The work of archaeologists is one of the most curious in the world. They are always discovering new artifacts, hidden under the ground. However, some of the findings are bizarre. In Peru, 76 bodies of sacrificed children were found and a detail in the corpses gives an even darker tone to the story.
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According to Gabriel Prieto, assistant professor of Anthropology at the University of Florida, the bodies show signs of having had their hearts ripped out. “The skeletons had a clean, cross-section through the sternum,” he said. "They probably opened the ribcage to extract the hearts."
The children's bodies were found on an "artificial hill", according to the teacher. The scholar stated that they do not know exactly the reason behind choosing that spawning location. “We believed that this area was free of Chimu child sacrifices. But our evidence proves otherwise.”
The excavations took place in Pampa La Cruz. In just one archaeological site in this region, 323 corpses were found. In another, nearby, 137 more were found, in addition to three adult bodies. According to the researchers, there is the expectation that more victims of sacrifices will be found.
Why were children sacrificed?
It is not yet known. According to Professor Prieto, the Chimu people built an artificial irrigation system, in addition to agriculture fields, nearby. Therefore, he stated that there is a possibility that sacrifices were made in order to “sanctify” the new system.
Other peoples who lived in the region were also adept at human sacrifice. This means that there is still the possibility that the Chimu were just perpetuating a common practice in that location.
However, the number of bodies intrigues the researchers. The fact that there are no written records of what happened at that time leaves the “investigation” in the anthropologistsand archaeologists even more difficult. One possibility is that the sacrifices were a response to natural disasters at the time.
Graduated in Social Communication at the Federal University of Goiás. Passionate about digital media, pop culture, technology, politics and psychoanalysis.