1-ton Olmec “earth monster” returns home

A colossal Olmec sculpture illegally removed from the archaeological site of Chalcatzingo, south of Mexico City, in 1958 has returned to its hometown. Also known as the Earth Monster, the one-ton sculpture was carved from volcanic rock between 800 and 400 B.C., the heyday of Olmec occupation of Chalcatzingo.

Monument 9 depicts a fantastical creature with a wide open jaws in a cruciform shape with three concentric bands around it and four bromeliad flowers in the corners of the outermost band. At the top of the opening are a pair of slanted eyes with flame eyebrows. There are two raindrops atop each eye. Scholars believe the complex geometric and natural motifs symbolize different planes of existence in Olmec cosmogony, that the design represents a mythological mountain and its cave entrance, a gateway to the underworld, doubling also as the stylized head of a jaguar with open jaws. The bottom of the open mouth is worn, which suggests people may have gone through the hole, that it had ritual use as a sacred passageway.

Founded around 1500 B.C., Chalcatzingo became an major regional ceremonial center for the Olmec culture who built numerous temples, monuments and bas reliefs at the site. Archaeologists have posited the monumental bas reliefs were grouped with symbolic intention and that visitors would walk along a determined route to see the sculptures, leave offerings and perhaps interact with them like crawling through the jaguar mouth of Monument 9.

The site was first explored and documented by archaeologists in the 1930s, but they barely scratched the surface and looters were able to steal and traffic material that had never been officially recorded. Monument 9 was first published in 1968, by which time it was restored and in a private collection in the United States. It had been seen in its fragmentary form 10 years earlier in the yard of a local farmer. Excavations in the 1970s found the disturbed soil where Monument 9 had been looted.

Archaeologists began a concerted investigation of the looting and illegal export of Monument 9 in 2005, but it took years to navigate the complexities of evidence-gathering and legal processes. Finally in 2022, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office Antiquities Trafficking Unit got involved and their investigation into the traffic in Olmec antiquities rediscovered the monument in a private collection in Denver, Colorado. Mexican foreign relations and heritage authorities were able to negotiate repatriation.

On May 19th, 2023, Monument 9 was officially returned to Mexico. Its first stop was the Regional Museum of the Peoples of Morelos in Cuernavaca where it spent 21 months undergoing restoration and stabilization for the final leg of its great journey home.

Moving a one-ton, 1.8-meter-high, and 1.5-meter-wide relief was no small feat. Juan Salvador Miravete Barrios, a museographer with 20 years of experience, described the operation as one of the biggest challenges of his career. With the help of a specialized team and a police escort, the monument made its way across 75 kilometers of winding roads, back to the land where it was first carved 2,500 years ago.

The people of Jantetelco welcomed the ancient artifact with open arms. The return was celebrated with a vibrant procession, complete with traditional dances, copal incense, and joyous cheers. It was as if a long-lost relative had finally come home. The main street was adorned with colorful paper decorations and flowers, reflecting the community’s deep respect for its heritage.

It was unveiled at the newly-renovated Chalcatzingo Museum on February 18th and is now on permanent display.