Terrified Mummy found in Northern Peru

A 600-year old mummy from the Chachapoyas culture was recently found in the mountains of Kohechan, in the Peruvian northern department of Amazonas. The hidden burial vault in the Amazon, part of a massive cave complex that unwinds 82ft down, contained a dozen mummies, including one of a woman with her hands over her eyes and her face allegedly gripped with horror.

The vault -also used for worship- was discovered by chance in October 2006 by Bernardo Chuquizuta, a potato-farmer working at the edge of northern Peru’s rainforest. He tipped off scientists who uncovered ceramics, textiles and wall paintings.

Herman Crobera, the leader of the archaeological team that explored the cave, said: ‘This is a discovery of transcendental importance. It is the first time any kind of underground burial site this size has been found belonging to Chachapoyas or other cultures in the region.’

He said walls near the mummies in the limestone cave were covered with paintings of faces and warrior-like figures which may have been drawn to ward off intruders and evil spirits.

The mummies -together with the ceramics, textiles, and metal artefacts found in the vault- are currently being exhibited (until February 25th) at the Museo de la Nación (Av. Javier Prado Este 2465 - San Borja, Phone 476-9933).

The Chachapoyas, also called the Warriors of the Clouds, were an Andean people living in the cloud forests of the Amazonas region of present-day Peru. The Incas conquered their civilization shortly before the arrival of the Spanish in Peru. When the Spanish arrived in Peru in the XVI century, the Chachapoyas were one of the many nations ruled by the Inca Empire. Their incorporation into the Inca Empire was far from being easy, due to their constant resistance to the Inca troops. The name Chachapoya is in fact the name that was given to this culture by the Inca; the name that these people may have actually used to refer to themselves is not known.

Indeed, little is known about the Chachapoyas, and this -together with their name (Warriors of the Clouds) and their relative advanced civilisation- has lead to legends and mythical stories. One of these suggests that the Chachapoyas were a tall, fairhaired, light-skinned race that researchers believe may have come from Europe”.

Since the Incas and the Spanish conquistadors were the principal sources of information on the Chachapoyas, unbiased first-hand knowledge of the Chachapoyas remains scarce. Writings by the major chroniclers of the time, such as El Inca Garcilaso de la Vega, were based on fragmentary second-hand accounts. The chronicler Pedro Cieza de León, for example, offers some picturesque notes about the Chachapoyas:

“They are the whitest and most handsome of all the people that I have seen in Indies, and their wives were so beautiful that because of their gentleness, many of them deserved to be the Incas’ wives and to also be taken to the Sun Temple.”

Much of what we do know about the Chachapoyas culture is based on archaeological evidence from ruins, pottery, and other artifacts.

One of the last kingdoms to succumb to the Inca, the Chachapoyas left behind one of South America’s archaeological wonders: the defensive fortress of Kuelap. Perched on the shoulder of a 10,000-foot mountain, this 9th Century citadel comprises an urban complex of more than 400 stone edifices enclosed by a 70-foot-tall stone wall. Their architecture demonstrates decidedly non-Inca features, such as protruding geometric patterns, cornices, and friezes. Kuelap is considered by some experts as indeed more valuable than Machu Picchu.

Add comment January 12th, 2007