Lost Gold of the Aztecs (2022–…): Season 1, Episode 2 - Buried Below - full transcript

Are you wondering how healthy the food you are eating is? Check it - foodval.com
---
Tonight on
"Lost Gold of the Aztecs"...

Hang on, hang on, hang on.
Don't move.

That's an edge of a coin.

I'm looking for certainty
in what this object is.

- All right.
- Oh, ho, ho, ho.

You gotta be kidding me.

This definitely tangible
evidence we're in the right spot.

We have got a
connection to the Aztecs.

Why is it dead in that tunnel?

500 years ago,
the Aztecs possessed

one of the greatest treasures
the world has ever seen.



Word of this treasure
attracted the attention

of the Spanish conquistadors,

but when they came for
the gold, it was already gone,

hidden by Emperor Montezuma
in locations throughout

what is now the
American Southwest.

Now three treasure hunting teams

all with different approaches

are closing in on
what they believe

is the location of
the lost Aztec gold.

This right here is
definitely manmade activity.

The Dillmans are
following a trail

blazed by the research
of their grandfather.

I believe it's my destiny
to find it for the family.

The Villescas are
treasure seekers



descended from
Spanish conquistadors.

They believe the
Spanish found the gold...

- All right. Here we go.
- And melted it into bars

hidden throughout the
American Southwest.

If anybody's
gonna find it, it's gonna be us.

And finally, the Hoaglands.

Fire in the hole!

They believe the treasure
is hidden inside mines

along well known
Aztec trade routes.

Anything happens,
be ready to go.

- Decades of searching...
- That's old as hell.

Three different theories.

That's what
I do. I go find stuff.

Which one of these
teams will be proven right

and be the first to find
the lost gold of the Aztecs?

TC, just checking on
you, man, making sure

you're in position and ready
for that tracing dye to show up.

I'm in position at
cave five right now.

All right, gotcha.

In southwestern Utah,

Dan Dillman, his wife
Gina, and son Derrick

are continuing a
56-year family journey

to find the lost Aztec gold.

I'm convinced this is the location that
Grandpa had left for us to investigate.

Dan's late grandfather Raymond
spent decades researching the lost gold,

capturing his theories in hundreds
of notebooks and recordings.

When my grandfather
passed away in 1992,

he passed all of his research on to
my Uncle Johnny and my Uncle Paul.

And my Uncle Paul
recently passed away,

and of course it went on to me.

Raymond's research has
led Dan to Cave Lakes Canyon

to a place known as Shadow Cave.

After diving the cave, they
discovered a pictograph

and a set of mysterious
stone pillars by a spring.

What's that right there?

A spring that his grandfather's
research predicted

would be the first step to reveal
the location of the lost gold.

Tom, how 'bout you? Any
updates? See anything?

Negative. We've got
no green. No green yet.

So we've got Shadow
Cave right over here

directly in front of me

where I've got the
divers right now pumping

tracing dye directly
into the spring.

If any of that tracing dye
shows up in just one other cave,

then we've got evidence
that there is a tunnel system.

Derrick, hey, man,
how you feeling?

Just keeping my eyes
peeled and hoping for the best.

Already the things that we've
discovered inside of Shadow Cave...

Oh, epic.

- That alone right there would be enough for me.
- Enough.

Guys, we got a flare!

Dan, I got color in cave five.

If we've got traceable dye,

we've got evidence of
some kind of tunnel system.

I wish Uncle Paul and Uncle
Johnny were here to see this with us.

I can't stop
thinking about that.

- It's an emotional moment.
- It is.

It's been over 55 years
that this journey began.

My grandfather, you know, my
Uncle Johnny, I loved them to death.

My Uncle Paul who just passed
away only about a year ago,

I'd sure love to have him
here hugging him now.

This is it.

Holy. We
got another one.

Hey, Dan, hey, we got
green in cave seven.

What's going on here?

It's not what I
thought would happen.

I'm looking for one tunnel,
one cave, one connection.

Two? I'm not quite sure
what that's telling me.

Along the far wall,
color in cave three.

- Now we got three?
- Holy.

We got three confirmed tunnels.

Now it's got me concerned.

Two tunnels close
together? Three?

We've now got multiple sites
that have this traceable dye.

I just don't know what
to make of this yet.

Maybe a tunnel
system has collapsed.

