Archaeologists in Mexico have stepped up their digging on the remains of a 14,000 year old mammoth that these experts say could shed light on primitive humans. The remains of the wooly mammoth were found near the town of Tultepec during piping work done near the town last year. Since then the archaeologists and other experts have been working as fast as they are delicately able to best preserve the fossilized bones. The mammoth’s remains are now in its new home at the municipal building in the town where the public can see for themselves firsthand the restoration process involving the preserving of the remains of the might wooly beast.
Archaeologists are claiming that the discovery of the remains is one of the most important in the country. The mammoth was discovered cut up into pieces, and this indicates the presence of ancient humans in Mexico as far back as 40,000 years ago. According to Luis Cordoba, the archaeologist in charge of restoring the mammoth’s remains, the mammoth bones seem to be all mixed up and they are not in anatomical order. When the bones were analyzed, the experts reached the conclusion that the animal was partially cut up by hunters and gatherers of that era. It must be remembered that the last woolly mammoth became extinct some 5,000 years ago.
Although the area around modern-day Tultepec is dry, during past eras it was believed that area was lush and with plentiful water supply. In fact, excavation work on the subsoil in the region of Tultepec has revealed new evidence during the mammoth’s lifetime. This mammoth discovery in Tultepec is important because it indirectly indicates the presence of humans some 40,000 years ago. In the case of the Tultepec mammoth, the stratigraphic register in various natural layers have been identified during different excavations. Preliminary investigations have reported that the woolly mammal was around 25 years old, is 11.5 feet or 3.5 meters in height, and 16.5 feet or 5 meters long. It is estimated to have weighed around five tons.
All the experts hope that the remains of the mammoth will be in good enough condition to be assembled and put on display. However, 40,000 years is a very long time in the past and the fragility of the bones requires care and precision. 40,000 years ago is a very considerable period of time and the effect on the bones over such a long period of time has made the bones very sensitive. However, pedagogically, the sediment around the bones and it being found at the bottom of a lake and the level of mud helped to conserve the bones better. In reality, and backed by findings before, Mexico was a hotspot for dinosaur activity in the past. The remains of the asteroid that reportedly hurtled to earth and wiped out the dinosaurs can be seen in the Chicxulub crater of the coast of Yucatan.