4,500-Year-Old Burial in Peru Reveals Exceptionally Well-Preserved High-Status Woman

Roughly around the same time that ancient Egypt united into a single kingdom, a little-known ancient society was also born on the other side of the world: the Caral-Supe civilization, also known as the Caral civilization or the Norte Chico civilization (3,000 to 1,800 BCE). Some scholars suggest that Caral-Supe represents the earliest civilization, not just in Peru but in the Americas. Researchers have made an extraordinary discovery in an ancient Caral town. Archaeologists have uncovered the burial site of an elite woman in Áspero, an ancient Caral fishing town in Peru’s Lima region. Her skin, hair, and nails are exceptionally preserved, which is an extremely rare feature for this region, as detailed in a recent government statement. The woman died between the ages of 20 and 35. Archaeologists found her body wrapped in materials including cotton, reed mats, and an exquisite panel arranged in a net over bundles of plant fibers and embroidered with macaw feathers—one of the earliest k ... Read full article.