The discovery, announced by Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH), follows the recent decipherment of inscriptions carved on Foundation Rock, a large monument discovered in 2024 at the edge of a waterhole in the Nohoch Mul Group, an area dominated by Cobá’s tallest pyramid.

Although portions of the inscription were eroded, conservation efforts have allowed epigraphers David Stuart (University of Texas at Austin) and Octavio Esparza Olguín (UNAM) to recover key passages. Their readings reveal a series of dates, events, and divine references linked to Cobá’s royal dynasty.

One of the most significant inscriptions corresponds to the Long Count date 9.6.15.6.9 (May 12, 569 AD), tied to the establishment of a political institution known as kaloomte’ at a place called Kehwitznal or “place of the deer mountain,” believed to refer to the Nohoch Mul area.

The monument identifies Ix Ch’ak Ch’een as the central figure of this event, confirming her as a female ruler previously mentioned on Panel 7 and Stelae 26 and 30 at Cobá.

These stelae connect her to major building projects, including the Group D ballcourt and to the completion of a k’atun cycle dated 9.7.0.0.0 (December 8, AD 573 ).