11 · Proposed writing · Open debate

The Cascajal Block

Sixty-two signs and a lost context

The signs could belong to a very ancient writing, but the circumstances of the discovery leave doubts.

Museum documentation · free public access, no account required.

Specific historical recreation of Sixty-two signs and a lost context, Lomas de Tacamichapa, Veracruz, Mexico, Proposed c. 1000–900 BCE — **DECLARED VISUAL RECONSTRUCTION · EXISTING EDITORIAL RESOURCE · TRACEKEEPERS**
Generated reconstruction · Contextual correspondence
Declared visual reconstruction for museographic context; it is not a photograph of the original nor documentary evidence.

History and context

A concave face of serpentine gathers 62 signs, several repeated and arranged in sequences. Its researchers proposed that they form an Olmec writing from the first millennium BCE, earlier than other known systems on the continent.

The block appeared among debris removed by works, not in an intact stratigraphic excavation. That loss does not invalidate the object, but reduces the certainty of its date and function; moreover, no parallel inscription allows it to be read yet.

The prepared face of the block contains 62 signs, with repetitions and groupings that motivated the proposal of writing. Its arrangement does not imitate a simple decorative strip, but a unique piece does not allow establishing with certainty the reading direction, phonetic values, or language.

The find was recovered among materials removed by works near Lomas de Tacamichapa. The stylistic and ceramic associations support a proposed date at the end of San Lorenzo; however, the loss of stratigraphy obliges, nevertheless, to present the argument alongside its uncertainty.

Evidence and interpretation

Documented fact: the block has 62 signs and was recorded near Lomas de Tacamichapa, associated by materials and style to the final phase of San Lorenzo. Interpretation and caution: its condition as writing and continental primacy were defended in a scientific publication, but the secondary context, the unique piece, and the lack of decipherment maintain debate. Expanded documentation: The serpentine block conserves 62 signs, several repeated, and was published as a possible early Olmec writing associated with c. 1000–900 BCE. Expanded interpretation and caution: Secondary context, absence of comparable texts, and lack of decipherment prevent presenting it as the oldest writing in the Americas without nuance.

Catalogue facts

Narrative date: Proposed c. 1000–900 BCE
Location: Lomas de Tacamichapa, Veracruz, Mexico
Material: Incised serpentine block
Context: Possible early writing and limits of the archaeological context
Curatorial reading: The documented fact and its interpretation appear separately in the evidence block.
Evidence: Archaeological context, materiality and chronology.
Caution: Do not convert stylistic diffusion or contact into political domination.
Documentary coverage: 4 museum, heritage, primary corpus or research sources for this stop.

A SHARED TOPIC, DIFFERENT MOMENTS

Objects connected through time

Follow a topic across the collections. A shared tag is a way to compare objects, not proof that one culture influenced another.

The order uses the midpoint of each approximate date range; ranges can overlap. Spacing does not represent elapsed time. Swipe, scroll or use the arrows. With the sequence focused, use ← / →, Home or End.

You are viewing

Proposed c. 1000–900 BCE

The Cascajal Block

Maya worlds

Proposed dating and discussed context; no confirmed reading of the signs.

Current record

Greenstone8 dated objects

2 / 8In the centre: The Cascajal Block

You can scroll the first group without JavaScript. The other topics are also available below.

Inscriptions

Naqada labels · ca. 3300–3100 BCE · Ancient Egypt
Narmer Palette · ca. 3100 BCE · Ancient Egypt
Ur-Nanshe relief · Mid-3rd millennium BCE · reign of Ur-Nanshe · Sumer
Stele of the Vultures · Towards 2450–2425 BCE · Sumer
Bassetki Statue · Akkadian period · 23rd century BCE · Sumer
Indus seals · ca. 2600–1900 BCE · Indus civilisation
Naram-Sin Stele · Reign of Naram-Sin, 2254–2218 BCE · Sumer
Stele of Hammurabi · Towards 1750 BCE · Sumer
Phaistos Disc · ≈1700–1650 BCE · Greek worlds
Linear A · c. 1700–1500 BCE · Greek worlds
The voice of Ahiram · c. 11th–10th century BCE · Phoenicians
The Cascajal Block · Proposed c. 1000–900 BCE · Maya worlds — You are viewing
Black Obelisk · 825 BCE · Sumer
Astarte from El Carambolo · 8th century BCE · Phoenicians
Astarte from El Carambolo · 8th century BCE · Iberians
Stele of Esarhaddon · 7th century BC C. · 671 campaign BCE · Sumer
Ivory with names · End of the 7th century–first half of the 6th century BCE · Phoenicians
Shabti of Psamtek · 570–526 BCE · Ancient Egypt
Uni was also Astarte · Towards 510 BCE · Etruscans and Rome
Sarcophagus of Eshmunazar · first quarter of the 5th century BCE · Phoenicians
Ezerovo Ring · 5th century BCE · chronology discussed in the bibliography · Thracians
Twenty-six voiceless signs · 5th–4th centuries BCE · Scythians and Saka
The inscription of Pistiros · 4th century BCE · Thracians
Yan knife-money in the Gojoseon sphere · 4th–3rd centuries BCE · Ancient China
Lead tablet · 4th–3rd centuries BCE · Iberians
A coin with the memory of a blade · 323–222 BCE · Gojoseon and early Korea
A sky over the liver · End of the second–beginning of the first century BCE · Etruscans and Rome
Hand of Irulegui · First third of the 1st century BCE · Iberians
Betatun altar · 1st century BCE–1st century CE · Iberians
The date of 292 · 292 CE · Maya worlds
Kilwa coin · 1482–1493 · Bantu-speaking worlds

