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33-501: On 12 November 2017, a fire, reportedly caused by farmers burning nearby sugar cane fields, damaged much of the site. Located in a valley, the complex covers about 2500 square meters (27,000 square feet). The site is about 12 miles from Sipán , a religious and political center of the later Moche culture, which flourished from AD 1 to AD 700 (about 2000 to 1300 years ago). It is about 760 km (470 mi) north of Peru's capital of Lima . The central complex of Ventarron also includes

66-514: A better understanding of the Sacrifice Ceremony of the Sipán rulers that had been illustrated on murals, ceramics, and other decorative goods. The Sacrifice Ceremonies were often depicted with prisoners among gods or royalty. The tombs at Sipán showed that rulers actually took part in such Sacrifice Ceremonies when looking at the artifacts uncovered including: adornments and a headdress that matched

99-491: A cup or bowl for the sacrifices, a metal crown adorned with an owl with its wings extended, and other items associated with worship of the moon. Alva concluded that the individual buried in this tomb was a Moche priest. Carbon dating established that the skeleton in this second tomb was contemporary with the Lord of Sipan. The third tomb found at Huaca Rajada was slightly older than the first two, but ornaments and other items found in

132-591: A fairly recent find in the last 30 years, and is considered to be a very important archaeological discovery. Many of the tombs were looted, yet the artifacts that remained and were discovered by archaeologists play an important role in understanding the Moche rulers and tradition. Tombs have been found also in Sipán's Huaca Rajada , an area near Chiclayo . The tombs in the area are of adobe construction, of pyramidal shape, and have now shown erosion which could have been exacerbated over time by successive El Niño events. There

165-419: A problem in many locations. In early 1987, looters digging at Huaca Rajada found several objects made of gold. A disagreement among the looters caused the find to be reported to the local police. The police raided the site, recovered a number of items, and alerted Dr. Alva. Scientific analysis of the skeleton of the Lord of Sipán shows that he was approximately 1.63 meters tall and was about 35–45 years old at

198-479: A young woman, a likely sacrifice to accompany the Old Lord of Sipán to the next life; and a man with amputated feet, possibly sacrificed to be the Old Lord's guardian in the afterlife. A total of fourteen tombs have been found at Sipán. Archeological research and DNA testing enabled deducing certain physical characteristics of the ruler, such as skin color, the form of his lips, hair, eyes and other facial features. It

231-516: Is a Moche archaeological site in northern Peru in the Lambayeque Valley, that is famous for the tomb of Lord of Sipán (El Señor de Sipán), excavated by Walter Alva and his wife Susana Meneses beginning in 1987. The city of Sipán is dated from 50–700 AD, the same time as the Moche Period. Sipán is an archaeological site where royal tombs were discovered and excavated between 1987–1990,

264-532: Is the name given to the first of several Moche mummies found at Huaca Rajada, Sipán , Peru by archaeologist Walter Alva . The site was discovered in 1987. Some archaeologists consider this find to be one of the most important archaeological discoveries in South America in the last 30 years, as the main tomb was found intact and untouched by thieves. By 2007, fourteen tombs had been located and identified at Huaca Rajada. The Royal Tombs of Sipán Museum

297-575: Is very little research on the commoners of Sipán, yet it is well known that the commoners often paid a tax through labor which allowed for the creation of the burial platforms for the Lords of Sipán . These platforms and other adobe structures are often made with marked adobe bricks which tracked this labor in order to pay off taxes. Other than providing labor for the Lord there is very little known specifically about Moche commoners from Sipán. The tombs of Sipán allowed for archaeologists and anthropologists to get

330-446: The huaqueros away from the site, erect fences around the tombs, and begin excavation. Thereafter Alva and his team excavated 12 more tombs while villagers and huaqueros threw rocks and taunted them in an attempt to get the researchers out of the site and allow the looting to continue. The villagers were unsuccessful, however, as Alva completed his work which became the foundation of the "Royal Tombs of Sipán" discussed below. During

363-427: The moon god . Buried with the Lord of Sipán were six other people: three young women (possibly wives or concubines who had apparently died some time earlier), two males (probably warriors), and a child of about nine or ten. The remains of a third male (possibly also a warrior) was found on the roof of the burial chamber sitting in a niche overlooking the chamber. There was also a dog. The warriors who were buried with

