Exemplary Recovery of our Past
In 1987, the dramatic intervention by
a team of Peruvian archaeologists managed to
prevent the sacking and destruction of the first
intact tomb of a ruler from ancient Peru.
The discovery of the so-called “Tomb of
the Lord of Sipan” revealed to the modern world
his extraordinary splendour and a wealth of
historical information, and captured the
attention of the world’s press, which followed
the archaeological work closely - it was seen as
one of the great successes of the 20th Century
and compared with the tomb of Tutankhamen,
that of the Mayan king Pacal or the discovery of
Machu Picchu. National Geographic magazine
described the discovery as the richest tomb in
the New World.
Peruvian archaeology received a new
lease of life, with new knowledge about the social
and political structure, technology, art and
thinking of the Mochica or Moche, one of the
most important pre-Inca cultures, which
developed on the north coast during the 1st to
the 5th Centuries A.D.
Discovery.-
The remains of the “Lord of Sipan”
were found in a wooden coffin together with
an impressive quantity of ornaments, emblems
and garments made of gold, silver, gold-plated
copper and other materials, which were used
in rituals and symbolised his rank and power.
