23 June 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Researchers excavating the burial site along Caleta Vítor Bay in northern Chile found an Inka Tunic or unku

A recently published study, co-authored by a research professor at George Washington University, looks at the Inka Empire’s (also known as the Incan Empire and the Inca Empire) cultural and political apparatuses through the lens of a well-preserved clothing artifact found in a long-ago Chilean cemetery.

Researchers excavating the burial site along Caleta Vítor Bay in northern Chile found a tunic, or unku, which would have been worn by a man who commanded respect and prestige in the Inka Empire.

Unkus were largely standardized attire meeting technical and stylistic specifications imposed by imperial authorities.

The Caleta Vítor unku, however, goes beyond the strict mandates handed down by Inka leaders. While the artisans who fashioned this unku clearly adhered to imperial design standards, they also included subtle cultural tributes unique to their provincial homeland.

Whoever wove the Caleta Vítor unku lived hundreds of miles south of the Inka capital of Cusco in an area absorbed into the Inka Empire in the late 15th century. The weaver employed the techniques and unique style and imagery of an indigenous culture that existed long before the Inka conquest, creating a tangible symbol of provincial life in pre-colonial South America.

1 / 1Unku found in Caleta Vitor Bay. Top: sides A and B from the wearer’s point of view (photographs by Paola Salgado); bottom: illustration of the tapestry tunic from the weaver’s position and viewpoint (illustration by Paola Salgado).
1 / 1Unku found in Caleta Vitor Bay. Top: sides A and B from the wearer’s point of view (photographs by Paola Salgado); bottom: illustration of the tapestry tunic from the weaver’s position and viewpoint (illustration by Paola Salgado).

“It represents a study of a rare example of an excavated Inka unku tunic, whose context and technical features are providing an unprecedented understanding of imperial Inka influence in the provinces,” Jeffrey Splitstoser, an assistant research professor of anthropology at GW and a co-author of the study, said.

The study was published in the journal PLoS ONE.

DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0280511

George Washington University 

Related Articles

Archaeologists discover ‘exceptional’ ancient Roman sanctuary in near intact condition in Netherlands

23 June 2022

23 June 2022

Archaeologists have unearthed a relatively intact 1st-century Roman sanctuary in the town of Herwen-Hemeling in the province of Gelderland in...

Twin temples linked to Hercules and Alexander the Great discovered in Sumerian city of Girsu

29 January 2024

29 January 2024

Archaeologists discovered two temples, with one buried over the other, during excavations at Girsu, a Sumerian city in southeastern Iraq...

2,300-Year-Old Gold Ring Reveals Jerusalem’s Hidden Hellenistic Rituals

27 May 2025

27 May 2025

A remarkable gold ring recently uncovered in Jerusalem is offering fresh insight into Hellenistic-era rituals, ancient jewelry traditions, and the...

Carvings at Göbeklitepe could be World’s Oldest Calendar

6 August 2024

6 August 2024

Experts suggest that markings on a stone pillar at the 12,000-year-old Göbeklitepe archaeological site in Türkiye probably represent the oldest...

Archaeologists Uncover Monumental Roman Building Near Waal River in Nijmegen, Netherlands

4 June 2025

4 June 2025

During a routine excavation ahead of a major urban development in the Waalfront district of Nijmegen, municipal archaeologists have uncovered...

Rare Sassanid-era Inscription on Loyalty and Justice Unearthed in Marvdasht, Southern Iran

11 June 2025

11 June 2025

A rare Sassanid-era inscription has been unearthed in the historic region of Marvdasht, located in Iran’s Fars province, revealing deep...

9 Relics of Neanderthal Found in The Guattari Cave

8 May 2021

8 May 2021

Archaeologists in Italy have discovered the remains of nine Neanderthals who were reportedly killed and mauled by hyenas in their...

Medieval Hub of Arts & Crafts Center discovered in Nola: The discovery could rewrite the history of early medieval Nola

23 August 2023

23 August 2023

On the outskirts of Nola, a district from the early Middle Ages has been discovered. According to the Soprintendenza Archeologia,...

Roman girl adorned with 1800-year-old jewelry found in a lead coffin on Mount Scopus

9 April 2023

9 April 2023

“After the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple and the exodus of the Jewish population, late Roman Jerusalem—renamed Aelia Capitolina—had a...

Anatolia’s first company was founded 4000 years ago with 15 kilos of gold!

26 May 2024

26 May 2024

A 4,000-year-old tablet found in Kültepe shows that the first company in Anatolia was established by 12 people with 15...

“Unprecedented” Phoenician necropolis found in southern Spain

28 April 2022

28 April 2022

A 4th or 5th-century B.C Phoenician necropolis has been found at Osuna in Southern Spain. A well-preserved underground limestone vault...

200,000-year-old ‘mammoth graveyard’ found in the southwest UK

19 December 2021

19 December 2021

Researchers have unearthed a mammoth “graveyard” filled with the bony remains of five individuals, including an infant, two juveniles, and...

Lost medieval road thought to have been used by famous Scottish king Robert the Bruce found

27 June 2021

27 June 2021

Excavating a hill considered to have played a critical part in the Battle of Bannockburn, archaeologists discovered a forgotten medieval...

Extraordinary discovery for the Western Baltic Sea region: a 400-year-old shipwreck Found at Bottom of German River

3 August 2022

3 August 2022

During a routine measurement at Trave, near Lübeck, in the northern part of Germany,  Kiel-Holtenau Waterways and Shipping Authority (Wasserstraßen-...

A 1,700-year-old trident discovered in Assos ancient city in Türkiye

10 October 2023

10 October 2023

An iron trident, believed to be used for fishing, dating to the 3rd or 4th century A.D. has been discovered...