Archaeologists working in the ancient city of Caral in northern Peru have found the remains of a 4,500-year-old mummified woman. The woman is believed to have been a noblewoman around 40 to 50 years old at the time of her death.
Her grave has carvings of four broaches made of bone with animal motifs representing birds and monkeys and she was accompanied by a pot containing vegetable fragments and seeds, a shell-beaded necklace and a pendant.
The Independent reports:
Archaeologist Ruth Shady, the director of the Caral Archaeological Zone who found the ancient woman along with her research team, said the discovery could help historians better understand the ancient Caral civilisation.
She told Andina news service: “This find shows evidence of gender equality, that is, both women and men were able to play leading roles and attain high social status more than 1,000 years ago.”
snip
According to Ms Shady, the objects found at the grave were brought from different places suggesting trade between Aspero and the city of Caral – understood to be the most ancient city in south America inhabited between 2,600 BC and 2,000 BC, predating the Incas.
The findings also suggest music was an key aspect of Aspero inhabitants’ daily life, following the discovery of eight flutes made of animal bones placed as offerings in front of a ceremonial enclosure at the archaeological site.
In 2015, Peru This Week reported on the elevated cultural status of women (perhaps priestesses) in the Caral civilization with the discovery of two clay figurines.
The clay figurines were found in the complex near the town of Végueta, north of Lima. Discovered in the building known as the “las Hornacinas”, the figurines were covered in sand, ash and organic materials.
Shady explained that the figurines demonstrate a pair of rulers including a man and a woman, and they are accompanied by what appears to be a higher priestess. To Shady this is a huge discovery as it sheds light on the significance of women at one of the earliest cradles of civilization in history.
Additional female figures include the discovery of two female heads that were modeled into uncooked clay. They were found in a building known as “del Depósito” wrapped in a cloak of feathers of various colors.
x YouTube Video