Archaeologists have unearthed the remains of four human bodies believed to be more than 3,000 years old in a patch of barren land in northern Peru that housed a ceremonial temple honoring the gods of an ancient local culture.
The burial bundles were found between mud and stone walls near a valley in the coastal province of Viru, in the La Libertad region, home to many great ancient cultures over the millennia.
Feren Castillo, an archaeologist at Peru’s National University of Trujillo, who is leading a research project in the area, said the remains and walls are probably between 3,100 and 3,800 years old.
“This allows us to get a clear idea of the cultural evolution in this area,” Castillo said, adding that the discovery of four remains in such a small area means there could be many more buried there.
He said that the discovery indicates the importance of this area.
“People have long wanted to be buried in temples because they are very sacred spaces for them,” added Castillo.
Peru, rich in archaeological sites of various ages, was home to the Inca Empire more than 500 years ago.
This empire dominated a vast territory in the southern part of the continent, from today’s southern Ecuador and Colombia to central Chile – until the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors.
