How does one begin to unravel an enigma such as this; the Mitchell-Hedges Crystal Skull? What messages, secrets, truths or codes are contained within this supreme mystical symbol? Down through the ages these questions surrounding this Skull have confounded both the scientist and mystic alike.
In this overview perhaps a link will be established between the past, present and the future. Or perhaps a bridge will be built between scientific theory and mystical experience. It has been written that when the marriage or blending of these two schools of thought occur, the birthing of a new consciousness on the planet is possible. Allowing for the discovery of truth takes only two things: an open heart and an open mind.
Sometimes referred to as one of the wonders of the world, this Skull is an extraordinarily intriguing object that no expletives can accurately describe. It has a mesmerizing appearance that is both breathtakingly beautiful yet unsettling at the same time.
It is the ancient symbol of death yet sparkles with life. It is like gazing on perfection.
It is one of the world’s largest and most valuable gemstones; the craftsmanship being exquisite in all its facets.
It is anatomically correct – so scientifically accurate that a face can be reconstructed from it; the face of a beautiful, young Mesoamerican woman.
It has realistically carved teeth, the cheekbones are smoothly contoured and the detachable jaw sets perfectly into the cranium.
It has a powerful presence that entrances and hypnotizes those who dare to stare deeply into its penetrating eyes.
As an object, it transcends the cutting-edge of both modern science and ancient traditions.
Theories surrounding the Skull challenge many basic assumptions about the past history of this planet and our own evolution.
It raises questions about how we think about the world, the universe and our place within it.
The Mitchell-Hedges Skull was allegedly found by English explorer F.A. Mitchell-Hedges’ adopted daughter, Anna, in a Mayan pyramid in Lubaantun, Belize (then British Honduras) in 1924.
What was this object doing there? How was it made? This is an object which, according to scientists, simply shouldn’t even exist. Current tools and technology today cannot reproduce this without shattering the quartz.
No wonder the Mitchell-Hedges Crystal Skull is known as ‘the world’s most mysterious artefact’.
This Skull has defied rational explanation and dumbfounded archaeologists, scientists, mystics and art-critics for decades.
Federick Albert Mitchell-Hedges

F.A. Mitchell-Hedges himself poured gasoline on the fire of mystery.
He was an explorer and adventurer who has been called the real-life Indiana Jones. Indeed, a book critic who recently read his autobiography which was published in 1954 said “Indiana Jones isn’t fit to carry this guy’s bags.”
His life ambition was to find evidence of an unknown civilization such as Atlantis. He often scorned armchair archaeologists and textbook scientists who returned the compliment by having Mitchell-Hedges very publicly and humiliatingly branded a Baron Manchausen.
Anna said of him: “My Father’s great love was ancient archaeology. He had a very enquiring and doubtful mind. He liked to find things out about the past and prove them for himself. He questioned the way things were and didn’t ever accept what other people told him.”
Mitchell-Hedge’s motto was “Life without adventure is not life at all.” In his book, he described how he was captured by Pancho Villa and forced to ride with his bandits. Two bullet wounds sustained in a leg injury, eventually led to his death from gangrene, decades later in 1959.
He also fought with Central American rebel leader Lee Christmas, claimed to find Captain Morgan’s treasure chests and discovered and excavated the lost Mayan city of Lubaantun. He caught a man-eating shark and shot a man-eating crocodile. He won the second biggest natural reef in the world (off Belize) in a poker game.
He donated thirty-seven hundred ancient items which now reside in the British Museum and the Heye Foundation’s Museum of the American Indian. In his time, FA owned Queen Marie Antoinette’s mirror, Admiral Nelson’s silver vanity and cutlery set, Cromwell’s leather water bottle and a silver tankard Charles II gave to Nell Gwynn. He also owned the oak wedding chest Henry VIII had given to Catherine of Aragon, along with the Moses Chalice, an Elizabethan clock and the Black Virgin of Kazaan. This Russian icon is now hanging in the Kremlin after being returned to the people of Russia by Pope John-Paul.
But, most fascinating of all, is the Mitchell-Hedges Crystal Skull.
Mitchell-Hedges delighted in showing his friends the Skull while telling them that it was known as ‘the Skull of Doom’. But in his autobiography ‘Danger My Ally’ he is curiously non-committal about the artefact.
“How it came into my possession, I have reason for not revealing.” Is it possible that he was worried a Central American government might demand its return?
FA also said, “It is at least 3,600 years old and according to legend was used by the High Priest of the Maya when performing esoteric rights. When the High Priest willed death, with the help of the skull, death inevitably followed. It has been described as the embodiment of evil. I do not wish to try and explain this phenomenon.”
Not only has the Crystal Skulls’ origin been the subject of much mystery and controversy but its purpose remains unknown as well.
Ironically, The Skull of Doom has also been called The Skull of Doon by the Mayans; “Doon” being a Mayan word for god. When the Skull was found, the local Mayans were awestruck and bowed in reverence. Some were shouting “Our god, our god” and as the word spread throughout the villages, hundreds came to view this long lost icon from their legends and oral traditions.
Legend says that there were originally thirteen life-size human skulls of solid crystal with movable jaws that were said to speak and sing. The number thirteen is significant for many different reasons, one in particular being the sun, moon and the ten planets in our solar system adds up to the number 12. The 13th place is saved for Quetzalcoatl, the serpent god, who will return again to rule all the planets. The Mayan year was made up of 13 months of 20 days. There are thirteen Mayan gods of the upper world.
Is this why the local Mayans shouted, “Our god, our god”? Did they recognize the Skull as a sign for the return of Quetzalcoatl?
The legend says that at a time of great crisis, for humanity, the skulls will be rediscovered and brought back together to reveal their knowledge.
Anna herself called it The Skull of Love because “everyone feels so much love around it”. When she was asked once why her father called it The Skull of Doom, she winked and replied: “He didn’t want anyone to steal it so he made up the story. I think my father took a little pleasure in scaring people when he said “doom”. He was quite the teaser. The Skull is really all about love and healing.”
