New Insights into Nasca and Wari Civilizations Emerge from Peru Excavations
Historians have long relied on archaeological evidence to map the territories and interactions of ancient civilizations. However, fresh discoveries can significantly alter previous understandings. Such is the case with recent findings in Peru that may redefine the history of the Nasca and Wari civilizations.
In 2018, Corina Kellner, a biological anthropologist from the Department of Anthropology, was part of a team tasked with excavating Huaca del Loro, a significant archaeological site on Peru’s southern coast where the Nasca civilization thrived from 1-750 C.E. After a subsequent expedition in 2022, the team’s discoveries have the potential to reshape historical narratives of the region.
“During our second field session we encountered four wrapped mummified individuals, seated and flexed, with their knees to their chest and their hands around their face,” stated Kellner. “That’s typical for a lot of burials in Peru, but what makes these individuals so interesting is that we found them buried by a Wari temple and not in the cemetery like the rest. Also, they were undisturbed for over 1,000 years, which is uncommon in Peru.”
This discovery challenges the prevailing notion that the Wari Empire overtook the Nasca civilization through conquest. Instead, these mummies might suggest a peaceful collaboration between the two cultures.
Exploring Ancient Connections
With funding from the NAU Scholarly Research and Creative Grant Program and the H. and T. King Grant for Archaeology of Ancient Americas, Kellner returned to Peru for further investigation. Collaborating with Melissa Lund and Alexandra Oshiro from the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru, the team utilized advanced techniques to glean more information.
“When we first found these individuals, we were able to get X-rays and worked with a radiologist and a doctor to interpret the results,” Kellner explained. “This time, with permission from the Ministry of Culture and help from a group of archaeologists from Peru and Susana Arce, director of the Museo Nacional de Lima, where they mummies are kept, we took them out of the museum and did CT scans and took DNA samples. We also took samples from other people and animals found at the site, so that we could run isotopic analysis that will help us figure out diet, relationships and migration patterns.”
Huaca del Loro, occupied during the Middle Horizon—a transition period marking the end of the Nasca civilization and the rise of Wari and Tiwanaku influences—offers a rich site for exploring these interactions. Kellner’s research aims to uncover whether and how the Nasca and Wari cultures might have cooperated.
“We are looking for colonization techniques to see if there was any type of resistance and to determine how complex their relationship was,” Kellner noted. “We usually think of colonization as this rough and tumble violent thing, but that is not always the case. Other techniques can influence areas or regions, like what people might want from each other. These findings make us think that the Wari and the Nasca had a previous relationship and that the Nasca civilization might have supported the Wari Empire.”
Potential areas of exchange could include ceramic and textile technologies, as the Nasca were renowned for their vibrant ceramics and the cultivation of cotton—resources the Wari might have needed.
Decoding the Past
As Kellner awaits the results of DNA and CT scan analyses, she plans to conduct isotope analysis at NAU’s Anthropology Isotope Paleodiet lab with her students. These studies could illuminate the social dynamics and interactions between ancient societies.
“We always think we’re fighting with each other, but humans are social animals, and we do cooperate and take advantage of the different strengths of each society,” Kellner remarked. “Looking at the Nasca region, we kind of turned upside down a little bit of what we thought the Wari were doing in the area.”
Kellner aims to establish a long-term collaboration with the Ica museum to continue uncovering the stories of these ancient cultures and sharing them with their descendants.
“This is their cultural patrimony; these are their ancestors, and they deserve to know how wonderful and successful they were,” she stated.
Top image: Photographed by Jerod Roberts, 2022Huaca del Loro, Peru and Fardo (Mummy Bundle #2)
Mariana Laas | NAU Communications
(928) 523-5050 | mariana.laas@nau.edu
Read More Here
Comments are closed.