Maybe it's creating more
pressure in a second tunnel system.

Or has this dye
dropped down already

into the aquifer
that may be here

and now it's just bubbling
up randomly in all the springs?

Seems like the dye is
spreading everywhere.

- We got our work cut out for us.
- Yeah.

I don't have an exact plan
for multiple tunnel systems.

I had a plan for one.

So I really don't know
if this is a good sign

or if I've got a major
problem to deal with.

All the technology in one place,

I'm really excited to see
what this thing can do.

Yeah, I gotta tell you,
man, I'm concerned about it.

In a man-made hand
dug cave with no shoring,

the vibration... hang on.

Over, over, over.

Right, right, right,
right, right, right.

Okay.

Goldminers Kevin
Hoagland and Chris Hegg

have a different theory.

For the last decade, they've been searching
mines along ancient Aztec trade routes.

Confirmed by Kevin's
discovery of an artifact,

they believe fleeing warriors
followed these highways north

and hid the gold in one of
their own previously dug mines.

These are mines that
were already searched.

After pinpointing the
remaining unexplored mines...

That's the target.

Their search led them 45
miles into the Nevada desert.

There they discovered a mine

they believe could've
been used by the Aztecs

to hide treasure.

Aw, man.

After discovering a cave-in,

they've deemed the mine too
dangerous to continue through.

Look at this. Look at this.

- Hey, guys.
- There's the man.

- Instead...
- Nice to meet you, man.

Chris has called in a favor...

Nice to see you again.

From a buddy with a small ROV.

- So this is it?
- I'm looking forward to it, guys.

Chris Dick.

All right, well, let's
get you loaded up.

The guy runs rovers.

I want this thing to work,
but I'm also real skeptical

because in that
sketchy of a mine site,

I don't know what's
gonna happen.

- So is that the rover?
- Rover's in the big one.

Got some more
toys in the little one.

Got a big rover in here.

We really need Chris Dick's ROV

to get past the cave in and
to help us find another way in.

- She's a heavy one.
- Aw, man.

That's big.

I'm feeling
great about this ROV.

It's gonna go down
that hole that we can't,

and we don't know
what we're gonna find.

- You good?
- Good.

There you go. You got it?

All right, let's
see what you got.

Oh, ho, ho, ho.

- That's my baby.
- Let's get it out.

Chris Dick's ROV is loaded
with everything we would ever need.

- Is it all right to set it here?
- Yeah. Right here is fine.

It has ground penetrating
radar, air sensors,

it tells us everything
about the environment.

Capable of
crawling over the rubble

to get deeper inside the mine,

this ROV also has
LIDAR and a small camera.

The team hopes the
data and images it collects

can help their search.

- Are you ready?
- I'm ready.

- I'm ready.
- All right.

- Breaks are off.
- Go for it.

- You got it okay?
- I got it.

Yeah, boy, that is
really broken up rock too.

That is some
crumbly, crumbly rock.

That's the cave-in.

Are you comfortable
going over that?

We can give it a shot.

Climb on up slowly, man. Slowly.

Is it an angle this
thing can handle?

Slow.

- Oh, you're heading down.
- Yeah.

Easy, easy.

I'm glad we called you,
brother. I'm glad we called you.

Let's see what's on the
other side of that cave-in.

This rover just opened up
a whole other world for us.

Let's keep going.

Hey, what do you think that is?

Our oxygen's good still, yeah?

Let's just get a full
environmental right now.

It's pure dead air.
Pure bad air space.

What's the CO at?

Right now, everything's in red. No
human's gonna survive in this area.

Chris Dick's ROV is detecting

high levels of carbon
dioxide inside the mine.

This odorless and deadly gas

is a familiar threat
below ground.

Before modern CO2 detectors,

miners used caged
canaries as monitors.

A dead canary meant danger.

I don't understand it.

The air in this part of the
tunnel is absolutely unsafe.

With the CO levels
as high as they are

and the oxygen levels dropping,

you're just gonna die.

- Chris, stop right there.
- Okay.

I don't know what that is.

Yeah, there's something
right in the track.

How about tilt
down a little bit?

Okay.

Why is it dead in that tunnel?

After detected dangerously
high levels of carbon dioxide,

Kevin and Chris' ROV may
have also found its latest victim.

- How about tilt down a little bit?
- Okay.

A skeleton?

- Yep.
- Yeah.

