Buddhists of India and other Asian countries, but the symbol is still visible in abundance – on temples, buses, taxis, and covers of books.

It was used in Ancient Greece as well and can be found in the ancient city of Troy that existed four thousand years ago.

A swastika is a symbol found in many cultures, with different meanings, drawn in different styles.

The ancient Druids and the Celts also used the symbol, reflected in many artefacts that have been discovered. It was used by Nordic tribes and even early Christians used the swastika as one of their symbols.

For example, the Teutonic Knights, a German medieval military order that became a purely religious Catholic order, used it. But why is this symbol so important and why did Adolf Hitler decide to use it?

The word “swastika” is a Sanskrit word (“svastika”) meaning “It is,” well being,” “good existence,” and “good luck.” However, it is also known by different names in different countries—like “wan” in China, “manji” in Japan, “fylfot” in England, “Hakenkreuz” in Germany and “tetraskelion” or “tetragammadion” in Greece.

Mosaic swastika in excavated Byzantine church in Shavei Tzion (Israel).

A Sanskrit scholar P.R. Sarkar in 1979 said that the deeper meaning of the word is “permanent victory.”

The earliest swastika ever found was uncovered in Mezine, Ukraine, carved on an ivory figurine, which dates an incredible 12,000 years, and one of the earliest cultures that are known to have used the swastika was a Neolithic culture in Southern Europe, in the area that is now Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia, and Herzegovina, known as the Vinca Culture, which dates back around 8,000 years.

In Buddhism, the swastika is a symbol of good fortune, prosperity, abundance, and eternity. It is directly related to Buddha and can be found carved on statues on the soles of his feet and on his heart.  It is said that it contains Buddha’s mind.

Wooden Buddha statue with gamadian (swastika).

On the walls of the Christian catacombs in Rome, the symbol of the swastika appears next to the words “zotiko zotiko,” which means “life of life.” It can also be found on the window openings of the mysterious Lalibela Rock churches of Ethiopia, and in various other churches around the world.

In Nordic Myths, Odin is represented passing through space as a whirling disk or swastika looking down through all worlds. In North America, the swastika was used by the Navajos.

In Ancient Greece, Pythagoras used the swastika under the name “tetraktys,” and it was a symbol linking heaven and Earth, with the right arm pointing to heaven and the left arm pointing to Earth.

The swastika, the Phoenician sun symbol, on the Phoenician Craig-Narget stone in Scotland, and on the robe of a Phoenician high priestess.

It was used by the Phoenicians as a symbol of the sun and it was a sacred symbol used by the priestesses.

How and why did so many diverse countries and cultures, across many eras, use the same symbol and apparently with the same meaning? It is ironic, and unfortunate, that a symbol of life and eternity that was considered sacred for thousands of years has become a symbol of hatred.

ASIA, INDIA, WORLD

Over 67 million-year-old tree fossil found in Shimla district in India

Over 67 million-year-old tree fossil found in Shimla district in India

A tree fossil estimated to be over 67 million years old has been found near Kharapathar in the district, an expert said on Thursday. The fossilised tree belongs to the Mesozoic era, Hari Chauhan, curator of State Museum and a fossil expert who visited the spot, said. The Mesozoic era is the age of dinosaurs, and lasted about 180 million years, from about 250 to 65 million years ago.

Rohru’s Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Chandulal Tahsildar said he found the fossils during a site visit to the area in connection with complaints of illegal filling. He said frequent landslides that the area experienced recently could have brought the fossils to the surface.

“It was during my visit to the place on March 30 that I chanced upon these fossils that obviously seemed to look very old,” he said, adding that the tree stumps were nearly 11×8 feet and elliptical.

Over 67 million-year-old tree fossil found in Shimla district in India
Himachal Pradesh: A tree fossil found in Kharapathar, Shimla district. According to Harish Chauhan, Curator State Museum the fossil belongs to the Mesozoic geological era.