Mayan Claims
Anna said that Mayan Priests told her that the Crystal Skull was over 100,000 years old and was modelled after the head of a great High Priest with the hopes of preserving his wisdom forever.
Anna also claimed that the Maya had told her that when a Mayan medicine man was getting too old to carry out his duties, a young man was chosen to replace him. The old medicine man would lie down beside the young man and then both would place their hands on the Crystal Skull. Then a High Priest would perform a ceremony during which all the knowledge and wisdom of the old medicine man would be transferred into the young man through the Crystal Skull. The old man would then go to sleep forever. Anna believed that this was the true “Willing of the Death Rite”.
It is also said that the Mayans used the Crystal Skull in healing ceremonies; The High Priest would combine the use of a 52 faceted crystal ball, the sacred numbers of 52 and 9, and the skull to perform the art of magic in removing unwanted, disease-causing spirits.
It is also believed that the crystal Skull was used to light the fire for the Sacred 52 Year Fire Ceremony, marking the beginning and ending of a cycle. If the Skull is left in the sunlight for only a second, a fire will start immediately.
The skull also has two small holes in its base, one either side of the cranium. It’s possible that rods were inserted into these holes allowing for the top part of the skull to be moved in relation to the jaw. In this way it would have been possible to move the Crystal Skull so that it appeared to be talking. Perhaps that was what the Mayan Priest meant when he told Anna it could be “made to talk”.
Descendents of the ancient Maya liken crystal to some sort of radio, TV or computer device. This device could be used to communicate between worlds; a doorway to other dimensions and as a means of communicating with the world of spirits and departed ancestors.
The depth of knowledge and wisdom of the Mayans (indeed, all Indigenous cultures) which has been carried down throughout the ages goes well beyond our scope of understanding. We cannot even begin to assume what their beliefs and practices were in relation to this incredible Crystal Skull.
Anna said “The Maya told me that the skull is important to mankind. It’s a gift from the Maya to the people of the world. They gave us the skull for a definite reason and purpose. I am not exactly sure what that reason is but I know this skull is something very, very important.”
The fact that the Maya might have used the Crystal Skull doesn’t necessarily mean they were the ones that actually created it. It could have been given to the Maya from the civilization before them.
Atlantis
There is no conclusive evidence that a ‘pre-civilization’ such as the mythical Atlantis ever existed. However, it was F.A. Mitchell-Hedges lifetime ambition to find such evidence. He was convinced that the American Indian and the ancient Mayan culture with which the Crystal Skull had been associated, had originated from antediluvian civilization. In an article in the New York American of 31 August 1930, he described Central America as one of the cradles of mankind where existed a people of an antiquity hitherto unsuspected who possessed knowledge that might have been envied by modern man.
Mitchell-Hedges, who had personal knowledge of at least twenty tribes of Indians, believed that the remnants of that ancient culture were still preserved in part today in the myths, legends and esoteric teachings and in tribal rituals and ceremonials. He believed that Atlantis really existed until it was submerged under the Atlantic Ocean and that another legendary continent, Mu, occupied a gigantic area of what is now the Pacific Ocean before it, too vanished under horrendous tidal waves. The peoples of both were said to be red-skinned.
* From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Atlantis (Greek: Ἀτλαντὶς νῆσος, “Island of Atlas”) is the name of an island first mentioned and described by the classical Greek philosopher Plato. According to him this island, lying “beyond the pillars of Hercules”, was a naval power, having conquered many parts of Western Europe and Africa. Soon after a failed invasion of Athens, Atlantis sank in the waves “in a single day and night of misfortune” due to a natural catastrophe which happened 9,000 years before Plato’s time.
The possible existence of Atlantis was actively discussed throughout the classical antiquity, but it was usually rejected and occasionally parodied. While basically unknown during the Middle Ages, the story of Atlantis was rediscovered by Humanists at the very beginning of modern times. Plato’s description inspired the utopian works of several Renaissance writers, like Francis Bacon’s “New Atlantis”. More than ever, Atlantis inspires today’s literature, from science fiction to comic books and movies.
And there are some intriguing possibilities connected with crystal…
Janet Taylor Caldwell wrote her novel ‘The Romance of Atlantis’ when she was just 12 years old in the early 1900’s. She recalls a past time when there was an advanced civilization that used crystals as a means of powering their systems. She wrote it at a time when we had not even heard about atoms, catastrophe or nuclear holocaust, yet all these themes are introduced into her novel. The most harrowing vision is that it chillingly mirrors almost exactly what is happening in our world today.
Her father, a newspaper artist, was amazed by the perception in the manuscript; its detail and insight. He sent it to the child’s grandfather, a book editor, in Philadelphia. The latter, horrified, suggested the manuscript be destroyed immediately. He did not feel that any child could have produced such an unusually mature work, both intellectually and philosophically. The only alternative was that she had borrowed freely elsewhere. In a way, he was right. She had borrowed from the past, not even knowing herself how or what she was remembering.
In her book, the civilization of Atlantis created its own downfall through the flagrant misuse of power. The gloating of all those in power had reached a point where by it was doomed to its own destruction. However, those who were pure of heart were given the greatest gift of all - to enter the rejuvenation chamber which housed a very powerful red crystal. Exposure to the crystal renewed all the cells in the body so that the person could live another 100 years.
Edgar Cayce – known as ‘America’s sleeping prophet’ also speaks about Atlantis and the Great Fire Crystal.
Atlantis has frequently been depicted as an advanced crystal culture, as well as a telepathic culture – both of which tie directly into theories connected to the Mitchell-Hedges Crystal Skull. In fact, many people believe it is a type of Atlantean encyclopedia, where all the information of the time was encoded into it.
According to Dan Winter; an E.T. group that was primarily non-physical decided to leave a repository of knowledge for those who were evolved enough to understand it. This E.T. group created an object that contained within it the sum total of knowledge of the Mind of God as they knew it. They also programmed this object with the history of the universe and all the technology that would ever be necessary.