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396-715: The Formative Period, probably beginning in the Initial Period, the Collud-Zarpán site, situated at the northwest end of the Huaca Ventarrón Complex, was the valley’s theocratic capital. It covered more than 2 square kilometers of ceremonial architecture spread between two mounds aligned east to west." 6°48′00″S 79°45′19″W  /  6.80000°S 79.75528°W  / -6.80000; -79.75528 Sip%C3%A1n Huaca Rajada , also known as Sipán ,

429-474: The Lord of Sipán had amputated feet, as if to prevent them from leaving the tomb. The women were dressed in ceremonial clothes. In addition to the people, archeologists found in the tomb a total of 451 ceremonial items and offerings ( burial goods ), and the remains of several animals, including a dog and two llamas . In 1988, a second tomb was found and excavated near that of the Lord of Sipán. Artifacts in this second tomb are believed to be related to religion:

462-589: The Moche and other South American cultures as monuments. The Huaca Rajada monument consists of two small adobe pyramids plus a low platform. The platform and one of the pyramids were built before 300 AD by the Moche; the second pyramid at Huaca Rajada was built about 700 AD by a later culture. Many huacas were looted by the Spanish during and after the Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire ; the looting of huacas continues to be

495-604: The Moche center, a much later culture whose people also were based in Lambayeque. The royal tomb included generations of burials from about 300 AD , or 1700 years ago. Since 2007, the excavations have been directing by Ignacio Alva who has unearthed several phases of human presence in the temple and made important new discoveries such as an ancient frieze in high relief retaining their original colors with typical Cupisnique iconography. Actually, three temples have been discovered in this area in recent years. A Cupisnique adobe temple

528-548: The Sipán leadership and the frequent need for artisans to continue to make new artifacts as old ones were buried. A reconstruction of one of the tombs of Sipán is on display the American Museum of Natural History in New York City . 6°48′37″S 79°36′6″W  /  6.81028°S 79.60167°W  / -6.81028; -79.60167 Lord of Sip%C3%A1n#Huaca Rajada The Lord of Sipán ( El Señor de Sipán )

561-486: The above-mentioned head-shaped beads, peanut-shaped beads, coffin straps, fan handles, spearheads, a copper-plated banner, ceremonial knives, golden headdresses, silver and gold nose and ear ornaments, scepters, a gold necklace made of 10 spiderweb beads (spider bodies with human faces sitting on golden wires), a gilded copper animal (possibly fox or dog), among others. The vast majority of these works were placed in richly decorated tombs, indicating both their high value toward

594-490: The archaeological site of Arenal , located on a hillslope to the northeast. The temple and murals were radio carbon dated to 2000 B.C. , the latter of which is thought to be the oldest discovered in the Americas. One mural on two walls depicts a deer caught in a net; another has an abstract design in red and white. The temple was constructed of bricks of river sediment rather than the stone or adobe later to be traditional in

627-479: The area; its construction is unique for the northern coast. It contains a stairway leading to a fire altar. Walter Alva , the Peruvian archaeologist making the discovery, commented on the findings: "What's surprising are the construction methods, the architectural design and most of all the existence of murals that could be the oldest in the Americas. He said, "The discovery of this temple reveals evidence suggesting

660-476: The artifacts, copper ingots were hammered into sheet metal and formed into the desired shape (e.g. a mask). While the exact method for adding the gold film to the outside is not known, one well-accepted theory is that gold was likely dissolved in aqueous solutions of corrosive compounds recovered from the Northern Peruvian deserts and brought to a low boil, after which the copper sheet was dipped in resulting in

693-541: The culture that built the temple had intentionally buried it when finished with its use. This helped to protect it for thousands of years. Locals have dug away at the site, taking blocks to use in constructing their own buildings. Much of the Ventarrón site had been looted in 1990 and 1992, but the thieves had not found the temple. In the 1980s Alva led the discovery of the tomb of the Lord of Sipán and other elite ancient people at

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726-483: The excavations in 1987–1990, a spectacular treasure of gold and silver ornamental and ceremonial artifacts was recovered, dating to AD 50–300. These objects demonstrate the outstanding craftsmanship of the Moche metalsmiths through their use of elaborate and advanced metalworking techniques. Moche smiths made these artifacts out of thin sheets of copper alloys, using electrochemical processes to purify an extremely thin (0.5–2.0 μm) layers of gold or silver coating. To make

