#colonialera #burials #preHispanic #sanctuary #Peru
A team of Peruvian archaeologists uncovered three burials from the Spanish colonial era on top of a pre-Hispanic temple that could be as old as 500 years, a researcher said Thursday.
Peru was under Spanish rule for nearly 300 years, from 1532, when they invaded and defeated the Inca Empire, until 1821, when popular uprisings led to independence.
“We proceed from the hypothesis that the remains belong to a colonial cemetery,” Lucenida Carrion, head of the Archaeological Directorate of the Park of Legends in the Peruvian capital, told AFP.
The park’s 54 archaeological monuments and sanctuaries have been the subject of study for decades.
“At this summit we discovered the burials of two adults and one child wrapped in cotton sheets,” added the archaeologist.
The temple or pre-Hispanic sanctuary called “Tres Palos” where the burial site is located is more than 1,000 years old and is located on a property next to the park.
After the pre-Hispanic era, the site was inhabited by settlers from colonial Lima.
“We’re considering whether the remains are colonial,” Carrion said, pointing to clothing, hair and a Christian crucifix found on one of the remains.
“This result is important because it will help us determine whether there has been continuous occupation at this site since pre-Hispanic times.”
During the 15th and 16th centuries the ‘Tres Palos’ sanctuary was used by the Incas as a tambo (food store) and during the colonial period houses were built of adobe (clay and straw).
– wooden cross –
“What stands out is the cross worn on a character’s chest. This cross signifies the moment of conversion to Christianity of the natives or residents who populated this place,” said Carrion.
In addition to the brown wooden cross, sandals, textile fragments, bracelets, grave cloaks and the remains of ceramic vessels were also discovered.
The finds made by the archaeological team are among the most important of recent years and complement the study of numerous material testimonies uncovered in the archaeological complex of Maranga, near the Lima coast.
“The work done at this site allows us to demonstrate that its history dates back approximately 2,000 years and that it was occupied by the Lima culture, the Ychsma, and finally the Incas,” Carrion said.
Built in 1964, the Park of Legends is named after the pre-Hispanic legends depicted at the entrance to the enclosure.
In 2018, a team of archaeologists found a 1,300-year-old cemetery from the pre-Hispanic Lima culture near the park.
Social Tags:
#colonialera #burials #preHispanic #sanctuary #Peru