Gaby
A team from the Archaeological Project of Cultural Landscapes Ukupé has uncovered a temple and theater that predate Machu Picchu by about 3,500 to 4,000 years. They were built long before the Incas.
“It was amazing! This discovery tells us about the early roots of religion in Peru,” said Dr. Luis Armando Muro Inoñán, the project leader and a Field Museum archaeologist.
“We knew very little about how and under what circumstances complex belief systems emerged in the Andes. Now we have evidence of some of the earliest religious sites people built in this region,” said Dr. Inoñán. He added that researchers still do not know what these people called themselves or what name neighboring groups used for them.
A Few Words About the Discovery
Dr. Inoñán and his team uncovered an unknown monument at the archaeological site of La Otra Banda in 2023. At a depth of 1.8 meters, they found the ruins of ancient walls made of compacted clay.
“It was strange that these very ancient structures were located so close to the surface,” said Dr. Inoñán. Further excavation revealed evidence that a large temple had once stood here. Nearby, the researchers discovered another structure that likely belonged to the same religious complex.
“One of the most interesting finds was a small theater with a backstage area and stairs leading to a platform resembling a stage,” said the team leader. He believes the structure was used for ritual performances staged for a select audience.
Near the theater stairs, archaeologists found clay panels adorned with intricate carved patterns. Some panels depicted a bird-like creature, as reported by Sci.News. Commenting on the discovery, Dr. Inoñán described the creature as resembling an anthropomorphic bird with some reptilian features.
“This figure caught our attention because it provides clues about the temple’s age and its relationship to other ancient temples in the area,” said Dr. Inoñán.
He also noted that other images of similar mythological creatures in Peru come from the period archaeologists call the Initial Period, which began about 4,000 years ago.
However, the Initial Period people were not the region’s first inhabitants. Humans occupied what is now Peru as far back as 15,000 years ago. Between roughly 5000 and 3000 BC, during the pre-ceramic period, people on the coast of Peru began to form societies and complex political systems, the researcher said. The Initial Period followed, running from about 2000 to 900 BC.
Archaeologists consider the Initial Period significant because it shows the first evidence of institutionalized religion in Peru. Researchers hope the newly discovered religious complex will help trace the origins of those practices.
