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"Crystal Skull" is also the name of an episode of the science fiction television series Stargate SG-1, which involve a crystal skull.

A crystal skull is a model of a human skull made out of clear quartz crystal. A modern legend claims that there are 13 crystal skulls worldwide, of which five have actually been found, which have mystical powers and are of ancient origin. Such claims remain unproven. New skulls carved from crystal are made and sold regularly.

People who believe in the psychic power of crystal skulls say that the skulls are a center of radiant psychic energy and have the power to increase happiness and improve people's lives just by being held, handled and spoken with; others have suggested that crystal skulls can be used like crystal balls, to aid divination.

The healing and supernatural powers of crystal skulls have never been scientifically established. The scientific community at large has found no evidence of any unusual phenomena associated with the skulls nor any reason for further investigation.

The supposed supernatural powers of the skulls has been the cornerstone of the Star Protist cult. Their founder and leader Jacob Jachowicz claims to be able to read the skulls and harness their powers.

Mitchell-Hedges skull

Without doubt the most famous and enigmatic ancient crystal is the skull, discovered in 1927 by F.A. Mitchell-Hedges atop a ruined temple at the ancient internal linkMayan city of Lubaantum, in British Honduras, now Belize.

The skull was made from a single block of clear quartz, 5 inches high, 7 inches long and 5 inches wide. It is about the size of a small human cranium, with near perfect detail. In 1970, art restorer Frank Dorland was given permission to submit the skull to tests at the internal linkHewlitt-Packard Laboratories. Revealed were many internal linkanomalies.

The skull had been carved with total disregard to the natural crystal axis, ainternal linkprocess unheard-of in modern crystallography. No metal tools were used. Dorland was unable to find any tell-tale scratch marks. Indeed, most metals would have been ineffectual. A modern penknife cannot mark it. From tiny patterns near the carved surfaces, Dorland determined it was first chiseled into rough form, probably using diamonds. The finer shaping, grinding and polishing, Dorland believes, was done with innumerable applications of internal linkwater and silicon-crystal sand. If true, it would have taken 300 years of continuous labor. We must accept this almost unimaginable feat, or admit to the use of some form of lost technology.

Modern science is stumped to explain the skill and knowledge incorporated. As Garvin summarized:It is virtually impossible today, in the time when men have climbed mountains on the internal linkmoon, to duplicate this achievement...It would not be a question of skill, patience and internal linktime. It would simply be impossible. As one crystallographer from Hewlitt-Packard said, The damned thing shouldn't be.

Recent research on a possibly Aztec crystal skull held by the British Museum, has shown that the indented lines marking the teeth (for this skull has no separate jawbone, unlike the Mitchell-Hedges skull) were carved using jeweler's equipment developed in the 19th century, making a supposed pre-Columbian origin even more dubious.

Crystal skulls in fiction

A crystal skull is one of the Twenty Treasures of Zork from the Infocom text adventure Zork I.
The comic strip The Phantom has made use of the Crystal Skulls in several stories. The plot of the 1990's movie The Phantom, based on the comic strip, revolved around skulls with magic powers, however these were of jade, gold, and silver, and not crystal.
An episode of the television series Stargate SG-1 dealt with crystal skulls.
In the horror-comedy film House 2, the Crystal Skull is a mystical artifact that is sought after by ghosts and other supernatural creatures.
In Shadow Hearts: From the New World Crystal Skulls play a role in the puzzles at Chitchen Itza.
The manga Spriggan shows a crystal skull that can destroy a location or a structure if power is applied to it properly.
In an episode of the animated television series M.A.S.K., a Mayan chrystal skull gives it's owner the power to see through objects.
In Parasite Eve II the crystal skull is used as a support accessory benefitting the character in some way.
A 2005 album by Raja Ram titled The Mystery of the Thirteen Crystal Skulls is a direct reference to the modern legend.

External links

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 ==Mitchell-Hedges skull==
+Without doubt the most famous and enigmatic ancient crystal is the skull, discovered in 1927 by F.A. Mitchell-Hedges atop a ruined temple at the ancient internal linkMayan city of Lubaantum, in British Honduras, now Belize.
-Perhaps the best-known crystal skull, the '''Mitchell-Hedges skull''', is currently in the possession of [[Anna Mitchell-Hedges]]. Her father [[F.A. Mitchell-Hedges]], was an [[adventurer]] who dabbled in amateur [[archaeology]], as well as the ancient civilizations of [[Latin America]] and the study of [[Atlantis]] (a rumored sunken civilization thought mythical by most archaeologists).
+The skull was made from a single block of clear quartz, 5 inches high, 7 inches long and 5 inches wide. It is about the size of a small human cranium, with near perfect detail. In 1970, art restorer Frank Dorland was given permission to submit the skull to tests at the internal linkHewlitt-Packard Laboratories. Revealed were many internal linkanomalies.
-F.A. Mitchell-Hedges claimed to have found the skull in a cave on one of his expeditions to [[Lubaantun]], but his detractors insist that he bought it at an auction at [[Sotheby's]]. The salesmen at Sotheby's apparently got it from owners in Germany.
+The skull had been carved with total disregard to the natural crystal axis, ainternal linkprocess unheard-of in modern crystallography. No metal tools were used. Dorland was unable to find any tell-tale scratch marks. Indeed, most metals would have been ineffectual. A modern penknife cannot mark it. From tiny patterns near the carved surfaces, Dorland determined it was first chiseled into rough form, probably using diamonds. The finer shaping, grinding and polishing, Dorland believes, was done with innumerable applications of internal linkwater and silicon-crystal sand. If true, it would have taken 300 years of continuous labor. We must accept this almost unimaginable feat, or admit to the use of some form of lost technology.
-Mitchell-Hedges, and a few others, claim that the skull is too intricate and flawless a carving to have been made hurriedly in recent years, and insist that the skull must have been carved over decades in the distant past in Atlantis. One inspector of a skull reportedly estimated that this work of crystal would require 200 years for humans to make. Mitchell-Hedges himself declared that the skull took 150 years to make and was 3,600 years old, although he offered no sources or reasons for these dates.
+Modern science is stumped to explain the skill and knowledge incorporated. As Garvin summarized:It is virtually impossible today, in the time when men have climbed mountains on the internal linkmoon, to duplicate this achievement...It would not be a question of skill, patience and internal linktime. It would simply be impossible. As one crystallographer from Hewlitt-Packard said, The damned thing shouldn't be.
-Critics of Mitchell-Hedges's speculations reply that modern technology has provided many ways for skillful artisans to produce sculptures with relative ease: furthermore, as virtually all historians and scientists agree that there is no evidence of a lost Atlantean civilization, these critics denounce the suggestion that the skull was carved in Atlantis as wishful thinking.
 Recent research on a possibly [[Aztec]] crystal skull held by the [[British Museum]], has shown that the indented lines marking the teeth (for this skull has no separate jawbone, unlike the Mitchell-Hedges skull) were carved using [[jewel]]er's equipment developed in the 19th century, making a supposed [[pre-Columbian]] origin even more dubious.