Crystal Skulls are Skullduggery

This summer, the movie world was stunned into excitement when Indiana Jones returned to hunt down mystical crystal skulls in his latest movie, "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skulls". Well, people were apparently even more excited when they realized that there actually were crystal skulls in existance and that they could see them. However, it appears that the joke was on them, and the rest of us as well. In what can only be described as the best sort of misdirection and tall tales, three crystal skulls at museums in the United States, France and England have recently been declared fakes.

So what's the big deal? Well, the story went that these skulls, acquired at various times over the past century, were actually artifacts of a long since vanished race of Mesoamerican craftsmen. The legend surrounding them was that there were apparently 12 of them and if all 12 were brought together with the mythical 13th, then it would help stave off the doomsday that is currently scheduled for December 21, 2012 (or 12/21/12). This date for a possible doomsday was set according to Mayan calendar and it lent a mythical and somewhat significant air to the skulls that had thus far been acquired. After George Lucas used them as the Macguffin device for his latest cinematic adventure, there was tremendous eagerness to see these skulls which had long been touted as authentic artifacts from the past. This was despite the fact that the skulls had a bit of a spotty past.

It turns out that on further investigation, scientists found carving marks inconsistant with something that was supposedly carved at the height of Mayan power. In fact, the skull at the Smithsonian (which was acquired in the early 1960's) shows signs of having been manufactured up to a decade before it was sold to the museum. Similar signs have been found on the skulls in France and England and although those skulls are somewhat older, they are not old enough to have been made by actual Mayan hands. Unless the craftsman's name was Maya, I'm afraid that's as close as anyone is going to get those skulls to being 'Mayan'. I find it disappointing that this turns out to be the case. I'm a lover of history and I find the study of artifacts from our past is a window into how mankind has developed.

Some could argue that the skulls, had they been authentic, would still have been a mystery and would have remained one for many years to come and though that's true, I think such artifacts only serve to pique the curiousity of all people. Why are we so fascinated by things in museums? Because some of them are surrounded by mystery or reverence. Who used these things, where did they come from, why were they designed this way? These are all questions that these mysterious objects serve to elicit and helps bring the past alive in our imaginations. There is some part of each and every one of us that has a secret hope that perhaps someday there will be some massive revelation about some of the mysteries that dot our planet.

From Stonehenge to the crystal skulls, there are tons of things out there that have made man curious for a long time and it appears that in this case, the crystal skulls have turned out to be nothing more than a wild goose chase. Perhaps the Mayans really did have crystal skulls or perhaps it was just a story some writer before George Lucas came up with as a means of selling of his morbid attempt at pop art. Indeed, records indicate that the skulls that have been found to be fakes were in the collection of a French collector named Eugene Boban Duverge and were sold on to various places. There was some credence to them being authentic at the time due to the fact that Boban had nearly 2,000 pre-Columbian artifacts. I guess the assumption was that if someone who has such a love for the time period, they must be real. I guess he maybe knew something the rest of us chose to take at face value for a long time. Oh well, if George Lucas needs props for the next Indiana Jones sequel, he knows where to find some.