{
  "id": 12895936,
  "title": "The anatomy of Maya sacrifice: An interview with author Vera Tiesler",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/08/the-anatomy-of-maya-sacrifice-an-interview-with-author-vera-tiesler",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-10-08T14:00:41.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Mexico News Daily",
    "slug": "mexico-news-daily",
    "url": "https://mexiconewsdaily.com/culture/science-maya-sacrifice-interview-author-vera-tiesler/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Vera Tiesler is a distinguished Maya expert and anthropological sciences professor at Mexico's Autonomous University of Yucatán. Over her career, she has authored several books on ancient Mesoamerican culture. Tiesler's latest edited work, \"Ritual Violence and Related Body Treatments in Ancient Mesoamerica,\" features contributions from 36 authors. During a recent Q&A, Tiesler delved into her new book, exploring the world of ritual sacrifice and the anatomical precision involved in heart extraction as a sacred ritual practice.\n\nTiesler began studying the subject more than three decades ago, conducting research on cranial and dental modifications across regions. Her work led to encounters with decapitated individuals in major Maya urban centers like Palenque and Calakmul. The marks observed on the bones sparked questions about the method of heart extraction. Through fieldwork, the research team documented cases of individuals sacrificed for the Red Queen and Pakal, revealing cut marks on lower thoracic vertebrae. This discovery revealed the most plausible route for heart extraction: an incision beneath the thorax, directly under the lower rib margin, using a flint or obsidian blade. This anatomically simple approach allowed for the simplest way to reach the heart.\n\nWhile the title of the book implies a focus on ritual violence, Tiesler emphasizes that the book is not solely a forensic account. Instead, it combines forensic evidence with archaeology, iconography, inscriptions, ethnohistory, genetics, isotope analysis, and archaeometry to provide a comprehensive understanding of ritual violence. For example, electron microscopy can be used to examine cut surfaces of stingray spines or obsidian blades found at sacrificial sites. By identifying human red blood cells, muscle remains, or any other human tissue, researchers can determine if objects were indeed used as ritual instruments.\n\nTiesler challenges the negative connotations associated with the English and European terms \"violence\" and \"sacrifice.\" In the Mesoamerican cosmovision, sacrifice is seen as an act of merit-making, debt payments, feeding, nourishment, and sustenance. The act of cutting or opening a person's body was considered to release bodily essences, which were then offered to the gods. The ritual chest opening was likened to the sacred mountain of the Indigenous cosmos, with bloodletting being the primary, sacred offering. In this perspective, the violence was not necessarily driven by hatred, jealousy, or uncontrolled aggression but rather belonged to a distinct set of religious practices.",
  "summary": "Maya expert Vera Tiesler, editor of a new book on ritual sacrifice in Mesoamerica, shares the gory details on how the ancient Maya performed human sacrifices, and why. The post The anatomy of Maya sacrifice: An interview with author Vera Tiesler appeared first on Mexico News Daily",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}