The E.T. group left the (Mitchell-Hedges) Crystal Skull with the first Atlantean civilization where it was placed in a temple pyramid to be energized by the Atlanteans over many aeons of time.
Those in power tried to use it for negative purposes, not realizing that this magnified and reflected back all their evil deeds and intentions. It has been said that the Crystal Skull was created in such a way that whatever is thought in its presence reflects back, becoming a part of the thinker’s experiences. The Crystal Skull teaches that the physical universe mirrors thoughts.
When Atlantis sank, high priests fleeing the continent brought it to Central America to where the Maya were living. Here, it was used as an object of worship and reverence until the Maya suddenly disappeared from the Earth.
Eventually, the Crystal Skull remained buried in ruins until its discovery in the early part of the 20th Century, when the Crystal Skull allowed itself to be discovered.
The Crystal Skull operates through the trinity of communication; colour, tone, and archetype. When any combination of these three is beamed or visualized in the presence of the Crystal Skull, it opens a program that is coded to a particular frequency resonance.
An infinite number of combinations can be used, any one of which will unlock a program in the Crystal Skull to teach mankind. The left-brain represents language, and the right-brain represents pure thought. The pineal gland of communication balances and translates the left- and right- brains with the use of archetypes.
Archetypes can be geometric shapes, letters, numbers, ancient Hebrew symbols, pictograms, or any combination of these. Colours are also part of the triad with a language all their own. The left-brain is dark, the right-brain is light, and once again, the pineal gland balances and translates this through colours. Tones also represent the trinity of sound, balancing music and silence. In the same way, the Crystal Skull balances the Mind of God and physical reality.
At times, the Crystal Skull becomes non-physical. The Crystal Skull is a bridge between all levels of reality. Anyone who knows the sequences of the trinity of communication becomes all-powerful and omniscient.
Does this Skull represent all humanoids, symbolizing brotherhood and harmony? Was crystal chosen because it represents the highest vibration possible in physical reality; purity, clarity, focusing, and magnification? Does the movable jaw piece symbolize the fact that it was a communication device?
Does it hold the greatest mysteries of life and the universe or does it hold the past history of this planet and the evolution of mankind.
The Native American legend of the 13 crystal skulls
There are many Native American legends that have been handed down for thousands of years. There are variations from the Mayan and Aztec versions of Central America to the Pueblo and Navajo in the South Western United States and also including the Cherokee and Seneca Indian variations from the North Eastern United States. In essence the basic legend is the same.
It states that there are 13 ancient Crystal Skulls. These are the size of real human skulls and have movable jaws enabling them to speak and sing. It is said the Crystal Skulls have encoded within them the origin, purpose and destiny of mankind as well as the answers to all the greatest mysteries of life in the universe.
The legend claims that, one day, all 13 Crystal Skulls will be discovered and brought together and their collective wisdom will be revealed. However, the human race must first be sufficiently evolved, both morally and spiritually so as not to abuse the knowledge.
The Twisted Hairs Society includes members of over 400 different tribes that represent all of North, South and Central America. They tell a more detailed version…
“Long ago North, South and Central America along with the continents that are now called New Zealand and Australia, were all one land mass, all one continent known to our people as ‘Turtle Island’.
The elders of the Twisted Hairs said that in the very beginning there were 12 worlds with human life. The cosmic elders met on a planet called Osiriaconwiya. They met to discuss the plight of the ‘planet of the children’ where we are today. It is called that because it is the least evolved of all the planets with human life. So we are one of a family of 12 planets.
Each of the other planets took the sum total of all their knowledge and encoded it in what can best be described, in modern terms, as a holographic image computer called a crystal skull. These are absolutely flawless, perfect Crystal Skulls. These skulls have moving jaws just like our skulls so they were referred to as ‘the singing skulls’ and the entire configuration was known as ‘the Ark of Osiriaconwiya’. Each Crystal Skull represents a different planet’s knowledge.
The cosmic elders brought the Ark with all its encoded knowledge in order to teach, heal and impart wisdom to the children of Grandmother Earth.
Due to this gift of knowledge, there was a period of great advancement. The cosmic elders found a way to be able to communicate with the people of Earth from their own planets with the assistance of two great domes, one red and the other blue that were located beneath the ocean. And they helped the people of Earth build four great civilizations of Lemuria, Mu, Mieyhun and Atlantis.
To help with the teachings, other Crystal Skulls were created here on Earth and although life-size, their jaws do not move and they are known as ‘the talking skulls’.
The Crystal Skulls were kept inside a pyramid in a formation of tremendous power known as the Ark. The Ark was comprised of the 12 Crystal Skulls from each of the sacred planets kept in a circle with a 13th skull, being the largest; placed in the center. The 13th skull represents the collective consciousness of all the worlds. This ark connects the knowledge of all the sacred planets.
Where does the Mitchell-Hedges Skull fit into this? Could it be one of the 12 Skulls which represent each of the sacred planets, including and possibly Earth, or is it the center Skull which carries the collective knowledge of all worlds?
The travelling people who first carried the Ark of the singing skulls were known as the Olmec. It was taken over in legacy by the Maya and then the Aztecs. But the Aztecs used the power of the Crystal Skulls to control others. They were becoming so powerful and destructive, they had to be stopped. The Ark was still in Teotihuacan when Cortes invaded. He heard of the Ark of the Crystal Skulls and so did the Pope… Cortes wanted the Crystal Skulls more than all the gold and riches of that empire. Although the Ark was hidden underground, Spanish soldiers found it due to a betrayal from within.
As the Spanish were about to seize the Crystal Skulls, jaguar priests and eagle warriors took the skulls and fled with them. And so the 13 Crystal Skulls were separated for the first time in their history.
It is said they will be brought together again when we learn to share with one another, care for one another, teach one another, heal one another and live in peace and harmony with Grandmother Earth.