Chauhan, who visited the site, said the discovery could either be tree fossils or geological formations.

“It’s a very important discovery either way,” he said, adding that such fossils, while not uncommon in the Shiwalik ranges, were rare in Himalayan ranges. Similar fossils have been found in Spiti.

“If it’s a tree fossil, it’s very important from the point of view of paleontological studies. And if it’s a geological formation, then it’s a crucial discovery in the field of geological studies,” he said, adding a team of geologists and forest officials would join him in thoroughly searching the area.

Meanwhile, the latest discovery will be protected.

About Fossils :

A fossil is the remains or trace of an ancient living thing. Fossils of animals, plants, or protists occur in sedimentary rock. In a typical fossil, the body form is retained, but the original molecules that made up the body have been replaced by some inorganic materials, such as calcium carbonate (CaCO3) or silica (SiO2). The fossil feels like, and is, made of rock. It has been mineralised or petrified(literally, turned into rock).

A fossil may also be an imprint or impression of a living thing remaining in the fossilised mud of a long-gone age. Some organisms fossilise well, others do not.

The most common fossils are those left behind by organisms that produce hard materials. The hard, calcitic shells of molluscs (such as clams and snails) and of now-rare brachiopods (also known as lampshells) are examples. These sea-dwelling shellfish have produced many fossiliferous (that is, fossil-bearing) chalky layers of limestone in the earth.

Soft-bodied organisms can fossilise in special circumstances: the Ediacaran biota is a good example. The best-known fossils for the general public are those of the giant, prehistoric dinosaurs. The fossilized bones and fossilized tracks of these huge, ancient reptiles can be seen in many museums of natural history and earth science.

The study of fossils by geologists and biologists is known as palaeontology. If the study puts living things in their ecological context it is called paleobiology.

Mesozoic Era  :

The Mesozoic Era is the age of the dinosaurs and lasted almost 180 million years from approximately 250 to 65 million years ago. This era includes 3 well known periods called the Triassic, Jurassic, and cretaceous periods.

A mass extinction marked the beginning and end of the Mesozoic Era. The event that caused the transition from the Paleozoic era to the Mesozoic era was the greatest extinction this earth has seen. This extinction wiped out about 95% of all marine life and 70% of land life. This allowed the dinosaurs to step in and settle into their role as the lords of the earth. The era ended with “The Great Extinction” which marked the end of the dinosaurs as the Cenozoic era began.

Tectonics :

At the beginning of the Mesozoic era, the continents as we know them were joined together as the massive mother continent, Pangaea. It was during the age of the dinosaurs that Pangaea was transformed into the modern continents.

Pangaea became two great continents known as Laurasia and Gondwana and the Atlantic Ocean began to grow. Laurasia eventually split into the continents of North America and Eurasia. Gondwana became the modern continents of South America, Africa, Australia, Antarctica, and the Indian subcontinent, which, after the Mesozoic era, collided with Eurasia forming the Himalayas.

Environment :

The environment was unusually warm and polar ice caps did not yet exist. This played a large part in the evolution and is a key factor behind the flourishing of the dinosaurs.

During the Triassic period, the climate was generally dry, which changed near the Jurassic period as oceans began to rise due to mounting layers of magma covering the seafloor. As a result, flooding overtook many parts of the exposed land.

This allowed the climate to change with increased humidity and it continued that way even into the Cretaceous period. However, the climate began to cool during the Cretaceous although temperatures may have risen again near the end of the Mesozoic.

ENGLAND, EUROPE, WORLD

Unusual Roman Villa Uncovered in Northern England

Unusual Roman Villa Uncovered in Northern England

BBC News reports that a large villa complex with its own bathhouse has been discovered at a construction site in northern England. Keith Emerick of Historic England said the house, which has a circular central room flanked by additional rooms, is the first of its kind to be found in Britain.

Keepmoat Homes, which was hoping to develop a new housing estate in the Eastfield area of the North Yorkshire region, found the ruins of the settlement.

