Archaeology breakthrough as temple burial discovered from 3,800-year-old ruins
Four skeletal remains reportedly found in the temple were lying on their sides, facing the mountains.
Archaeologists in Peru have discovered 3800-year-old ruins in a temple associated with water worship. Four skeletal remains-two children, a teenager, and an adult were found in the temple, it has been reported.
Each of the bodies uncovered in Temple Queneto 2 at the Queneto archaeological site in Peru was found lying on their sides, facing the mountains, according to a translated statement from the National University of Trujillo.
The temple is closely linked to a water-centric cult, and the positioning of the bodies in a gesture of prostration towards their primary water source lends significant support to the idea that they believed the nourishment provided by water was not merely physical.
The burial site also contained funerary items such as stone pendants and snail shells, decor associated with this group, and pottery shards scattered throughout the temple.
Located in Peru's Viru Valley, the temple likely dates back to between 1800 and 900 BC, during the Early Formative period, which predates the powerful Incan Empire.
The inhabitants of the region were known for initiating the trend of constructing large buildings, including some of the earliest pyramids in the area. They also incorporated ceramics into their constructions.
The temple itself was built with cobblestone and clay-plastered walls featuring curved corners.
Castillo Lujan, professor in the university’s Professional School of Archaeology, said in a statement: "These environments characterised by curved corners, show unique architecture from the Early Formative period.
"Furthermore, fragments of early ceramics found at the site are similar to those observed in other important settlements such as Gramalote, in the Moche Valley, and Huaca Negra, near the coast in the Viru Valley."
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The Viru Valley is renowned for its abundant archaeological evidence of ancient civilizations in the region.
But uncovering a find dating back over 3,800 years - especially when this excavation covered just one percent of the vast archaeological site - significantly enhances our understanding of a period with limited burial information.
The research team hopes these recent discoveries, along with others in the area, will prompt the government to transform the Viru Valley into a "benchmark for cultural tourism and a bastion of Peruvian identity."
