British Museum skull is a fake

A crystal skull once thought to be an Aztec death symbol with mystical powers has been proved to be a fake.

The near-life size skull, at the British Museum, acquired a cult following of New Age devotees who thought it was one of 13 skulls that when brought together could predict human destiny.

But scientists said today that its surface was cut and polishedby a rotating wheel - technology not known to the Aztecs of ancient Mexico.

Experts now think the skull was cut from a piece of Brazilian rock crystal by a European jeweller some time in the 19th century and sold to a collector of Central American relics, who then passed it off as genuine. It was sold to the British Museum in 1897 by New York jeweller Tiffany, which is thought to have acquired it from a French collector of Mexican curios.

Professor Ian Freestone of the University of Cardiff said: "When you look at genuine Aztec rock crystals, they have a much gentler polish. This has the hard, polished look you get with modern equipment."