The Esperanza Stone was a large (8-feet long) inscribed stone found in the valley of the

Yaqui The Yaqui, Hiaki, or Yoeme, are an Indigenous people of Mexico and Native Americans in the United States, Native American tribe, who speak the Yaqui language, a Uto-Aztecan language. Their primary homelands are in Río Yaqui valley in the no ...

, Mexico. It was discovered and excavated in 1909 by Major F. R. Burnham and Charles Frederick Holder. Esperanza stone 1909

Discovery

The stone was discovered during an expedition in the Yaqui valley.

Description

The stone was "a brown, igneous rock, its longest axis about eight feet, and on the eastern face, which had an angle of about forty-five degrees, was the deep-cut inscription." Symbols on the stone include a

volute A volute is a spiral, scroll-like ornament that forms the basis of the Ionic order, found in the capital of the Ionic column. It was later incorporated into Corinthian order and Composite column capitals. Four are normally to be found on an ...

and a

swastika The swastika (卐 or 卍, ) is a symbol used in various Eurasian religions and cultures, as well as a few Indigenous peoples of Africa, African and Indigenous peoples of the Americas, American cultures. In the Western world, it is widely rec ...

, also found on other stones in Mexico.

Legend

There was a legend that the stone had fallen down out of heaven in times past, and that the carving was by human hands.

Meaning of the symbols

Burnham believed that the symbols were Mayan. Others class them as

Petroglyph A petroglyph is an image created by removing part of a rock surface by incising, picking, carving, or abrading, as a form of rock art. Outside North America, scholars often use terms such as "carving", "engraving", or other descriptions ...

References

{{Reflist Archaeological sites in Sonora Rock art in North America Mesoamerican stelae Prehistoric inscriptions Petroglyphs in Mexico 1909 archaeological discoveries