Another legend even more surprising also exists.
“In the beginning, there was peace on Earth. The people who lived then were not Homo sapiens as we are, but Neanderthals. We call them ‘Earth people’. This was a golden age when people and animals could communicate with each other and lived together in harmony. There are many legends about this period. In some traditions it is referred to as the Garden of Eden.
Scientists have not been able explain the ‘missing link’ in our evolutionary history; or how such a major leap forward happened so quickly. It was precisely the time when the Earth’s population was in crisis and the sky gods (extra-terrestrials) came down from Pleiades, Orion and Sirius. They were looking for a new home on Earth; this beautiful blue-green planet. They brought with them the Crystal Skulls as gifts for the people of Earth. The Crystal Skulls contained all the knowledge of the sky gods; their culture, their math, their science, their astronomy, their philosophy, including their hopes and dreams. Everything they knew was stored in the Crystal Skulls.
The Crystal Skulls also had another function. They were to be the template of a new species.
The extra-terrestrials knew they would not be able to live long in our atmosphere and, just like the Earth people, they were dying. So there was an exchange. The extra-terrestrials spliced the genes of the Earth people together with their own in order to help both species survive in a new and different form from both previous ones.
Humans are now virtually at the same stage of development as our original extra-terrestrial ancestors were with genetic research and development.
The species created was Homo sapiens. The Crystal Skulls were the original blueprint for humanity and this is one of the many ways these vessels contain information of our origin and destiny.
An African tribe, the Dogon, have always maintained that their ancestors came from Sirius which they said had a double star system. No one believed them until telescopes became powerful enough to confirm what they claimed to be true.
Others say we came from Earth. Both are correct. That is why DNA has two strands. Originally one strand contained our Earth memories and the other our celestial heritage memories. Scientists are now close to confirming this.
Possibly one of the reasons why the Crystal Skulls were made of silicon quartz is because silicon was introduced into our genetic structure by the sky gods. Within us is a part of the whole crystalline matrix that can link us to the rest of the universe. Indigenous people have always known the Earth, sun and all the other planets are linked by an enormous crystalline web-like structure. This web is made of sound, light and colour.
Psychic Claims
Ever since the Mitchell-Hedges Crystal Skull was discovered, truly incredible claims have been made about it.
Many people who view it believe it tries to communicate with their subconscious mind. It appears to have an almost hypnotic quality, especially when one dares to gaze deeply into its eyes.
Others who have spent time alone with it claim to have seen or heard things in its presence. On occasion, the Crystal Skull was said to have a distinctive glow like an aura, extending round it.
Many believe that the Crystal Skull is the ultimate crystal ball or oracle. Some have stared deep in its interior and have seen images of the past or future events. It is said that if you ask a question in its presence, the truth will be made known to you.
Indeed, the author Sibley Morrill thought that the Crystal Skull was missing one glaringly obvious feature that all human skulls have, to facilitate this very purpose. Real skulls have suture marks. These are seams formed as the skull grows. They would have been easy to add and created even more realism. Morrill believed they had been intentionally omitted so the Crystal Skull could be used as a crystal oracle.
It is also believed that the Skull acts like a giant mirror or reflector. When you stand before it, the essence of who you really are is reflected back to you. For each person, the experience is a unique one, offering the subjective opportunity and challenge to see where changes can be made in oneself. By bringing ones fears and shadows out in the open a release is experienced; thus beginning a healing process.
Some also feel that this Skull is vibrating at a very high frequency. When one is near it, the frequency of the body tries to match and align with the frequency of the skull. If there is no resistance, the body becomes balanced. Where there is resistance due to the lower frequencies of dis-ease, the body may feel discomfort, hot flashes, shakes, dizziness, etc. These are merely clues to where energy blocks are held within the body.
Others claim to have had solid objects magically manifest in front of the Skull. Some have seen smoke rise off the top of the Skull or have seen the room fill with sparks of energy. Many have heard noises, like the chanting of human voices or high frequency pitches. In fact, so many people have heard the skull ‘talking or singing to them that it is now known as ‘the talking skull’ or ‘the singing skull’ which ties in with the Native American legend.
Frank Dorland, an art restorer who was entrusted by Anna to look after the Crystal Skull from 1964 to 1970 claimed strange phenomena occurred in his home while he had the Skull. The following is an excerpt from his book ‘Holy Ice’ published in 1992.
“Soon, peculiar things started to occur whenever the skull was out of the vault. We noticed that when we were very quiet we could hear soft voices and music. Sometimes there was an odour – an elusive sweet-sour wet fragrance that reminded me of apple-blossom and vinegar mixed with the unmistakable smell of an icy mountain stream. If we put our hands close to the skull, we could feel a tingling like an electric current and there were other times when we clearly saw shapes and shadows moving about inside it.
When I looked at the skull, it seemed to turn cloudy then clear. If I kept gazing at it, scenes would appear with people, buildings, animals, meadows, trails and mountains. Mabel (his wife) also saw many visions within the skull. When we compared our happenings, we found neither of us experienced the same or even similar scenarios.
Anna also had several recollections relating to the Crystal Skull’s psychic power.
A journalist was interviewing Mitchell-Hedges and Anna when they lived at Farley Castle near Reading. The journalist asked to use the toilet and didn’t return. Anna and her father found that the journalist had snuck into another room and picked up the Crystal Skull. He had then been frozen motionless. When Mitchell-Hedges took the Crystal Skull from the journalist’s grasp, he collapsed.
At a dinner party at Farley Castle, Dennis Conan-Doyle, son of Arthur Conan-Doyle, was one of the guests. He claimed to by psychic, as his father was and also claimed that he could feel great power emanating from the Crystal Skull. Always being up for a bit of fun, Mitchell-Hedges and Sammy challenged him to prove his claim. They hid the Crystal Skull in one of Farley Castle’s many rooms and an unusual version of ‘hunt the thimble’ with a twist followed. But Dennis Conan Doyle proved himself right and was able to go straight to where the Crystal Skull was hidden.
