Under tons of garbage, archaeologists in Lima, Peru, made the startling discovery of a 3,000-year-old mummy that was probably a sacrifice.
According to Reuters, the specimen was discovered this week by archaeologists and San Marcos University students. Its open head and hair helped them find it first.
According to BBC News, more than 15,000 pounds of waste had to be removed from the area before the old mummies could be examined. From there, Reuters reports, further things buried at the site were also retrieved, including grain, coca leaves, and seeds.
The mummy was most likely from the Manchay civilization, a tribal group who existed in the area of present-day Lima from 1500 BC to 1000 BC, according to archaeologist Miguel Aguilar, who spoke to BBC News. According to the BBC, the Manchay people often constructed U-shaped temples that faced the rising sun.
The mummy's placement within the U-shaped temple and other traits also pointed to it being from the Manchay civilization, according to the BBC.
Aguilar said that the person "had been left or offered [as a sacrifice] during the last phase of construction of this temple," BBC said.
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