That's a fox.

What the hell is a fox doing
that deep back in a mineshaft?

There's no way it got in
there through this tunnel.

That dead fox
tells us that there's bad air.

It's confirmation.

The good news about this
fox is he found another way in.

There's an entrance a lot
closer than the one we're in

that that fox had
to come through.

- All right, let's go in a little bit further.
- Okay.

Armed with LIDAR and GPR,

the rover will map
the layout of the tunnel

and collect data for
Chris and Kevin to review.

They hope the data will reveal
another path for them to access

what they believe could
be a larger tunnel system.

I'll tell you guys I'm
starting to lose signal right...

I'm pushing actually how
far I wanna take the signal.

What's wrong? You
at the end of your RF?

Yep. Completely.

After traveling almost 200 feet

past where Kevin and Chris
encountered the cave-in,

the rover is losing signal
500 feet into the mineshaft.

Before you spin around, can
you go a couple more feet?

I see something
up there on the left.

Yeah, we can give it a shot.
We're starting to cut out pretty bad.

Is that a shelf?

- There's something.
- It looks like...

It is a shelf. That's a shelf.

The ROV spots a shelf-like
underground cavern,

a hidden space large
enough to conceal treasure.

Look behind it.

- Behind the shelf, what is that?
- Yeah.

Is that a T?

Yeah, it definitely splits into
two. There's two tunnels there.

Two tunnels and a shelf?

- We gotta check that out.
- I wanna see what that is.

We have to.

It looks like there's
a T back there

that goes left and right,

so multiple tunnels and a shelf.

Is there multiple layers
going on in mines?

But how are we gonna get there?

We gotta wait for the
data and see what it is.

Right now we are so
dependent on seeing that data,

that ground penetrating
radar especially.

I'm hoping to find an entrance

that'll lead us to
that shelf area.

Man, I appreciate it.

Let's get this thing
out of the hole,

and let's start getting
that data downloaded.

Holy.

Mom, Dad, you guys got a copy?

While Kevin
and Chris leave the mine

to extract the
data from the ROV,

the Dillman family
are facing a puzzle.

What's up, son?

Hey, I was just walking
over here by the marsh,

and I got something interesting.

Come over here and check it out.

We're on our way.

After their dye test showed
multiple connections to Shadow Cave,

Derrick has found
more dye in the marsh.

What do you got, bud?

Hey, so stumbled upon
something interesting.

You gotta be kidding me.

It's right here
coming out the marsh.

- It's amazing.
- Well, I don't know what this means.

So we've got multiple sites
that have this traceable dye,

and now we've
got it in the marsh?

I just can't put my finger
on exactly what it means.

This marsh has only been
here for 15 years or so.

Maybe a tunnel system broke?

Yeah, it absolutely could be

that the tunnel
system has collapsed

and that somehow it's breached.

It's connected to
the marsh, clearly.

- That makes sense.
- Right.

Dan's dye test established

three possible connections
to Shadow Cave,

but this newest
connection in the marsh

is the closest one.

The marsh wasn't
originally a part of our plan.

Cave five had tracing
dye show up first,

but the marsh being so
close to Shadow Cave,

that's got my interest piqued.

Does that mean we've got a possibility of
objects that have also washed out this way?

Finding this green
dye here in the marsh

really could mean that
we have some artifacts.

Gold, silver... anything that
was in that tunnel in that cave

could've washed right in.

We got Shadow Cave right there.

Looks like it's coming
out of the reeds.

There's gotta be a connection.

Look, it's too late for
us to do anything tonight.

Let's get back and figure out
what we're gonna do tomorrow

- and see how we're gonna tackle this.
- Yeah.

- All right, let's go.
- All right.

I don't think
anybody expected this.

So now we gotta kinda sit down,

gameplan, and figure
out what the next step is

because this creates a
whole new path for us to follow.

- Let's do it.
- Let's do it!

Gabriel Villescas
and his father Ramon

are direct descendents
of the conquistadors.

Over the years, they've amassed
a library of old conquistador maps.

We have two mentions
here of Tierra Chamuscado.

Chamuscado means
"scorched earth."

Could be red rock.

They believe the Spanish
stole the Aztec gold

and buried it in
Cuba, New Mexico,

where treasure
hunter Johnny Segura

found a bar of what
could be Aztec gold.

A location tip from
Johnny's family

and satellite imaging...