But the importance of the find may well have caused a headache for bosses of the firm, with Historic England saying it’s ‘easily the most important discovery of its kind.

The site will be reburied under a public space in the new housing development

Historians believe they’ve identified a whole complex of buildings. It includes a tower-shaped structure, which is thought to have had rooms and a bathhouse leading from it.

They are continuing to study the site, but so far it’s thought it would have been built by a wealthy landowner and could have become a religious building, a ‘stately home cum – gentleman’s club’, or even a combination of both.

Keith Emerick, inspector of ancient monuments at Historic England, said: ‘One of the descriptions we had was that it is something like a religious building that is almost like a gentleman’s club, there’s a bathhouse as well. So it’s a really interesting hybrid building at the moment.’

He added:

These archaeological remains are a fantastic find and are far more than we ever dreamed of discovering at this site. They are already giving us better knowledge and understanding of Roman Britain.

We are grateful to Keepmoat Homes for their sensitive and professional approach to helping ensure the future conservation of this important historical site.

Emerick told The Guardian: ‘It’s not like a jigsaw, where each new discovery adds to the picture, each new discovery actually gives a twist to the kaleidoscope and changes the picture entirely. This is a really exciting discovery and definitely of national importance.’

Unusual Roman Villa Uncovered in Northern England
The complex of buildings includes a circular room and a bathhouse

Not only is it a first for Britain, but it could also be a first for the whole of the former Roman Empire.

Emerick added: ‘I would say this is one of the most important Roman discoveries in the past decade, actually. Easily.’

Keepmoat Homes have changed the initial plans and will not build on top of the site, but will still build in the area.

Historic England hopes the remains will be accessible to the public in future.

ENGLAND, EUROPE, WORLD

In the UK found children’s shoes which is 600 years old

In the UK found children’s shoes which is 600 years old

A child’s shoe discovered during an excavation in Devon maybe hundreds of years old. When archaeologists discovered the ancient footwear during a dig in Newton Abbot, they were shocked.

The leather shoe, which has been well-preserved in the site’s clay soil, maybe from the 1400s.

The team involved in the dig have voiced their excitement at finding such an everyday object intact after centuries in the ground.

Child’s 600-year-old shoe is found at Newton Abbot
Archaeologists carrying out a dig in the heart of Newton Abbot in Devon have unearthed an ancient leather shoe which could date back to the 1400s

‘It’s this day-to-day stuff which is exciting,’ said Simon Sworn, of Cotswold Archaeology and the site’s senior archaeological project officer.

‘The job is not all about kings under car parks,’ he added.

Along with the shoe, a number of other artifacts have been unearthed at the site.

Other historic treasures include an iron spur from a child’s boot, three wooden barrel bases, and a 27 inch (70 cm) diameter Dartmoor granite millstone, used to grind wheat into flour.

‘We will keep going down until we hit natural geology – or water at the site makes it unsafe,’ added Mr. Sworn. 

The team is hoping to uncover more household artifacts dating back to the 13th century when Newton Abbot was a hastily built new town of its day.

Other historic treasures include an iron spur from a child’s boot, three wooden barrel bases and a 27 inch (70 cm) diameter Dartmoor granite millstone, used to grind wheat into flour (pictured)

Mr. Sworn explained: ‘As the name suggests, Newton Abbot was essentially founded as a medieval new town but there is some evidence for 6th/7th-century activity in the immediate vicinity of the site so we may find earlier remains lurking below the medieval burgage plots.’

He added: ‘We’ve been learning a lot about how the town developed and how it came to be the place we live in – and who the people were who made Newton Abbot what it is today.’

A number of well-preserved wooden barrels were found in waterlogged the clay soil (pictured)
Conditions at the site (pictured) have enabled artifacts to be so well preserved due to a lack of oxygen in the soil

Conditions at the site have enabled artifacts to be so well preserved due to a lack of oxygen in the soil.

