Peru has lost more than half of its glacier surface in the last six decades, and 175 glaciers became extinct due to climate change between 2016 and 2020, Peruvian scientists from the state agency that studies glaciers said Wednesday. “In 58 years, 56.22% of the glacial coverage recorded in 1962 has been lost,” said Mayra Mejía, an official with Peru’s National Institute of Research of Mountain Glaciers and Ecosystems, or Inaigem. The factor that causes the greatest impact is the increase in the average global temperature, causing an accelerated retreat of glaciers, especially those in tropical areas, Jesús Gómez, director of glacier research at Inaigem, told The Associated Press. The South American country has 1,050 square kilometers (405 square miles) of glacial coverage lef...
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travel articles and news about Peru
Workers uncover eight mummies, pre-Inca objects while expanding gas network in Peru
Some archaeologists describe Peru’s capital as an onion with many layers of history, others consider it a box of surprises. That’s what some gas line workers got when their digging uncovered eight pre-Inca funeral bales. “We are recovering those leaves of the lost history of Lima that is just hidden under the tracks and streets,” Jesus Bahamonde, an archaeologist at Calidda, the company that distributes natural gas in the city of 10 million people, said Friday. Archaeologists uncover bones and vessels discovered by city workers who were digging a natural gas line for the company Calidda in the district of Carabayllo on the outskirts of Lima, Peru, Friday, Sept. 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Martin Mejia) He said the company’s excavation work to expand its system of gas lines over the last ...
Read MoreArchaeologists working in Peru have uncovered a 3,000-year-old sealed corridor dubbed "the condor's passageway" that likely leads to other chambers inside what was once a massive temple complex pertaining to the ancient Chavin culture. Located around 190 miles (306 km) northeast of Lima, the Chavin de Huantar archaeological site is among the culture's most important centers, thriving from around 1,500-550 B.C. FILE PHOTO: The archaeological site of Chavin de Huantar, which is a UNESCO World Heritage site, is seen some 155 miles (250 km) north of Lima July 18, 2008. A museum opened near the site with an exhibition of ceramic pieces and rock sculptures from a culture that flourished around 900 B.C. REUTERS/Enrique Castro-Mendivil The Chavin are well-known for their advanced art, of...
Read MorePeruvian archaeologists have discovered an approximately 3,000-year-old mummy in Lima, they said on Wednesday, the latest discovery in the Andean nation dating to pre-Hispanic times. Students from San Marcos University and researchers initially found remains of the mummy's hair and skull in a cotton bundle during excavation, before uncovering the rest of the mummy. An archaeologist works at the excavation site of a pre-Hispanic burial next to a mummy believed to be from the Manchay culture, which developed in the valleys of Lima between 1,500 and 1,000 BCE, in Lima, Peru, June 14, 2023. REUTERS/Anthony Marina The mummy was probably from the Manchay culture, which developed in the valleys of Lima between 1500 and 1000 BC, archaeologist Miguel Aguilar said, and was associated with ...
Read MorePeruvian archaeologists unearthed a more than 1,000-year-old mummy on the outskirts of the modern capital on Monday, in the latest discovery dating back to pre-Inca times. The mummy was probably an adolescent and found in an underground tomb wrapped in a funerary bundle, along with ceramics and rope and including bits of skin and hair. Archaeologists work at the archaeological complex of Cajamarquilla where pre-Inca mummies from 900 to 1200 years old were discovered, in Lima, Peru, April 24, 2023. REUTERS/Sebastian Castaneda The mummified adolescent was found in a "good state of conservation," said archaeologist Yomira Huaman, in charge of the Cajamarquilla research project affiliated with the Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos. While best known for the mountain-top Inca...
Read MoreArchaeologists in the Peruvian Andes have discovered an Inca bathing complex built half a millennia ago, which they believe may have served the elite of the sprawling empire than once dominated large swathes of South America. Found near the "House of the Inca" in the Huanuco Pampa archaeological zone in central Peru, local archaeologists believe that the bath may have served a religious purpose for high-ranking members of the Inca empire, which 500 years ago extended from southern Ecuador to the center of Chile. Archaeologists work in the remains of an ancient ceremonial Inca bathroom, discovered in a sector known as Inkawasi (House of the Inca), at the archaeological site Huanuco Pampa, in Huanuco, Peru April 5, 2023. Peru Culture Ministry/Handout via REUTERS Luis Paredes Sanche...
Read MorePeruvian archaeologists have discovered some 30 pre-Inca era graves in a cemetery belonging to the Chancay people, a group who inhabited valleys of Peru's central coast from 1000 to 1500 AD. Archaeologists from the University of San Marcos work at the site of a burial belonging to the Chantay pre-Columbian culture, which was found in a cemetery at Macaton mountain in the north-central Huaral valley, in Huaral, Peru February 24, 2023. REUTERS/Angela Ponce The newly found 800-year-old graves have allowed specialists to know more about the Chancay culture, which has been little researched, Pieter Van Dalen, archeologist at San Marcos university, told Reuters. "In the last year we have discovered more than 2,000 burials in different cemeteries of the Chancay culture," he added. An...
Read MorePeru’s Machu Picchu, an Inca-era stone citadel nestled in its southeastern jungle, reopened on Wednesday after being closed nearly a month ago amid anti-government protests, the culture ministry announced. Agreements were made between authorities, social groups and the local tourism industry to guarantee the security of the famed tourist attraction and transport services. Protests calling for the resignation of President Dina Boluarte and members of Peru’s Congress have shaken the region, including Cuzco, for more than two months. The demonstrations caused a blockade of the train tracks leading to the stone citadel. The protests have led to 60 deaths: 48 are civilians who died in clashes with the security forces; 11 civilians killed in traffic accidents related to road blocka...
Read MorePeru indefinitely shut the famed ancient ruins of Machu Picchu on Saturday in the latest sign that anti-government protests that began last month are increasingly engulfing the South American country. The Culture Ministry said it had closed the country’s most famous tourist attraction as well as the Inca Trail leading up to the site “to protect the safety of tourists and the population in general.” There were 417 visitors stuck at Machu Picchu and unable to get out, more than 300 of them foreigners, Tourism Minister Luis Fernando Helguero said at a news conference. The closure of the Incan citadel that dates to the 15th century and is often referred to as one of the new seven wonders of the world comes as protesters have descended on Lima, many of them traveling to the capita...
Read MoreMost Christmas ceremonies would be ruined if attendees threw a punch. But in Peru's mountainous south, participants of one Dec. 25 festival have exactly that in mind. On Christmas Day, hundreds of residents of Chumbivilcas province in Peru's Cusco region gather to take part in an ancient fighting ritual aimed at settling scores and resolving conflict before the year's end. Andean men participate in a one-on-one fight during the "Takanakuy", a traditional festivity at Chumbivilcas province, in Cuzco. REUTERS/Enrique Castro-Mendivil The tradition, which dates back generations, is known as Takanakuy, a Quechua name that roughly translates to hitting each other with fists. The ritual has been described as a method of alternative governance outside Peru's justice system. Fighters a...
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