Look at that. Now that's red.

Has led them to dig site that
also matches their ancient map...

Hoyos de Fuego, or fire pits.

- How can we get down?
- Well, he's so excited, he's ahead of us.

I know! He's about
to run down there.

Man, look at this. Crazy.

- You okay, Dad?
- Oh, heck, yeah.

Until I find proof

that either Johnny or
the Spanish were here,

I'm not gonna bring
in heavy equipment,

invest all that money

trying to dig for something
that I don't even know is here.

I'm no geologist,
but I'll tell you what,

I've never seen
rock like this before.

What do you think would've
changed the rocks to this color?

- This is so unusual.
- I think the heat from the volcanoes.

That does look volcanic.

There's purple rock, red rock.

There's all kinds of
different colors just scattered

and strewn throughout
the whole entire place.

Bizarre and out of this world.

The Rio Puerco
is just right there.

Yeah, and the Spaniards, they used
the Rio Puerco as a water source.

Yeah, everything
leads to this pit.

In 15th century,

the Spaniards traveled
along the Rio Puerco river

on a campaign of
exploration and conquest.

The Villescas team is
hoping that any treasure

they may have
seized is buried here.

- Let's get going.
- Let's do it.

The fire pits are
at an intersection

between where they know
the conquistadors went looking,

the location their ancient
Spanish maps verified,

and where Johnny Segura's
family believe he found a gold bar.

What I'm trying to do is I'm
listening for a different tone.

It'll be a sharper tone

that tells us that we found
some type of valuable metal.

We're not millionaires by far.

We're just regular guys.

We've saved up a
little bit of money.

We have enough
to do one big push.

Something there.

So whatever I decide to do,

I gotta be absolutely 100% sure

before I invest all this
time and money in it.

- There?
- Something right there.

Wow, there's...

There's gotta be
something. Let's see.

Yeah. Oh, yeah.

- You have to scrape it.
- What is it?

I don't want to scrape
it yet. I might damage it.

It looks like a coin.

After researching 16th century
conquistador maps and documents...

There's something there.

The Villescas team
is mining an area

they believe the Spanish
may have buried gold.

There's gotta be
something. Let's see.

Yeah.

Oh, yeah.

- You have to scrape it.
- What is it?

I don't wanna scrape it
yet. I might damage it.

See, that's coin. You can
see the ridges on the edge,

or the shape of it anyway.

Look at that.

See, it's broken right there.

Oh, it comes off.

Oh, that's... that's a washer.

There you go.

- Damn it.
- You gonna put it in the save pocket?

- Save a pocket.
- All right.

Let's keep on going.

Sooner or later, we're
gonna have something good.

I mean, it's out there.

You guys keep your
eyes and ears peeled

for anything that
looks like gold.

After performing a dye test,

the Dillmans have possibly
discovered a tunnel system

in Cave Lakes Canyon.

Dan is looking for
gold or Aztec artifacts

that would confirm his theory

that a tunnel leading to
the treasure has ruptured.

So if there was a tunnel system

that failed or had a breach,

then I'm hoping that
some form of artifacts

gold, or other tools or objects

has washed down into this marsh.

How's it going, TC?

Good. Finding some
rocky areas over here.

So I've got Derrick and
TC right now scraping up

and taking samples of
the silt and mud and rocks

right where the
green dye appeared.

Gina and I have some sifters,

and much like you would
pan for gold a little bit

and wash away the mud and dirt,

we're rinsing them off...

You finding anything, Dad?

- No artifacts.
- Nothing?

Definitely some
beautiful rocks though.

I'm checking with the metal
detector to see if anything,

you know, gold or
precious metals pop up.

But also examining what's there

because you never
know what we can find.

Get a little closer
to the reeds, Derrick.

A little to your right.

Yeah, right over there.

Having my wife by my side,

having my son by my side,

is everything to me.

Gina, you finding anything?

No. Just pretty rocks.

Got to believe.
We gotta believe.

Sitting around a table with
my grandfather and uncles

and talking fantastic stories,

as a kid, they instilled, you know,
believing in the impossible to me.

I got a little buddy in
this one. You see him?

They really gave me that idea

that the world is much bigger
and grander and fantastic

than what I may have been told.

Not sure if this is just a...

Well, I got something here.

Really?

Let's see what you got.

Hold up.

