In Peru, Archaeologists Discovered A Throne Room That May Have Belonged To An Ancient Queen From 1,300 Years Ago
On the northern coast of Peru, archaeologists discovered a throne room that may have belonged to an ancient queen of the Moche culture about 1,300 years ago.
The Moche were an Indigenous civilization that thrived between 350 and 850 C.E. They occupied a site in Pañamarca, where the room was found.
Pañamarca was rediscovered in the 1950s and contains adobe platforms, walls, temples, and murals.
Since 2018, researchers with the Archaeological Landscapes of Pañamarca research program have been studying the Moche site.
During their most recent survey, they uncovered an adobe throne room dating back to the seventh century.
It was inside Pañamarca’s Hall of the Moche Imaginary. The room’s walls and pillars are decorated with painted scenes featuring a “powerful woman.”
In one of the scenes, she is receiving a line of visitors. Another one depicted her sitting on a throne. The paintings suggest that a female ruler used the space. The woman seemed to be associated with the sea, the crescent moon, and craftsmanship.
One of the murals showed a workshop of women spinning and weaving while a line of men carried textiles and the female ruler’s crown.
“There is not a surface in this area that is bare,” said project archaeologist José Antonio. “Everything is painted and finely decorated with mythological scenes and characters.”
badahos – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only
Other murals that researchers have found since studying the site include images of warriors, priests and priestesses, supernatural beings, a two-faced man, and ceremonies involving prisoners.
However, it is the first time that the throne room of a queen has been seen at Pañamarca or anywhere in ancient Peru.
It is unclear whether the woman in the throne room’s murals was real or mythical. But the room showed signs of heavy use.
For instance, the back of the throne was deteriorated, and fine threads, greenstone beads, and human hair were on it. The wear and tear confirmed that a real living person occupied the throne.
During the same archaeological survey, the researchers discovered another room that faced the site’s main square.
It was dubbed the Hall of the Braided Serpents because it contained many pillars with paintings of snakes intertwined with human legs.
Such a motif had never been seen before in Moche art. The walls of the room were covered with murals of warriors, weapons, and a monster chasing the men.
The Moche people used dampened mineral pigments like clays and iron oxides to create their paintings.
Some of their most famous murals can be found at their temples of the sun and moon, which are located near what is now known as Trujillo. In the ninth century, the culture mysteriously vanished. No written records were left behind.
The researchers aim to protect and preserve the Moche’s rich and colorful artwork. The murals are currently not accessible to tourists due to their fragility.
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