14 October 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Archaeologists unearth hidden tunnels under the 3,000-year-old temple complex

Archaeologists have discovered a system of hidden tunnels beneath the 3,000-year-old Chavín de Huántar temple complex in the Ancash Region of Peru.

The tunnels contain unique architectural features never seen before, made by the Indigenous Chavín people.

The Chavín de Huántar temple complex has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1985. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, Chavín de Huántar is believed to have been occupied as early as 3000 BC, with ruins and artifacts dating back to around as early as 1200 BC. Between 900–500 BC, the locale was occupied by the Chavín, a significant pre-Inca culture.

According to experts, this huge complex served as a major ceremonial center and gathering place for pilgrims and perhaps a home for an oracle.

The ceremonial gallery beneath the Chavín de Huántar temple complex. Photo: Antamina-Twitter

According to Heritage Daily, archeologists from Stanford University’s Chavin de Huántar Archaeological Research and Conservation Program initially suspected the gallery’s existence in 2019 when they found a small duct in the temple’s Building D.



📣 Our WhatsApp channel is now LIVE! Stay up-to-date with the latest news and updates, just click here to follow us on WhatsApp and never miss a thing!!



The epidemic, however, caused studies to be postponed.  Archaeologists were only able to discover the gallery and a network of 35 interconnected tunnels last month.

“It’s a passageway, but it’s very different,” archeologist John Rick of Stanford University, who coordinated the team behind the discovery, told Reuters. “It’s a different form of construction. It has features from earlier periods that we’ve never seen in passageways.”

According to John Rick, the tunnels may have been built before the temple’s main galleries.

The ancient bowl filled with vulture symbolism found under the temple. Photo: Antamina
The ancient bowl filled with vulture symbolism found under the Chavín de Huántar temple. Photo: Antamina

Rick and his crew discovered 35 interconnected tunnels beneath the temple, as well as a ceremonial gallery and two ceremonial bowls, one of which had depictions of the Andean condor. The gallery has been called the Condor Gallery in honor of the animal shown on the bowl.

The first stone bowl, weighing almost 40 pounds and standing nearly 10 inches tall, depicted the head of an Andean condor on one side, its tail on the other, and its wings in between. The second bowl, about the same size, was more simple in design and had a refined rim.

From this discovery, archaeologists have affirmed that the gallery is purely ceremonial and represents a transitional space of time between the late pre-ceramic site of Caral, and the middle and late formative period.

Related Articles

1000-year-old Cats and Babies mummies of Turkey’s

30 March 2022

30 March 2022

Cat, baby, and adult mummies in Aksaray, which took its place in history as Cappadocia’s gateway to the west on...

The Cairo University archaeological mission unearths the tomb of Ramses II’s royal treasurer at Saqqara necropolis

1 November 2021

1 November 2021

Archaeologists working at the Saqqara necropolis have unearthed the tomb of Ptah-M-Wiah, a high-ranking ancient Egyptian official and head of...

‘Miniature Pompeii’ found beneath Astra cinema in Verona

15 June 2021

15 June 2021

Archaeologists have uncovered a “miniature Pompeii” in the shape of a well-preserved ancient edifice near Verona, Italy. An old Roman...

The International Congress of Hittitology will be held in Istanbul for the first time in its history

29 December 2021

29 December 2021

The International Congress of Hittitology, which has been held every three years since 1990, was postponed for one year due...

The oldest evidence of human use of tobacco was discovered in Utah

11 October 2021

11 October 2021

According to recent research, burnt seeds discovered in the Utah desert suggest that humans used tobacco initially and that some...

Ancient 200-Foot Scorpion-Shaped Mound in Mexico May Have Been a Solstice Observatory

11 October 2025

11 October 2025

Archaeologists in Mexico have uncovered a mysterious 200-foot-long earthen mound carved in the shape of a scorpion — a remarkable...

‘4,200-year-old Zombie grave’ discovered in Germany

22 April 2024

22 April 2024

Archaeologists excavating in East Germany have found a 4,200-year-old grave near Oppin in Saxony-Anhalt containing the skeleton of a man...

Google Earth Helped Archaeologists Make İmportant Discoveries in Leicestershire

26 April 2021

26 April 2021

After Google Earth revealed traces of underground structures, archaeologists digging at a Roman settlement in Leicestershire say they have made...

7,000-Year-Old Animal-Figured Seals Found in Arslantepe, Anatolia’s First City-State

27 August 2024

27 August 2024

Archaeologists working at the Arslantepe Mound (Turkish: Arslantepe Höyük), a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Türkiye’s eastern Malatya province and...

2,200-year-old Greek sling bullet may have been used against Jews

9 December 2022

9 December 2022

A 2,200-year-old lead sling bullet was discovered by the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) in the central Israeli city of Yavne,...

The Rock Tombs Found by Chance in the Al-Hamidiyah Necropolis

12 May 2021

12 May 2021

A series of rock tombs carved into the slope of a mountain have been discovered in the Al-Hamidiyah necropolis on...

New evidence for early regional exchanges in Eurasia: Ice skates made of animal bones over 3,000 years old

9 March 2023

9 March 2023

Chinese archaeologists have discovered ancient ice skates made of animal bones at the Gaotai Ruins in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous...

Bosnia and Herzegovina Unearths Europe’s Largest Hoard of 2,000-Year-Old Bipyramidal Ingots from the Sava River

7 August 2025

7 August 2025

Previously recognized for its exhibitions on medieval manuscripts and regional folklore, the Franciscan Monastery Museum “Vrata Bosne” in Tolisa is...

An ancient “fridge” have uncovered at the Roman legionary fortress of Novae, Bulgaria

30 September 2022

30 September 2022

Polish archaeologists, during excavations at the Roman legionnaires’ camp in Novae, discovered a container that could be described as an...

In the ancient city of Syedra: a unique mosaic with the 12 labors of Heracles depicted on a single panel found

25 July 2022

25 July 2022

During the excavations in the ancient city of Syedra in the Alanya district of Antalya, approximately 164 square meters of...