Right here.

Oh, wow.

I've got a piece of pottery.

- That's it there.
- That's a beauty.

Hold that up to the light.

- Oh, wow.
- See the lines?

- Yeah, that's...
- We got some pottery.

This is exciting actually.

That's so
exciting that, I mean...

Finding rocks is fun, guys,

but this right here,
this is definitely a sign

that we've got some
manmade activity.

If this pottery
was flushed out of a tunnel,

could it be evidence to support
Dan's grandfather's theory?

I wonder how far
that dates back.

So it makes sense that this pottery
could be connected to the Aztecs.

Aztec craftsmen used local clay

to make plates and
bowls for everyday use

and also created more elaborate
pieces for religious ceremonies.

Finding a shard of
pottery here is a good sign,

suggesting that some Aztec
lived or passed through here.

We'll put it in our
finders keepers tray.

All right, let's jump back in.

Let's get back to
work. It's exciting, guys.

Finding that pottery makes me
believe we're gonna find more.

- Hey, guys.
- Oh, hey.

How's it going?

Kevin and Chris
are hoping that the data

collected from Chris Dick's ROV

will reveal a second
way inside the mine.

Just kinda step you through,
show you what we got.

Using electromagnetic radiation,

ground penetrating
radar, or GPR,

detects objects and
voids below ground,

then transforms that
information into lines of data.

Right when we first started getting
into the long part of the passage,

we can see that we got a
tunnel that runs along the side.

That right there already was the
first thing to get us a little pumped up.

We know that we got
something running parallel.

Then it actually started
getting a little bit more exciting

because we started having a
tunnel that runs underneath our feet.

Oh, yeah.

So that, you know, shows us
that there's a lot more to the system

- than originally thought.
- Oh, yeah.

The GPR results
indicate the presence

of two additional tunnels within
ten feet of the original shaft,

one alongside and another below.

This would confirm
Kevin and Chris' assertion

that this is actually
a network of mines.

Is there anything pointing
to how we can get in there?

Not yet so far.

But you see here, once we start
getting up around the 500 foot,

- we started having the RF signal problems.
- Right.

- When we're panning up, we could see a shelf.
- Yeah.

And we actually start seeing that above
that shelf, we got a nice sized chamber.

- Ballroom.
- Maybe.

A ballroom is an
underground cavern created by miners.

When precious
minerals are removed,

a large empty void
is left in their place,

a space that Kevin and Chris
believe would also be perfect

for hiding treasure.

Any ballroom could be
the break we've been looking for.

I think that could
be our ballroom.

Yeah. How do we
get in that chamber?

The fox got in there.

Yeah, fox didn't come out.

- You getting anything over there?
- Nothing.

As the Hoagland
team try to figure out

a safe way into the mineshaft,

the Villescas are continuing
to metal detect the fire pit

looking for any sign
that either the Spanish

or treasure hunter Johnny
Segura searched here.

Usually when you're
metal detecting,

if you're in an area with
a high mineral content,

you can discriminate
your metal detector enough

to where it'll
weed that stuff out.

But this place is so rich that it's
really playing havoc on our search here.

You getting something?

I've got something there.

You got one?

Got something here.

Oh, it's a hot rock.

Ooh, boy.

A hot rock would be a rock
that has a high iron content in it.

The machine itself is designed
to search for any conductivity,

so as we pass the metal
detector over the rocks,

we're just getting all kinds
of crazy readings and tones.

A hot rock like this, if there's one
here, there's probably many of them.

Okay, well, let's reset our
machines and ground balance them.

We're gonna discriminate the
metal detectors a little bit more.

We'll ground balance it, and
hopefully that'll help eliminate

some of the problems we're
having with them currently.

Ooh.

That sounds like a
crisp one right there.

See
that? That's clean.

Let's see what we got.

- Something's down there.
- Yeah, there's something there.

- What is that?
- Definitely old.

How old do you
think this thing is?

That's a good hit.

- Man, this stuff is hard to dig in.
- Yeah.

In northern New Mexico,

the Villescas have begun
their survey of the fire pits

and now Gabe has
unearthed a possible find.

We got something here.

What is that?

I don't know.
It's definitely old.

Yeah, who knows what that is.

What about using a rock?
Use a rock to scrape it.

Let me see.

That's a pocket knife.

See? Yeah, look, there's
the blade right there.

