An intriguing discovery that experts claim may hint to a colonial-era cemetery was made by archaeologists in Peru when they discovered eight centuries-old mummies at a location in the capital city.
On Tuesday, archaeologists were hard at work meticulously cleaning the old preserved corpses, including the remains of children, found beneath the site in Lima’s Park of Legends on the country’s central coast.
The most recent finding, according to park official Lucenida Carrion, comes after the early August discovery of three mummies, one of whom was holding a wooden cross.
This discovery supports our theory that this cemetery dates to the colonial era, around the time of the conversion to Christianity or Catholicism, she added.
The mummies were found in unusual positions and with a mix of textiles that pointed to the influence of Spanish colonials, added field manager Manuel Moron.
Spain’s bloody conquest of Peru’s Inca empire began in 1532 and lasted four decades. Government officials said the site had been occupied by the Lima and Ychsma people before the Incas.