Surviving in the Rainforest:
The Realities of Looting in the Rural Villages of El Petén, Guatemala

Tombs with Riches, Tombs with Magic

Since the early exploration years of the Maya Area, problems between the archaeologists and their crews are not uncommon. Sometimes, however, they become difficult to handle when they are the result of the discovery and the following "violation" of a tomb. Many locals still believe that some kind of damnation will punish the first ones to enter a sacred place; that extends even to the persons involved in an excavation. A known case involved some workers of the Proyecto Arqueológico Regional Petexbatún (1994), in south-eastern Petén, where the crews were afraid that the king, buried in the magnificent tomb that was being discovered, would get very angry and eventually punish everyone with a "disgrace". Dr. Juan Antonio Valdés (pers. com.) remembers that he and other archaeologists had to enter the tomb alone because the excavators didn’t want to continue with their job. "After the tomb was opened", he continued, "dark clouds and sudden strong winds reminded me of their beliefs, but I considered that event as a coincidence. However, the experience was so real that it made me think that maybe something unusual was really going on".

Although looters obviously try not to pay attention to these stories, the belief is always present among the local population. One of the most common phenomenon often repeated by both forest workers and looters is an apparition of brilliant lights over sites or mounds. "They can be bright white lights suspended over the mounds that have treasures inside" says Mr. "Delta", "so we know where we have to excavate without the fear of missing the luck". Stories with the same pattern are told by chicleros from their own experiences or those of their friends. Doña Julia, the wife of a forest worker, vividly remembers a beam of fire while sitting one night in a small plaza, near the archaeological site of El Naranjo. According to her descriptions, "it looked like a tall, dancing figure, which emerged from the base of one of the mounds, turned in the air several times, and disappeared in the mound located just a few meters in front of it". After that, she admitted being so afraid that she was unable to go out at night by herself. After her experience, ceramics and other objects were discovered inside the second mound, which only confirmed the witnesses’ beliefs.

Miguel Marín, a former guide of Tikal, and Julián Tot ³⁶   are two of the many people that have seen a "brilliant light that floats over Lake Petén Itzá". This light is well known in all the villages around the lake, and the oldest men often share stories about it. Some of today’s fishermen still notice this "flying object" moving at great speed over the water’s surface, without making any noise. Occasionally, other characteristics are the row of colored lights around the object and the high frequency of sightings from September to November, usually flying down from the top of the hills over the village of San José. Local old men are sure that the reason for these appearances is because the ancient Mayas lived, and therefore were buried, under the villages along the shore. ³⁷ 

Lights are not the only signals for the looter. Human-like shadows moving next to the mounds are also part of the folktales. One belief in particular, however, is the mixture of a legend and the dream pursued by all the looters: the Muñeco de Jade or jade figure. The stories that characterize the figure tend to have the same structure, although witnesses and details change, often with a personal flavor. For most of the people interviewed, ³⁸   this jade figure talks to the looter in his dreams, revealing where the "treasure" is hidden. In a setting that is supposed to be recognized by the potential looter, it usually appears sitting next to a mound or on top of it.

This character, however, doesn’t seem to help all the time. Mr. "Alpha", for example, is one of the chicleros that claims he saw the jade figure in person on one occasion. His version, as follows, matches the stories of the others that witnessed his excitement:

"I was walking en la montaña (in the rainforest) looking for chicozapote trees when I followed a trail that took me to another place with a lot of structures. A Muñeco de Jade was sitting next to one of the mounds, so I grabbed it and went back to the camp. I walked and walked, and always came back to the same mound. Then a voice inside me ordered me to leave the muñeco alone or I would never find my way back. That was it! I left it with all the sadness of my heart and while I walked, I went cutting branches with my machete to mark the trail. I called the others [who were at the camp at the moment], and we all went following the marked trail. We never got to the point. I saw all my marks but there was nothing! Some men were really frightened, so we all ran back to the camp!"  (Translation by the Author).

Several stories like these are part of the local folklore which, through the oral tradition, reflect the cultural context in which they are created, transmitted, and modified. Although I consider the supernatural experiences in archaeological sites as part of the looters’ folklore, it is important to emphasize that the legends, beliefs, and folktales that characterize ancient ruins and objects are not only the patrimony of the ones who loot, but of all the people who are in contact with the sites, the natural environment, and the socio-economic activities where the events take place (in this case the Petén rainforest). Looters and forest workers are the most susceptible to these beliefs, mainly because of their temporary isolation during the seasonal activities.

Chiclero camps can have petenero people as well as tappers from México, Belize, and other parts of Guatemala. Some take their families along, and the camps that need cooks usually hire women. Life in the camps, though temporary, involves social relations that can evolve into something similar to an extended family. Story-telling at the end of the day, jokes, gossip, and casual conversation about the news they were able to get with their short wave radios, are common experiences after a day’s work. Isolation is only interrupted when the muleteers arrive with supplies and to pick up the chicle. If we consider Bascom’s functions of folklore, ³⁹   the tales of amusement and the validation of culture and beliefs could be the main factor that keeps local superstitions alive and continues to maintain the oral tradition of story-telling among a population that still considers their environment the source of food, raw materials, and economic benefits.

Endnotes

36. Don Julián was one of the first workers in the Tikal Project of the University of Pennsylvania and discoverer of Tomb 116 in Temple I. He is now working at the Sylvanus G. Morley Museum of Tikal.

37. This is obvious to the villagers that live around the lake because of the large quantities of Precolumbian ceramics and stone objects that can be found on the ground next to the shore or on their properties. Miguel’s house, like many others, is built over a mound, which was partially destroyed when he built a new bathroom and kitchen.

38. Twenty-five persons were interviewed in regard to this character in particular (chicleros, villagers, contractors, and cooks). Sixteen placed the Muñeco de Jade in dreams, whether they had the experience or not. Of the sixteen, five have dreamed of him and eleven haven’t had any such experience, but have heard the stories from others. Two claim they have seen him at least once in broad daylight during their walks. For the remaining seven, four have heard these stories but don’t believe in them, and three never heard this legend before.

39. For folklorist William Bascom (1954) the four functions of folklore are to provide amusement; validation of culture by justifying institutions, beliefs and attitudes; education; and a way of applying social pressure and exercising social control.

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