Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. During ritual ceremonies, the ancient Aztec civilization used a “death whistle” — a haunting instrument shaped like a human skull.

As its name suggests, an Aztec death whistle can make a most dreadful sound. But the effect depends on how it's played, explains musicologist and archaeologist Arnd Adje Both of the Free University of ...

Many ancient cultures used musical instruments in ritual ceremonies. Ancient Aztec communities from the pre-Columbian period of Mesoamerica had a rich mythological codex that was also part of their ...

The Aztec skull whistle produces a shrill, screaming sound. A study shows that these whistles have a disturbing effect on the human brain. The Aztecs may have deliberately used this effect in ...

Archaeologists have discovered numerous ceramic or clay whistles at Aztec sites, dubbed “death whistles” because of their distinctive skull shapes. A new paper published in the journal Communications ...

Ritual Aztec whistles produced a brain-scrambling "scream," according to a new study. The objects were used during human sacrifices and may have prepared victims for their supposed descent to Mictlan, ...

For those who want to celebrate Halloween like it’s 1399: Scientists are sending shivers down the internet’s collective spine by recreating an ancient “Aztec Death Whistle” that’s said to emit the ...

Its fear-splitting screech reverberates throughout space and time. Swiss and Norwegian neuroscientists have discovered that the ancient Aztec death whistle — often credited with emitting the scariest ...

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The 'Aztec Death Whistle' terrified people five centuries ago. The effect seemingly is the same even now, stated the Daily Mail. This finding was confirmed by a study published in the journal ...