11 July 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.

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

Ancient Tomb of Nomadic Horse Lord Yields Untouched Treasures and Weapons

2 May 2025

2 May 2025

A remarkable archaeological discovery near Grozny has unearthed an undisturbed Alanian tomb dating back over two millennia, revealing a wealth...

The longest inscription in Saudi Arabia turned out to belong to the last king of Babylon

25 July 2021

25 July 2021

The Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage has announced the discovery of a 2,550-year-old inscription etched on basalt stone...

First European farmers’ heights did not meet expectations

9 April 2022

9 April 2022

A combined study of genetics and skeletal remains shows that the switch from primarily hunting, gathering and foraging to farming...

1,600-Year-Old Tomb of First Maya King Discovered in Caracol, Belize

11 July 2025

11 July 2025

Archaeologists have unearthed the 1,600-Year-Old Tomb of First Maya King at Caracol, Belize, marking one of the most significant Maya...

DNA Elucidates Mysteries of the Iron Age Log Coffin Culture in Thailand

9 February 2024

9 February 2024

The Northwestern Thailand highlands region of Pang Mapha is dotted with dozens of caves that contain some incredibly odd prehistoric...

Jordan Valley Reveals Earliest Cotton Use in the Ancient Near East

18 December 2022

18 December 2022

During excavations at Tel Tsaf, a 7,000-year-old town in the Jordan Valley, Israeli archaeologists discovered the earliest evidence of cotton...

5500-year-old city gate unearthed in Israel -the earliest known in the Land of Israel-

15 August 2023

15 August 2023

The Israel Antiquities Authority announced on Tuesday that archaeologists have discovered the earliest known ancient gate in the land of...

600 Years Old Sword and Equipment Found in Olsztyn

22 April 2021

22 April 2021

Aleksander Miedwiediew, a history buff, and detectorist discovered a bare sword, a sheath, and a knight’s belt with two knives...

An Ampulla was discovered for the first time in the ancient city of Dara, Turkey

11 January 2022

11 January 2022

An ampulla was found for the first time in the ancient city of Dara, located in the province of Mardin...

Archaeologists Found Evidence of a Lost Temple in Chorazin Linked to Jesus’ Healing Miracles

12 August 2024

12 August 2024

Recent archaeological excavations in Israel may have unearthed the remains of a long-lost temple, believed to be the very site...

One of the largest mass burial pits ever discovered in the UK has been unearthed next to Leicester Cathedral

21 November 2024

21 November 2024

While excavating the gardens of Leicester Cathedral for the future construction of a learning center, archaeologists uncovered one of the...

The First Native Americans were Among the First Metal Miners in the World

20 March 2021

20 March 2021

An arrowhead made of pure copper 8,500 years ago dates the history of the copper age to an earlier period,...

1st Century BCE Medusa Mask Mold Discovered in Ancient Finziade, Sicily

24 January 2025

24 January 2025

At the Finziade archaeological site in the Sicilian town of Licata, archaeologists have discovered a mask mold that could represent...

Ancient City Cistern Found Near Croatia’s Iconic Fountain

15 February 2024

15 February 2024

An island-speckled coastline and ancient walled towns place Croatia among the world’s best-beauty cities. But there’s even more to this...

18,000 years ago, late Pleistocene humans may have hatched and raised the “World’s Most Dangerous Bird.”

2 October 2021

2 October 2021

Researchers say the eggshell is an understudied archaeological material that has the potential to clarify past interactions between humans and...