In Mexico, amateur find of ancient 'goddess' stirs calls for more research

A more than 500-year-old life-size statue, discovered on January 1 by locals, that represents an elite woman, possibly a queen, from the Huastec civilization which is famed for its naturalistic sculptures of women, is pictured in Alamo Temapache, in Veracruz state, Mexico January 8, 2021. INAH - National Institute of Anthropology and History/Handout via REUTERS

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - The edge of a mysterious block of limestone began to peak out from the dirt after Cesar Cabrera cleared a stretch of his family farm in Mexico where he wanted to plant watermelon.

Several weeks later, he and five other men carefully hoisted it out of the ground, and found themselves face to face with a life-size statue that had likely been buried for centuries. The accidental archaeologists had made the country's first big find of the year.