When Anna owned the Russian icon, the Black Virgin of Kazan, the American President John F. Kennedy had offered to loan her his presidential jet to transport it back to Russia. On the day JFK was assassinated, Anna noticed water droplets had run down the Crystal Skull like tears.
Carole Davis-Wilson is a psychic who has worked with the police in many countries to try and find missing people. She formed a friendship with Anna who allowed her to work with the Crystal Skull frequently. Carole would go into a trance and channel information via what she called ‘technology of the mind’.
Surprisingly, some of the information the Skull gave her ties in with other theories. The following excerpts are taken from the book The Skull Speaks by Carole Davis and Brian Hadley James, Amhrea Publishing 1985.
This book was the results of many “trance-medium” sessions in the presence of the Mitchell-Hedges Crystal Skull in which the Medium, Carole Davis, answered a variety of questions.
INT: Interviewer
VOICE: The voice of the Crystal Skull, as transmitted through medium Carole Davis
VOICE: The use of this artefact (the Crystal Skull) was to control weather, to control growth, to control personality, to heal, to soothe, to comfort and command. It is not difficult to understand that light refracted through this artefact becomes power. A power source that is well understood.
You would consider this, in your language, to be a “computer,” and when the right vibration is produced, it will give you the information you require.
The earth life of this artefact is seventeen thousand years. It has been handed down from generation to generation; polished with hair and sand. Its true life was as part of the “Great Crystals” of Atlantis, and within it are locked many minds. They, combined with the right vibration, will predict much. The Crystal Skull will also unlock many mysteries, for it is constant and living and it is fed with energies you do not yet understand. But we are willing to show you.
We hear your questions but we can only answer them if you will keep this one thought in mind. How may we help you?
INT: You can help me by giving me information on the origin of the Crystal Skull and the origin of the crystal and perhaps, the geographical location from which the raw crystal, or the Great Crystal, was taken to form the Skull.
VOICE: The origin is the great crystal of Atlantis. We do not take; we cultivated. When we realized there were those who had forgotten their original purpose in incarnation to this dimension and this world, and that there would be a catastrophe, many of us chose to leave behind the legacy of our minds knowing that we would not again reincarnate. We chose to remain in other realms until such time as your knowledge and your seeking and your spiritual progression would turn you toward this path.
The Crystal Skull was well-guarded. It was born of sea and fire: There will be others found, for no one man and no one mind were given all knowledge. When all are placed together, you will be “Keepers” of wondrous knowledge. But the time is not yet. Mankind still seeks to better all the original destruction of our time.
INT: What level of civilization had been attained at the time the Crystal Skull was formed?
VOICE: It was formed by a pre-Mayan civilization. Our level of civilization, at the time, was far in advance of that which you now have by certain factions. We were able to use that which you call your body as a further adjunct of our minds. Much as you would use your hand to grasp, we used the flesh to experience, for the mind cannot fully experience. But that was our downfall. Experiencing isn’t as great as desiring, and soon there were those who were slaves to their own creation, the body, and had forgotten the original thought.
INT: Can you teach certain gifted people the art of healing, or weather prediction and control?
VOICE: Locked within the Crystal Skull is everything you need for healing, weather… growing. It is merely a tapping of energy and, as you know, a crystal is living energy. Yes! It can be awakened in each and every mind.
INT: What are your feelings regarding the suggestion that A Foundation is form to take care of the Crystal Skull instead of it eventually being placed in a museum?
VOICE: This receptacle, the Skull, will not reside in such a place that it cannot be used. This receptacle, along with others, will be used to give pertinent information to the leaders of the world, those you call your scientists, and those you call your healers. If it is placed in the wrong hands, it will destroy itself. Never fear, it has been guarded and guided for many an age. No harm will come to it. This receptacle is a communicator and when the right minds are brought together, regardless of the “informer” (the communicating mind), there are many who can do what this mind does. Our knowledge, crystallized here, will be imparted. Each will be given as each can use and each is needed. No one person, no one mind, no one entity, will be given all.
INT: Is the receptacle through which you are now speaking (the Crystal Skull) accessible through any means other than a human mind? Is there a possible way of using a form of “radio” or other technologically advanced method to access it?
VOICE: We have placed it such that it would take only the vibration known as Love to activate all of these receptacles. We did not place it here so that ‘mechanics” could release the information, for that would mean it would be information released to all who came into contact with it. No, you would not be able to get such information merely by activating it with mechanical means. It has to be a mind that has been programmed to be of help within the Earth’s years, within the changes, and it has to be activated by empathy or, again this strange word for “energy” you use, Love.
INT: What is the difference between your trance-state here, using the Crystal Skull as a receptacle, and any other “trance-medium” state? Isn’t the same information accessible whether you are with the skull or not?
VOICE: We have put “Thought Form” into pure language within the Crystal Skull. This way it is easier for mind to attach to mind. Indeed, were the right “Thought Form” not placed within the area of the Skull it would simply be a work of art.
It is our belief that you, within the Third Dimension, need to see, to hear, and to touch. It is then asked that if you eliminate the need to see, to hear, and to touch then we have proven to the mind, to the transmitter, that we are such as we claim to be. We are then not needed to put anything within crystallized form.
Here you have the essence of computer and the essence of those which “program” and then transcribe it.
Yes, we understand your asking, “Could not the same be done without the receptacle”? But this is where you run into the difficulty of ‘personality” and pre-conceived ideas come into play. Here we are able to overrule the personality and, indeed, pass on information which the personality may disagree with.
INT: This question concerns “Vocabulary”. What is the range of your vocabulary, and is it determined by the mind of the Medium or by those brought to you?
VOICE: When information was relegated to this receptacle, you must understand that it was not programmed with a vocabulary. It was programmed with pure information. Therefore, it was processed into a language which would be hidden and concealed until the time when it would be of benefit to those seeking. Therefore, you must understand that the vocabulary, both in the receiver and to those who would put it into dimension, was taken into account.