759-419: The illustrations of the ceremony along with large knives and tools that would have been used for bloodletting and decapitation. In February 1987, a man by the name of Ernil Bernal led a band of huaqueros (tomb looters) who tunneled into one of the pyramids located at Huaca Rajada. Over the next few nights, they took a large number of valuable metal objects, destroying hundreds of ceramics and human remains in

792-433: The process. Untold numbers of artifacts were lost, sold for profit to private collections on the black market. Alva arrived with the police a day or more later, after an exceedingly ornate mask had been confiscated from the huaqueros stash house and presented to the researcher. There are a number of accounts from the events taking place upon the arrival of Alva and the police, however it is clear that they were able to drive

825-577: The reaction: thereby dissolving copper and depositing gold on the surface of the metal. The sheet is then heated to between 500 and 800 o C, allowing the gold film to permanently bond to the surface. These gold films were not pure gold, but have been found to be of gold-copper-silver solutions (ex. Cu 28 Au 2 Ag). Some of the silver artifacts (namely individually made head-shaped beads, about 4.0 cm by 5.1 cm) were formed by alternating between hammering and annealing copper-silver alloy (Cu 18 Ag 1 Au) resulting in copper-oxide forming along

858-465: The region of Lambayeque was one of great cultural exchange between the Pacific coast and the rest of Peru." The team discovered likely ceremonial offerings, including the skeletons of a parrot and a monkey , which would have come from Peru's jungle regions, and shells typical of coastal Ecuador. These indicated the range of exchange. Alva and his team worked three months on the excavation. They said that

891-407: The shape of peanuts, which represent the earth. The peanuts symbolized that men came from the land, and that when they die, they return to the earth. Peanuts were used because they were an important food crop for the Moche. The necklaces had ten kernels on the right side made of gold, signifying masculinity and the sun god , and ten kernels on the left side made of silver, to represent femininity and

924-443: The surface which can be removed using an acid (plant juices) or base (stale urine that has turned to ammonia). After many repetitions, the copper will be depleted resulting in the appearance of pure silver (in actuality silver only makes up 18% of the surface). Other silver artifacts are believed to have been made in roughly the same manner, but contain as much as 90% silver on the surface Examples of metalwork found in Sipán include

957-428: The time of his death. His jewelry and ornaments, which included headdresses, a face mask, a pectoral, (the pectoral was gold and had the head of a man and the body of an octopus) necklaces, nose rings, earrings and other items, indicate he was of the highest rank. Most of the ornaments were made of gold, silver, copper and semi-precious stones. The Lord of Sipán was wearing two necklaces with beads of gold and silver in

990-425: The tomb indicated that the person buried in the tomb was of the same high rank as the first Lord of Sipán burial. DNA analysis of the remains in this third tomb established that the individual buried in the third tomb was related to the Lord of Sipán via the maternal line. As a result, the archeologists named this third individual The Old Lord of Sipán . The third tomb also contained the remains of two other people:

1023-412: Was also possible to provide an accurate estimate of his age at death, allowing for a more accurate facial reconstruction by researchers. The Royal Tombs of Sipán Museum , located in nearby Lambayeque , contains most of the important artifacts found at Huaca Rajada, including the Lord of Sipán and his entourage. Dr. Alva helped found and support construction of the museum, which opened in 2002. The museum

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1056-512: Was constructed nearby Lambayeque to hold most of the artifacts and interpret the tombs. It opened in 2002 and Dr. Alva is director. The Moche tombs at Huaca Rajada are located near the town of Sipán in the middle of the Lambayeque Valley. Sipán is in the Zaña district in the northern part of Peru. Close to the coast, it is about 20 miles east of the city of Chiclayo and about 30 miles away from Lambayeque . Huacas like Huaca Rajada were built by

1089-584: Was discovered nearby in 2008; this site is now known as "Collud". This temple sheds some light on the connection between the Cupisnique and the Chavin because of shared iconography. The Chavin people who came after the Cupisnique built a temple adjacent to Collud about three hundred years later; this location is named "Zarpan". All three temples are close together, and form a single archaeological site. There are numerous shared elements between these locations. "During

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