a mexican  archaeologist hunting for a royal tomb in a tunnel  beneath a towering pre aztec pyramid has made a discovery that  may have brought him a step closer: liquid mercury in the bowels of teotihuacan, a mysterious ancient city that  was once the largest in the americas, earlier this month sergio gomez found 'large quantities' of the silvery metal in a chamber at  the end of a sacred tunnel sealed for nearly 1,800 years and because of the potential supernatural significance of liquid mercury in ritual ends, deeper into the complex gomez hopes to find the elusive last resting place of a king scroll down for video  hope: mexican archaeologist sergio gomez has been excavating a pre aztec pyramid in teotihuacan, mexico, for six years and came across 'large quantities' of liquid mercury earlier this month  underground: gomez announced on friday that he found the liquid mercury in a chamber at the end of a tunnel (pictured) that had been sealed off for more than 1,800 years  'it's something that completely surprised us,' gomez said at  the entrance to the tunnel below teotihuacan's pyramid of the  plumed serpent, about 30 miles  northeast of mexico city if gomez is right, it could help settle a debate over how power was wielded in teotihuacan, a city boasting massive stone pyramids that was home to as many as 200,000 people and the heart of ancient empire that flourished between 100 and 700 ad some archaeologists believe the toxic element could herald  what would be the first ruler's tomb ever found in teotihuacan,  a contemporary of several ancient maya cities, but so shrouded  in mystery that its inhabitants still have no name unsure why the mercury was put there, gomez says the metal  may have been used to symbolize an underworld river or lake though mercury has previously been uncovered in small amounts at a few maya sites much  further south, it had never been found in teotihuacan mercury was rare in ancient mexico, as it was difficult to mine and prized for its reflective properties archaeologists believe it may  have had a supernatural significance for ritual ends teotihuacan, or 'abode of the gods' in the aztec language of  nahuatl, was distinct from the mayan civilization royalty: gomez said that he is unsure as to why the mercury was in the tunnel (pictured), but he hopes that it will lead him to the tomb of the city's king  digging: national institute of anthropology and history (inah) archaeologists work at a tunnel that may lead to a royal tombs discovered at the ancient city of teotihuacan in 2011 gomez said their findings could lead to settling the debate as to how power was distributed in the city  its  inhabitants left behind no written record, abandoning the city  long before the aztecs came to power in the 14th century spaniards dug at teotihuacan in the 1670s, but rigorous  scientific excavation of the site did not begin until the 1950s gomez's six year slog in the tunnel has already yielded tens  of thousands of artifacts including stone sculptures, fine  jewelry and giant seashells leading to the three chambers the  painstaking excavation has slowed due to extreme humidity, mud,  and now, the need for protective gear to avoid mercury  poisoning george cowgill, a us archaeologist who has spent more than  four decades excavating teotihuacan, says the mercury find  increases the odds of finding a tomb 'but it's still very uncertain, and that is what keeps  everybody in suspense,' he added mexican archaeologist linda manzanilla believes that at its  peak, the city was ruled not by a single king, but a council of  four lords, and that gomez may find the remains of one of them to bolster her argument, she cites the absence of a single  palace or the presence of kings in any of the city's many  murals the excavation of the chambers should be finished by  october, gomez said, with an announcement of findings by the end  of 2015
aztec nearly 1,800 years nahuatl mayan mexican sergio gomez teotihuacan
mexican archaeologist found mercury in chamber of teotihuacan pyramid  the chamber  had been sealed at the end of a tunnel for nearly 1,800 years  because of the potential supernatural significance of liquid mercury in rituals, archaeologist sergio gomez hopes to find king's tomb in pyramid  teotihuacan, or 'abode of the gods' in the aztec language of nahuatl, was distinct from the mayan civilization 