How old do you
think this thing is?

I don't know. It's
definitely not Spanish.

How old do you think
that might be, Dad?

Well, by the looks of it,

I would say at
least 50 years old.

- Yeah.
- I used to have one similar

to this when I was much younger.

It's a good find. It
tells us somebody was here.

Yeah, now we know for
sure somebody was here.

This pocket knife has
obviously been here for a while.

The style of it suggests

that it might be about
40 or 50 years old.

I'm gonna take it
back to Mr. Padilla

and see if he
might recognize it.

The pocket knife is a longshot,

but Gabe still thinks it's worth
investigating a little further.

It's not exactly what
we're looking for,

but I think this might
be a valuable clue

as to the people that were actually
doing the work here in the pit.

- How you guys doing?
- Cold but good.

While the Villescas
team attempts to find out

if the pocket knife could've
been Johnny Segura's,

the Dillmans continue
to search the marsh

in hopes of finding evidence

of materials flushed out
from a possible tunnel system.

We're looking for
any type of artifacts.

Evidence of Aztec
artifacts here would support

the research put together
by Dan's grandfather

and would be the proof they need

to continue focusing their
attention on Shadow Cave.

That pottery being in the marsh

to me is evidence that
we've got something.

But right now we're
not finding much.

A whole lot of mud,
a whole lot of dirt,

a whole lot of rocks.

Nothing.

But there's still
got to be a reason

why I've got traceable dye in the
marsh, so I'm not willing to quit yet.

Derrick, I'm gonna get
you the metal detector.

- All right.
- And I want you to start right near those reeds.

You know, if we don't find
anything, it wouldn't be the first time.

Okay.

This has been a 56-year
journey for my family.

We don't always find
what we're looking for.

What's the detector
saying that is?

It's saying iron or foil.

But we keep going,
and we keep searching.

- I don't know if that's a bone.
- Let me check it out.

- Just see how it's around it?
- Yeah.

- Does it feel heavy?
- No.

- Hmm.
- Could just be a rock.

Yeah, it definitely
looks like a rock.

You know, I'm not quite sure
what we will find if we find anything,

but we might find headdresses.

It may not even be gold.

We may find macaw feathers.

We may find things that lead
and connect us to the Aztecs.

That's what I'm hoping.

I'm not seeing much in here.

I got something
interesting here.

Huh.

- What'd you find?
- I don't know.

Let me take a look at it.

Here, let me...

Go ahead and check that out.
I'm pretty sure that's a tooth.

Oh, yeah. It look like part
of it's rigid on the sides.

- You can tell how they worked it right there.
- It's sharp.

- That's a good find.
- You guys find something?

Yeah, it looks like I've got a
little obsidian part of a knife

or a blade, you
know, cutting tool

- that would've been used.
- Oh, wow.

You can definitely... yeah, just
from the grooves on the side.

So I believe that this object
that I have found is obsidian.

Obsidian is a
naturally occurring volcanic glass.

Aztec warriors used it to make
arrowheads and spear points.

Finding obsidian here is
another promising sign.

When you
hold it up to the light,

I mean, you can see
through the edges.

It is just thin, razor sharp.

Look at that. This'll
cut you right now.

It could've been used
for everyday activities

that you or I would
use a knife for.

- That's a good find.
- It's amazing.

If we have an
expert look at this,

we'll get an idea
of the timeframe,

but I'm telling you
guys right now,

it's definitely important.

Gabriel, Ramon, and Jerome

are on their way back to
the home of Mr. Padilla.

They're skeptical about the meaning
of a pocket knife they discovered,

but are hoping to get lucky.

- Howdy.
- Hey, howdy, guys. How's it going, guys?

If Mr. Padilla could
verify that the knife

belonged to his cousin,
treasure hunter Johnny Segura,

Gabe would be closer
to confirming the location

where a Spanish
gold bar was found.

We were able to pull
something out of the ground.

We were hoping that maybe
you might be able to identify it.

What do you make of that?

Well...

Pocket knife, huh?

It was pretty
deep in the gravel,

really hard rock to dig.

- No sign of what the brand was?
- No, the ends are all rotted off.

- It was probably wood, and they disintegrated.
- Interesting.

- Very interesting.
- You think that was Johnny's pocket knife, tío?

It is from the same time period.

- It looks old.
- Yeah, very old.

Did you ever see him
with a knife like that?

