8 August 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Archeologists in Peru find a 1,000-year-old adolescent mummy wrapped in bundle

Archaeologists have unearthed a more than 1,000-year-old mummy on the outskirts of Peru’s capital, Lima.

The mummified adolescent was wrapped in a funerary bundle, with ceramic objects, rope, bits of skin, and hair nearby, and found in an underground tomb.

Archaeologists believe the mummy, found at an archaeological site in Cajamarquilla, is one of 20 buried in the area likely killed as a ritual sacrifice.

The mummified adolescent was found in a “good state of conservation,” said archaeologist Yomira Huaman, in charge of the Cajamarquilla research project affiliated with the Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos.

The adolescent lived between 1,100 and 1,200 years ago, and might have belonged to the Lima or Ichma cultures. The mummy was discovered about 220 yards from where the first mummy of Cajamarquilla was found, explained Huaman, referring to another mummy found nearby last year.

A worker wraps skeletal remains and parts of the funerary bundle of a mummy found by Peruvian archeologists in the ruins of Cajarmarquilla, in the outskirts of Lima, Peru. PHOTO BY SEBASTIAN CASTANEDA /REUTERS
A worker wraps skeletal remains and parts of the funerary bundle of a mummy found by Peruvian archeologists in the ruins of Cajarmarquilla, in the outskirts of Lima, Peru. PHOTO BY SEBASTIAN CASTANEDA /REUTERS

‘From ceramic analysis we have identified that it was mostly occupied by the coastal presence, the late Lima culture, also a strong influence of the Ichma culture,’ said Huaman.

The way the teen was buried was unlike other mummies that have been discovered in the past. Most bodies in Cajamarquilla have been found in simple tombs or funeral chambers, while the adolescent was found in what appeared to be a storage container.

Archaeologists, also they have uncovered the ruins of four pyramid-shaped temples and walls laid out almost like a maze.

Ceramic objects and rope were found near the burial bundle. Photo: Reuters
Ceramic objects and rope were found near the burial bundle. Photo: Reuters

While best known for the mountaintop Inca royal retreat of Machu Picchu, Peru was home to a number of pre-Hispanic cultures that flourished in the centuries before the Inca empire rose to power, primarily along the country’s central coast and in the Andes.

The Lima civilization was known for its ceramic artwork, which included styles such as Maranga and interlocking patterns that reflected the nearby Moche culture.

Cover Photo: Reuters/Sebastian Castaneda

Related Articles

Military Team Discovers Remarkable 2,000-Year-Old Celtic Artifacts, Including Chariot Parts and Bridle-Bit

4 February 2025

4 February 2025

Military personnel and veterans at RAF Valley in Anglesey on the island of Anglesey, Wales, have uncovered sensational Iron Age...

Ancient Curse Tablets Reveal Dark Spiritual Practices in the Roman Empire – and Their Echo in the Bible

17 June 2025

17 June 2025

New Research Connects Ritual Cursing to the Book of Revelation From jealous lovers to petty thieves, people in the ancient...

Archaeologists unearth the long-lost homestead of King Pompey in Lynn

3 July 2024

3 July 2024

Archaeologists from the University of New Hampshire (UNH) and a historian from Northeastern University believe they might have found the...

In northern Iran, a hand-dug passageway was discovered used for military purposes during the Qajar era

1 August 2021

1 August 2021

A hand-dug underground passage dating from the Qajar era (1794-1925), once believed to have served military purposes, has been discovered...

Ancient Egyptian silos and administrative buildings uncovered at Kom Ombo in Egypt’s Aswan

6 March 2022

6 March 2022

The Egyptian-Austrian archaeological mission working in the Temple of Kom Ombo in Egypt’s southern province of Aswan unearthed an administrative...

Rescue work begins on a 160-year-old shipwreck, the largest and best-preserved wooden shipwreck ever discovered underwater in China

3 March 2022

3 March 2022

Rescue work has begun on a 160-year-old shipwreck in China, the largest and best-preserved wooden wreck ever discovered underwater. This...

A large hall from the time of Viking Harald Bluetooth discovered

26 December 2022

26 December 2022

A large hall from the reign of King Harald Bluetooth of Denmark and Norway was unearthed during housing construction work...

A Unique Discovery in Europe: Ancient Stone Circles Cover 2,800-Year-Old Graves of Children in Norway

29 June 2024

29 June 2024

Archaeologists from the Museum of Cultural History in Oslo discovered an unknown burial site in a quarry near Fredrikstad, in...

Viennese Archaeologists Find LEGIO XIII GEMINA Bricks

1 February 2024

1 February 2024

The fourth oldest school in Vienna, the Kindermanngasse Elementary School, is being completely renovated. As part of the renovation of...

Millefiori Glass Plateques From the 5th Century AD Discovered in the Ancient Lycian City of Myra

9 September 2024

9 September 2024

One of the six leading cities of ancient Lycia and the birthplace of Santa Claus (or Sinterklaas in Dutch), the...

The 3,200-year-old perfume of Tapputi, the first female chemist in history, came to life again

24 July 2022

24 July 2022

One of the scent formulas written in Akkadian on clay tablets by Tapputi, known as the world’s first female perfumer...

A Mysterious 1,800-year-old Roman Statue Unearthed During Car Park Construction Work in UK

13 March 2024

13 March 2024

A 1,800-year-old Roman marble statue of a woman’s head was discovered during construction in the parking lot of Burghley House...

Ukrainian Soldiers Uncover 6th–5th Century BC Burial Site During Fortification Works

1 April 2025

1 April 2025

In a remarkable archaeological find, soldiers from the 123rd Territorial Defence Brigade have uncovered an ancient burial site dating back...

An olive workshop dating back to the 6th century was found in the ancient city of Dara

16 February 2022

16 February 2022

An olive workshop dating back to the 6th century was unearthed in the ancient city of Dara, one of the...

2,700-year-old bronze figurine found in Germany’s Tollence River: goddess or weight?

9 April 2022

9 April 2022

A Bronze Age female figurine discovered in the Tollense River in northern Germany may have been a goddess, part of...