INT: Do you have any other information to give us at this time?
VOICE: Receptacles are placed in the four corners of your earth, within the four pillars of your earth, within the seven seas of your earth, and we ask you to think on receiving of emanations. This will activate the “life-force” within the crystal receptacles and, as you know, “like-mind” attracts “like-mind”.
Should you seek, then the Teachers will come to you. You will have to be the seeker. We ask you to “think out”, for even now we activate all crystal receptacles. We are activating all of the “Receptacles of the Mind” that they might, at this time and in this space, be used for the betterment and the collectiveness of “one mind” of your small dark earth.
We came and we left, but before we left those of us who had come as we were bidden left a small part of our Intelligence that it might benefit in time of great tragedy upon your earth. The tragedy is not the destruction of the material world; the tragedy is the separation from One-ness. Seek now to join, for the receptacle seeks to find you. Open your mind and it will be within your hands’ to grasp.
Scientific Tests and Appraisal
In October of 1964, art conservator, restorer and expert on religious icons, Frank Dorland was given permission by Anna Mitchell-Hedges to conduct six years of testing and experiments on the crystal skull. The results from his studies were published in the book “Holy Ice, Bridge to the Subconscious”.
Hewlett-Packard is the world’s leading manufacturer of computers and other electronic equipment. It is a major electronics company of international reputation, located just south of San Francisco in the famous Silicon Valley. Dorland arranged to visit them, and, in November 1970, took the skull to their facilities in Santa Clara for testing. HP uses crystals in a whole range of electronic devices. Their scientists are therefore not only experts in computer technology but also on the physical, technical and scientific properties of crystal.
The results surprised everyone, except perhaps Anna - and Mitchell-Hedges watching from above.
An unusual feature of the Mitchell-Hedges skull is its removable jawbone. If we were to suppose that the jawbone had originally been attached and part of the skull and then later cut loose, it would be of major importance. This stems from the fact that to cut the jawbone loose from the skull and carve it to shape would be many times more difficult than merely carving a separate jawbone from another chunk of crystal.
Not only would it have been unimaginably difficult and hazardous to cut the jawbone from the skull, but also there was the implication that the skull was a major religious object requiring the utmost care, regardless of time or cost. Dorland’s research had to determine whether the jaw piece was originally a part of the solid block of crystal from which the skull was carved.
The skull was immersed in a tank of benzyl alcohol which closely matches the refractive index of quartz crystal. The tank had glass sides to allow light projection and viewing. The skull was barely visible, because when crystal is immersed in a matching refractive liquid it tends to become invisible. Polarized light was then projected through the tank and skull, and viewing was done through a polarized screen. Wavy stress lines could be seen easily throughout the face of the skull and jawbone, which resembled moiré patterns.
The lines went from the skull to the jaw piece in a perfect continuation of pattern without the slightest flaw or mismatch. There was no possible doubt. The jaw piece was once an integral part of the skull and was later cut loose so it could be a separate piece.
The presence of the veils also revealed something else quite remarkable about the crystal skull. Given its size, unusually large for a natural piece of quartz, some had suspected that the skull had been made from several pieces of crystal carefully pieced together. But the polarized light test proved beyond doubt not only that the main cranium was made from only one piece of crystal, but also that the detachable jaw-bone was carved from exactly the same piece of rock crystal.
The investigating team was absolutely astonished by this for pure quartz crystal is one of the hardest materials in the world. On the Mohs scale of hardness, used by gemologists, it is only slightly softer than diamond. This makes rock crystal an incredibly difficult material to carve, particularly given that it is also somewhat brittle and has a tendency to shatter.
The workmanship on the skull was so exquisite the team estimated that even if the carvers had used today’s electrically powered tools with diamond tips, it would have taken at least a year to carve such an incredible object. But the team concluded something even more surprising than this. They felt that it would have been almost impossible to make such an exquisitely carved object using any known type of modern diamond-tipped power tool. This is because the vibration, heat and friction produced by such tools on such a delicate object as the lower jaw would actually have caused the skull to shatter – a fact which apparently led one member of the team to comment, “This skull shouldn’t even exist!”
But the original investigating team’s belief that the skull had not been made with modern tools was more than just a hunch. It was borne out by further tests. Even under extreme magnification of the surface of the skull there was no evidence of modern tool markings, no evidence of the usual tool ‘chatter’ or the tell-tale pattern of repetitive parallel scratch marks. Given that any such markings would have been extremely difficult to remove, these findings seemed to confirm what the team had already begun to suspect – that the crystal skull had actually been made by hand or by some advanced machine or tool we are unaware of.
This was phenomenal, as the only hand-carving techniques for crystal currently known take an incredible length of time. The scientists could only assume that the skull had been carved by slowly and patiently rubbing the original block of quartz down by hand, probably using a mixture of river sand and water. Even with the use of copper rods or hand-held carving ‘bows’, the team concluded that the crystal skull must have taken several generations of effort to carve! Whilst the precise length of time this had taken was impossible to confirm, the Hewlett-Packard staff magazine Measure put the nearest estimate at ‘300 man-years of effort’!
However, it was absolutely impossible for the scientists to tell exactly when this had been done. Quartz crystal does not age. It does not corrode, erode, decay or change in any way with time. This is actually one of the many unusual properties of quartz that makes it so vital to the modern electronics industry, but it also makes it impossible to carbon date. With other materials, even if there are no visible signs of aging, as in the case of the crystal skull, scientists can usually work out very accurately both the age of the original material and any workmanship thereon by measuring the degree of radioactive decay in the carbon atoms of which it is comprised. When you are dealing with quartz crystal, however, this is just not possible, for it contains no carbon atoms, just silicon and oxygen.
So, for all the team’s scientific knowledge, up-to-the-minute technology and specialist expertise, there was absolutely no way of knowing how old the crystal skull really is. It could have been hundreds or even billions of years old. For all the scientists know it can be as old as the Earth itself, or even older. It can even date back to the beginning of time.