The waterlogged conditions have enabled organic materials such as leather and wood, which would have rotted long ago, to last for centuries.

‘I’ve never worked on a site where so much local interest has been shown,’ added Mr Sworn.

He added: ‘A lot of perceptive questions have been asked – and we’ve been happy to answer them.

‘Over the next few weeks, we will gradually peel away the medieval layers and go deeper.’ 

BELIZE, NORTH AMERICA, WORLD

Ancient Mayan pyramid destroyed in Belize by the construction company

Ancient Mayan pyramid destroyed in Belize by the construction company

A construction company in Belize destroyed one of the oldest and most famous Mayan pyramids while digging for crushed rock for a road they were constructing.

Authorities reported that the company was carrying out the work with bulldozers and backhoes, chipping away at the pyramid’s sides until there was barely anything left.

The Belize Institute of Archaeology’s director, Jaime Awe, said the building had been discovered the previous week. The ceremonial center at the Nohmul complex is thought to be at least 2,300 years old, and it is considered the most significant historical site in northern Belize, near the Mexican border.

The pyramid, which stood 65 feet tall, was built around 250 B.C. with hand-cut limestone bricks. The pyramid probably contained living quarters as well as tombs for local residents.
Ancient Mayan pyramid destroyed in Belize by the construction company
The limestone from which the pyramid is made is prized by local contractors for building and repairing.

“It’s a feeling of Incredible disbelief because of the ignorance and the insensitivity … they were using this for road fill,” Awe told AP. “It’s like being punched in the stomach, it’s just so horrendous.”

Nohmul is located in the middle of a privately owned sugar cane field and its structures lacked the tell-tale signs of a restored cultural site – like the evenly trimmed stone borders at the sides.

Yet, Awe said this could not possibly have been an explanation for how the workers had managed not to take note of what they were doing.

The pyramid is 100 feet (30 meters) tall, while the land around it is flat, so making that kind of mistake is difficult to imagine. 

“These guys knew that this was an ancient structure. It’s just bloody laziness”, Awe continued. “Just to realize that the ancient Maya acquired all this building material to erect these buildings, using nothing more than stone tools and quarried the stone, and carried this material on their heads, using tump lines,” he said. 

“To think that today we have modern equipment, that you can go and excavate in a quarry anywhere, but that this company would completely disregard that and completely destroyed this building.

Why can’t these people just go and quarry somewhere that has no cultural significance? It’s mind-boggling.”

An investigation is underway by Belizean police, with criminal charges looking like a possibility. Although the Nohmul complex is situated on private land, the law says that any ruins or monuments of pre-Hispanic origin are exempt from it and are under government protection.

A community organization calling itself the Citizens Organized for Liberty through Action has condemned the demolition of the site as “an obscene example of disrespect for the environment and history.”

Hundreds of Mayan ruins remain in Belize, which is largely covered with jungles and counts around 350,000 people among its population. Although this is not the first case that such lack of regard was employed in Belize, Nohmul is among the largest pyramids ruined by such activities.

Archeologists in the area are outraged and hope to salvage artifacts from the rubble.

Many scientists spoke out against what happened. Arlen Chase, chairman of the Department of Anthropology at the University of Central Florida, told AP that “Archaeologists are disturbed when such things occur, but there is only a very limited infrastructure in Belize that can be applied to cultural heritage management.”

The ’70s and 80’s saw much exploration take place around the Nohmul area, but it is important to understand that more knowledge could still be gained, as scientists say.

And such instances of lazy negligence and destruction of Mayan cultural heritage aren’t limited only to Belize. The remnants of the great Mayan nation are under threat in Mexico, Guatemala, and Honduras as well.   

Francisco Estrada-Belli, a professor of anthropology at Tulane University, said “I don’t think I am exaggerating if I say that every day a Maya mound is being destroyed for construction in one of the countries where the Maya lived.”