Votive offerings of gold, jade, a turquoise ‘serpent mask’, and other items were recovered from the Sacred Cenoté during the early twentieth century by Edward H. The Sacred Cenoté at Chichen-Itza was a destination for pilgrims who came to give offerings. The victim was cast into the water with other offerings and was believed to emerge alive after three days had elapsed’ ( Joyce 1920, p.262). Early Meso-Americanist Thomas Joyce wrote, in a somewhat contradictory manner from the report made to Charles V, that ‘at Chichen Itza human sacrifice was made to the sacred cenote (natural well), which was supposed to be a place of great sanctity. It was believed that Chac resided at the bottom of the cenoté, referred to as ‘The Well of God’ (Chen-ku). They were all sacrificed during periods of drought to appease the rain God Chac (who is still worshipped by the Maya to this day). The skeletons of several men, women and children have been recovered from the sacred cenoté at Chichen-Itza. Most of those chosen for sacrifice, however, were given up to the rain God during periods of drought ( Krickenberg 1968, p.35). When they recovered their senses, they said that below, there were many people of their nation, men and women, and that they had received them…the people responded to their queries concerning the good and bad year that was in store for their masters.’Īccording to Frederick Peterson ( 1962, p.83), the survival of these sacrificial victims was rare as evidenced by the rewards and honors bestowed upon those lucky few, including being made temporary ruler of certain geographic areas. After the women came up, half dead, fires were built around them and copal was burned before them. At high noon, those that could, cried out loudly and ropes were let down to them. The women being thrown in, unbound, fell into the water with great force and noise. ‘The Lords and principal personages of the land has the custom, after sixty days of abstinence and fasting, of arriving by daybreak at the mouth of the Cenoté and throwing into it Indian women belonging to each of these lords and personages, at the same time telling these women to ask for their masters a year favorable to his particular needs and desires. In 1579, Charles V of Spain received a report from the mayor of Valladolid, located near the cenoté: Today the well is still open with no protection for the unfortunate pilgrim who happens to walk too close to the edge. Located in an open area surrounded by the steaming jungle, the cenoté is of a dark green color with sheer white rock walls. An oval shaped opening in the earth 180 feet across and sixty feet below the lip of the rocky rims, this natural well has been used to connect with the Otherworld for centuries. One of the most famous of the sacred cenotes is the Chichen-Itza Sacred Cenoté in remote Yucatan. While not as well known, a few examples of sacred cenotés and other water features in North and South America are discussed here. While most of the well known sacred wells and waters of the world are found in Europe, the Native Americans also had water sites that they believed to be holy.

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