Tumbaga object from the early classic period, found at altun ha, british honduras (belize)

Excavations at Altun Ha, British Honduras (Belize), have yielded a claw-shaped bead of tumbaga, a gold-copper alloy, occurring as part of an Early Classic offering. Stratigraphic evidence plus radiocarbon dates place the cache at or before A.D. 500, and stylistic elements indicate a source for the bead in the Coclé culture of central Panama.