Without a comparable date (not part of the chronological order):

Cyrus speaks as king of Babylon · After the conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE · Achaemenid Persia
Oracle bones · from ca. 1200 BCE · Ancient China
Writing with gaps · Diverse chronologies · Garamantes

Engraving

Engraved ochre from Blombos · ≈77,000–75,000 years · Prehistory
Altamira · Assemblage ≈36,000–13,000 BP · bison ≈18,400–15,300 cal BP · Prehistory
Lascaux · ≈23,500–21,000 cal BP · debated contextual estimate · Prehistory
Rondelle de Mas-d'Azil · ≈18,000–16,000 years · Prehistory
Lamp from La Mouthe · ≈20,500–13,000 years · Magdalenian framework · Prehistory
Engraved stone from Çakmaktepe · PPNA · site proposal: ≈9600–8800 BCE, provisional · Prehistory
Twin-chambered vessel from Cova de l’Or · Early Neolithic · VI–V millennia BCE · Prehistory
Before Nubia · V–IV millennium BCE · Nubia, Kerma and Kush
Before Gojoseon · Middle Neolithic, c. 4000 BCE · Gojoseon and early Korea
Cylinder seal · c. 3500–3100 BCE · Sumer
Guadancil idol-plaque · 3750–2500 cal BCE · Iberians
Staff of Anta 4 · Late 4th–first half of the 3rd millennium BCE. · Prehistory
Linear A · c. 1700–1500 BCE · Greek worlds
The Cascajal Block · Proposed c. 1000–900 BCE · Maya worlds — You are viewing
Las Limas · c. 1000–600 BCE · Maya worlds
Motagua jade · c. 900–600 BCE · Maya worlds
The Tello Obelisk · c. 800–500 BCE · Pre-Inca cultures
Twenty-six voiceless signs · 5th–4th centuries BCE · Scythians and Saka
The Raimondi Stele · c. 400–200 BCE according to MNAAHP · Pre-Inca cultures
Dove of the Amarejo · 3rd century BCE · Iberians
Urewe vessel · regional range c. 800 BCE–650 CE · Bantu-speaking worlds
Lukasa · 19th–20th centuries · Bantu-speaking worlds

Without a comparable date (not part of the chronological order):

Geometric motifs

Engraved ochre from Blombos · ≈77,000–75,000 years · Prehistory
Rondelle de Mas-d'Azil · ≈18,000–16,000 years · Prehistory
Shigir Idol · C. 10,000 BCE · approximation; debated dating · Prehistory
Before Gojoseon · Middle Neolithic, c. 4000 BCE · Gojoseon and early Korea
Guadancil idol-plaque · 3750–2500 cal BCE · Iberians
Staff of Anta 4 · Late 4th–first half of the 3rd millennium BCE. · Prehistory
Royal Game of Ur · 2600–2400 BCE · Sumer
Phaistos Disc · ≈1700–1650 BCE · Greek worlds
The Cascajal Block · Proposed c. 1000–900 BCE · Maya worlds — You are viewing
The invisible mosaic · c. 900–600 BCE · Maya worlds
Ceramic stand 1010 · 8th–7th centuries BCE · orientalizing · Iberians
Geometry in very fine lines · 3rd–2nd centuries BCE · Gojoseon and early Korea
The Shield that Did Not Fight · Around 350–50 BCE · Celtic worlds

Without a comparable date (not part of the chronological order):

Engraved stone · Before ≈39,000 cal BP · Prehistory
Ishango, without genealogical shortcut · More than 20,000 years; context ca. 25,000–20,000 BP · Batwa / Twa histories

A closer look

About 1 min to read · 1 section. Further reading and sources · free access. Editorial review recorded: September 5, 2026.

Check the surface without inventing a translation

A study disseminated in 2019 combined variable illumination photography, X-ray fluorescence, and electron microscopy to examine Cascajal. The composition proved compatible with serpentine and a uniform patina was recognised. Moulds of the incisions allowed comparing manufacturing traces with Olmec objects of secure archaeological provenance; the new images also improved the drawing of the signs. The authors consider that these results support its authenticity and attribution to the Formative. That conclusion is distinct from decipherment: analysing stone and marks can reinforce an attribution without automatically recovering language, reading direction, or content.

Research · Joshua D. Englehardt and collaborators · Digital Imaging and Archaeometric Analysis of the Cascajal BlockAccess recorded: September 5, 2026.

Sources and references

Expand this information and consult its sources

Did you enjoy this exhibit?

Your opinion helps us improve the museum. You can change it whenever you like.

Loading your rating…

The Cascajal Block

History and context

Evidence and interpretation

Catalogue facts

Objects connected through time

The Cascajal Block

Fu Hao’s burial goods

The Cascajal Block

Las Limas

The invisible mosaic

Motagua jade

Offering 4

La Venta grave goods

Pakal’s grave goods

A closer look

Check the surface without inventing a translation

Sources and references

Did you enjoy this exhibit?