Other studies by Dorland show that the zygomatic arches (the arch of the bone that extends along the front or side of the skull) are relieved and separated from the skull itself. These arches, using principles amazingly similar to our modern optic technology, act as ‘light pipes’ to channel light from the base of the skull into the excavated eye sockets. Here they terminate in miniature concave lenses that focus the beam to the rear of the sockets themselves.
The scientists at Hewlett-Packard were able to uncover one more potential clue to the mystery of the crystal skull. Other tests showed that the skull was not only made from a single piece of natural quartz, but from ‘piezo-electric’ silicon dioxide, precisely the type of naturally occurring quartz that is so widely used in modern electronics.
The piezo-electric properties of some kinds of quartz were only discovered towards the end of the nineteenth century by Marie Curie’s husband and brother-in-law, Pierre and Jacques Curie. Piezo is Greek, meaning ‘to squeeze’, and electrose means ‘to get a charge from’. The fact that the crystal skull is made from this type of quartz means that it actually has a positive and negative polarity, just like a battery. It also means that if you apply pressure to the skull, or ‘squeeze’ it, it is actually capable of generating electricity! Alternatively, if you apply an electric charge to the crystal skull it actually changes its shape, without in any way affecting its mass or density.
The Hewlett-Packard team also examined the skull’s unusual optical properties, such as its ability to channel light impinging the skull from below, so that it is focused out through the eye sockets. Apparently, this is only possible due to the orientation of the skull’s optical axis, as quartz crystal has an optical as well as an electrical axis. What this means is that the light actually travels quicker through the skull in one direction than another. If you shine directional, or polarized, light at the skull, not only does the light pass along its optical axis quicker than in any other direction, but the skull actually rotates that light as it travels along its axis.
Another characteristic of the skull is that it is incredibly environmentally stable. This is another of the properties of piezo-electric silicon dioxide that makes it so invaluable for use in modern electronics. What this means is that the crystal skull is highly resistant to chemical changes. Most similar natural materials are slowly attacked by various chemicals, whether acids or even just plain water. The crystal skull, on the other hand, is resistant to chemicals.
In other words, crystal, unlike other materials, has an amazing ability to hold electrical energy under control and to oscillate at a constant and precise frequency. In theory at least, the crystal skull may actually be able to hold electrical energy, potentially a form of information, and send out electrical impulses, or vibrating waves of information.
Crystal has been at the core of the biggest technical revolution that totally changed our world. Is it just coincidence that the Crystal Skull is made of precisely the same type of quartz whose properties we have only relatively recently recognized and the full potential of which we might not yet know.
Facial Reconstruction

One way to put a legitimate face on the crystal skull is through a science known as forensic reconstruction, which has been defined as creating a portrait indicating the original appearance of a former person. The portrait is built on the foundation of the skull or its remnants. This science has made great advances in the last few years and has reached high levels of legal acceptance due to incredible accuracy.
In this connection, Frank Joseph, a historical writer in Olympia Fields, Illinois contacted Dorland in 1986. Joseph suggested showing a model of the skull to Dr. Clyde Snow, who is a renowned physical anthropologist at the University of Oklahoma. Snow’s comments would have been of great help, so Dorland gladly shipped his plaster cast of the crystal skull to Joseph so he could proceed with Snow on the project.
Joseph reported that Snow minutely examined the cast and, after careful deliberations, stated the skull was definitely not simply an artist’s conception of a skull, as many had claimed. Quite the contrary, the skull was a carefully made copy of an actual skull of a young female being. This classification by Snow added fuel to Joseph’s project, and he was even more intent to find a top forensic scientist who would undertake a reconstruction of the face on the skull.
Months later, Dorland received a telephone call from Joseph who told him that he found what may be the top forensic team today. Furthermore, they agreed to make a preliminary study to determine if they could sensibly go ahead with a facial reconstruction.
The team was Peggy C. Cadwell, collaborator with the anthropology department of the Smithsonian Institute, and detective Frank J. Domingo, composite artist with the New York police. Joseph forwarded the plaster cast to them while Dorland sent a set of 8” x 10” glossy photographs of the skull to help them in their work.
In due time, Dorland received a report of the preliminary examination, which disclosed that the skull was a copy of a real skull of a young female of the Mongoloid race who was between the ages of 25 and 29. Mongoloids are a major racial group distinguished by classification according to physical features. This group centers on the Pacific Ocean and includes the Malayan, Northern and Southern Chinese, Mongolian, Siberian, Eskimo, and American Indian. The team could now proceed with the actual reconstruction of the face, which would have been pointless if the skull had turned out to be merely an artist’s conception.
The actual facial building process is quite detailed and lengthy. A simple explanation might indicate that known anatomical reference points and the tables of various depths of soft tissue are carefully followed. The layers of muscle, flesh and skin are laid over the bare skull until the facial features are finally complete.
Chris Morton an independent filmmaker, who also investigated the Mitchell-Hedges Crystal Skull, gave photos of the Skull to Richard Neave, a medical and forensic expert at the University of Manchester’s Department of Art and Medicine.
From the photos, Richard drew a surprisingly similar sketch of a Native American woman. She may have been Mayan but she could also have been Chinook, Sioux or Cherokee or any one of the American tribes.
Authenticity
The British Museum and Trocadero Museum in France both have Crystal Skulls. Neither have detachable jawbones and both are noticeably far inferior; both in the purity of their crystal and in their craftsmanship. Both were once owned by Eugene Boban who was a leading French collector and antiquarian and owned antique shops both in Paris and Mexico City. He had been appointed by Napoleon III to work in the French Scientific Commission sent to Mexico during the French occupation of the country in 1862. He wrote of the abundance of fakes and forgeries and his intention to unmask them.
The French crystal skull was donated by Alphonse Pinart in 1878, who had bought it from Boban, who had claimed it was pre-Hispanic in origin.