Oh, yeah, that was one of
his things he had all the time.

Ranchers, you know, cattle ranchers,
they always have a pocket knife, you know?

This would've
been a vital tool to him.

Just like walking outside
without your shoes.

But it's hard to say
if it was his or not.

Everybody had one.

I couldn't tell for sure.

Yeah.

What if we're chasing
something that's really not there?

Red rock. He talked about the
pits and nobody ever found them.

And now we found them.

You know, sometimes he would
stay in that remote area, you know?

Like, where would he stay?

In the cave, depending
the time of the year.

The cave? What do
you mean a cave?

There's several coal mines in the
area from the back in the early 1900s.

That's what we're looking
for right next to the fire pits?

- Well, it's pretty close, yeah.
- Pretty close? Yeah.

All of our research has
led us to Cuba, New Mexico.

If we could find the coal
mine that Johnny sheltered in,

that might be enough
proof for me to dig.

I guess we're
going back to work.

The Dillman family
have invited Dr. Glade Hadden

to Dan's office to try
and get more information

about the piece of
obsidian that they found.

With over 30 years of professional
experience as an archeologist,

including at the Bureau
of Land Management,

Dr. Hadden's
expertise is invaluable

to better understand
this latest find.

Glade, I'm
excited to have you here.

We spent a lot of time
here in this canyon,

and I believe we have found
something really interesting,

and I wanna share that with you.

All right, bring it on.

While searching the
marsh near Shadow Cave,

the Dillman family found
a fragment of pottery

and what appears to be
an obsidian cutting tool.

If Dan can link this
tool to the Aztecs,

it may be evidence of a
ruptured tunnel here in the canyon,

a tunnel the family believes
leads to Montezuma's gold.

Derrick, why don't you pass
that on down there to Glade?

Yeah.

Well, yes. You definitely
have something interesting.

First off, it's
made of obsidian.

You guys know what
obsidian is, right?

Okay, I mean,
it's volcanic glass.

One of the reason people
chose obsidian to make tools with

is because it's a really easy
stone to work with as glass,

which means that you can
drive off flakes off of this thing

that are thinner than anything that
we can create with modern science.

Right.

I know an archeologist
who had eye surgery

who created his own
scalpels with obsidian

because you can
flake this stuff down

to where it's, like,
one molecule thick.

Go it. Wow. Interesting.

In this particular country right
here, this is kind of a rare find.

You don't find a lot of obsidian
blades like this in this area.

But I see one thing about this
that makes it really interesting,

and that is the fact that only one
edge has ever been used on this.

If you look at it very
closely, you can see

this edge right here
has a lot of step fractures

where pieces of
glass will break off

because you're
using it as a tool.

The other side doesn't
have the same step fracture.

- Interesting.
- That tells me

that this was hafted
into something.

And it was hafted
along this side,

so part of it
stuck out like that.

Dare I say, it's a lot more like

the blades you would
find on actual weapons.

And what kind of weapon
could it have been?

The most common
type that I can think of

that would've used a blade like this
would've been an Aztec macuahuitl.

- Really?
- Wow.

Wow.

One of the most fearsome

close combat weapons
wielded by Aztec warriors

was a flat wooden paddle

surrounded by
obsidian glass blades

known as a macuahuitl.

This weapon was designed
not just to kill the enemy

but could also be
used to slash their flesh

and cause massive bleeding

so they could be taken
alive and sacrificed.

I'm blown away.

To hear that we may have found

a piece to a
macuahuitl right here

proves in my opinion

that we have got a
connection to the Aztecs.

When you start telling me that
this was a blade or a weapon,

you know, it gets me
excited because it is a tool

the Aztecs could've
used or would've used,

and we have it in a place
that my grandfather said

that we're gonna
find Aztec treasure.

Every little thing that
we find inspires me

to keep moving forward.

It tells me that there may
be other artifacts to find.

And so we can't
just let that go.

We've gotta spend
some time right here

and figure out if we've got
some other treasures to unearth.

Next on "Lost
Gold of the Aztecs"...

- Go.
- Let's go big or go home.

Right now, we are on the
greatest trail that we've ever seen.

- You trust me?
- Not really, but...

Oh, wow, it goes way back there.

If there's something in here,
we're gonna find it.

Yeah, this is it.

- Buddy, we got a hole.
- Yeah!