On March 23, 2012, in Cancun, Mexico, a monument was unveiled to the brilliant Russian scientist Yuri Knorozov, one of the most mysterious and great figures of our time. He made a huge contribution to the decipherment of the Maya alphabet. The monument was created by sculptor Grigory Pototsky. The monument is quite controversial and abstract. Yuri Knorozov is the founder of the school of Mayan studies in Russia, Doctor of Historical Sciences (1955). Laureate of the USSR State Prize (1977). Holder of the Order of the Aztec Eagle (Mexico) and the Grand Gold Medal (Guatemala).
https://reveal.world/story/yurij-knorozov-byl-uveren-chto-on-genij-i-byl-absolyutno-prav
Almost immediately, the monument was stolen and sold for scrap metal. In September 2012, the Cancun Municipal Police arrested 21-year-old Wilbert Hernandez Hernandez for stealing a bronze monument with Maya hieroglyphs, which is the property of the Benito Juarez municipality. This work of art is valued at approximately 280,000 dollars; the monument, shaped like a cross, contains bas-relief Maya inscriptions similar to those created by the ancient Maya, and was stolen from Coba Avenue, between La Bonampak and La Nader. The monument was unveiled on March 23 of that year by Cancun Mayor Julian Ricalde Magaña in recognition of the important contribution of Russian scientist Yuri Valentinovich Knorozov. According to a bulletin issued by the Cancun Ministry of Public Security, undercover officers conducted "intelligence and investigative work, alerting all operational personnel who carried out a thorough investigation at all city junkyards." During the investigation, a scrap metal buyer provided information that helped locate the monument, noting that at Market El Chetumalito there is a person who buys any type of materials regardless of their origin, where the stolen monument was found. Wilbert Hernandez, the warehouse manager, told police that last Monday an unknown person, whom he claimed not to know, delivered the bronze monument to him by taxi and allegedly paid him 4,500 pesos in cash for it.
Later, the monument was restored and moved inside the municipal palace.