Just three years later Boban tried to sell another Crystal Skull. His sales catalogue described it as ‘a masterpiece of lapidary art’. Interestingly, it was described as Central American in origin or even ancient. At 3,500 French franks it was the most expensive item in the catalogue and didn’t sell.
Boban tried unsuccessfully to sell the Crystal Skull to the National Museum of Mexico and then to the Smithsonian Institution in Washington.
The British Museum has now confirmed that this is the Crystal Skull they purchased from Tiffany & Co in 1897. Recent tests have revealed parallel scratch marks from a jeweller’s wheel and it was believed to have been made in the middle 1800’s in the German town of Idar-Oberstein – known for its mineral carving since the 16th century and, indeed, it still is today.
The source of the quartz would have been Brazil where it was imported from. However, the most likely source of the Mitchell-Hedges Crystal Skull is California.
The Germans would not have carved it against the grain as they would know it was likely to shatter and there was no point in doing so.
They are not known to have produced a Crystal Skull with a detachable jawbone. This would require tremendous skill that is not shown in any other pieces they produced. Such a craftsman’s work would be much in demand and many other pieces would be known even if the objects weren’t Crystal Skulls.
If the Crystal Skull was produced in the 1800’s there would be little point in producing the object so a lighted flame held underneath it could shine out the eye-sockets. No one knew it could do this until Frank Dorland discovered it by accident in the 1960’s. The same applies to the movable jaw. It’s a lot of extra work which would not have noticeably increased its commercial value.
The carver would have been aware that such extra intricate work would have been likely to have shattered the item which would have already taken him at least a year to carve.
There is no record whatsoever of the Mitchell-Hedges Crystal Skull until Anna’s claim to have found it in 1924. Surely such an unusual object would have been displayed or used in some way that it would have become widely known.
Portals and Grids
We can’t explore Crystal Skulls without a brief discussion of energy portals and grids. The following is an excerpt from the book Earth by Barbara Marciniak.
All time is simultaneous. A planet has layers of energy grids around it that allow it to be experienced from its various time frames. In order to enter a planetary body, you must discover the portals or openings that take you to the realities of the planet where sentient life exists. You can land on a world and it can look completely empty to you if you don’t go through a portal. By going through a portal, you access all of the different realities and time frames and corridors that run off this portal. So someone can come back to an Earth that existed two hundred or five hundred years ago – these realities exist.
Layer upon layer of grid works surround worlds. As these grid works are shifted and moved, they create different realities and different energies. When you move or shift the grids and pass through a portal, you are able to enter worlds of past, present, and future simultaneously.
Portals are protective devices that are put around planets. The ownership, creation, or making of a portal is an awesome task. There is a frequency energy that must be maintained to hold that portal open. There are many portals on Earth. We will speak of a few. There is one in the Mexico/Central America area. There is one in Sinai, and there is one over Tibet. These are three major portals through which energies come and depart the planet. Ancient crystal skulls are often discovered or kept in portal areas. When people maintain guardianship and ownership of a portal, they also have the ability to access the corridors of time……
The Skull Today
Since Anna passed away in April of 2007, the Skull has had the opportunity to interact with people in a way that has never been done before. Intensive overnight workshops were organized so that people would have the time necessary to really connect on a deep and personal level. These workshop experiences incorporated meditation, sound, movement, light and ceremony.
With each workshop it was made apparent that much more was going on beneath the surface…that the Skull was also directing energy with a clear intention totally independent from what the attendees were experiencing. In other words, there appeared to be a micro-cosmic and macro-cosmic plan being played out.
The Skull became activated and more ‘alive’ moment by moment. The workshops were held in major vortex and portal areas allowing for maximum energetic shifts to occur in the Earth’s grid. At one workshop in particular, many other Skulls were present and placed in an ark formation. This powerful formula, which was the placement of 12 groups of skulls around the one (Mitchell-Hedges Skull), allowed for total activation and communication between all of skulls present.
The Skull appears to have an agenda all its own. Doors open very quickly when it wants to be somewhere ‘working’. On the flip side, plans are thwarted in midstream when the Skull is not in alignment with the arrangements. The teaching is ‘lose the control and go with the flow’.
Conclusion
The fascination and mystery surrounding this Crystal Skull leaves us filled with more questions and wonder as to its origin, purpose and future path.
Is it the ultimate tool and stepping stone delivering the Earth and her children to the greater truth which adheres to the wisdom that we are much more than we ever thought we were?
As we step into our own crystalline nature, do we collectively fulfil a promise which carries hope to a brighter future?
As we reach out to these magnificent tools, does a communication doorway open bridging all knowledge and wisdom from past to present to future?
These possibilities offer the proverbial quantum leap from duality consciousness (black/white, right/wrong) to unity consciousness (love, compassion/heart connection). The mastery of this leap creates the potential to move from the human to the cosmic human.
If this Skull clearly mirrors who we are and if we are willing to journey deep within to explore, does this somehow assist all of mankind as part of our next evolutionary step?
The Mayans and Hopi believe that we are at the end of the 4th world cycle and about to enter the 5th. It is not surprising then that these Skulls are beginning to activate and work together as never before. This is a great clue that perhaps we are on the right track and that the time has arrived.
They also tell us that these Skulls are living beings and that they are our teachers. They ask that we learn to love ourselves, so that we are then able embrace others more fully.
Many Native Americans believe that communication between the human mind and crystal is not only possible but is an essential leap to enable us to escape the confines of our own purely physical dimension and transcend the boundaries of time and space
The strength of the circle or ‘ark’ is needed now more than ever. Perhaps the Mitchell-Hedges Skull of Love represents the planet Earth and all her potential as she ascends to connect with her cosmic family.
Tags: Arthur Conan Doyle | Atlantis | crystal skull | Frank Dorland | Hewlett-Packard | Mitchell-Hedges | Mitchell-Hedges skull | psychic abilities | Quetzalcoatl