The ancient sacrificed remains of 200 fishermen have been excavated from a beach in Peru. Archaeologists believe they were kneeling, tied and blindfolded, facing the waves, then stabbed through the heart as an offering by their conquerors to Ni, god of the sea.

The grisly find represents the biggest case of human sacrifice discovered in South America. Hector Walde, chief of the excavation project at Peru’s National Institute of Culture, says the men probably died in a victory ceremony conducted by the Chimu people in about 1350.

The fishermen were stabbed through the collarbone, straight into the heart Photo: Reuters

Of the 200 bodies, 107 were found intact. Many are arched backward, as if in their death throes. “It’s impressive to think that, even though 600 years have gone by, the pain and anguish these people went through when they died can be seen in the cadavers and even the outlines they left in the sand,” Walde told Reuters.

The find is “absolutely fascinating”, says John Collis, an archaeologist at the University of Sheffield, UK who works on human sacrifice. “It does sound like an unusually large find, though human sacrifice at that time was fairly common in some parts of the world,” he says.


However Collis says it is impossible to be precise about the reason for the slayings: “Human sacrifice can happen for a number of reasons – sometimes, it’s as revenge, sometimes as appeasement, and sometimes as thanksgiving.”

Food and drink

The remains of the fishermen were discovered by accident close to the modern-day town of Huarmey, about 275 kilometres north of Lima. The archaeologists were conducting an impact assessment for a port project connected to a copper and zinc mine.

Near to the bodies, Walde’s team found jugs filled with grains and drinks, a fishing net and other everyday items. They were probably left by wives or children of the dead, or older people in the community, Walde says.

Relatively little is known about the Chimu civilisation, which lasted from about 1100 to 1476, when it was defeated by the Inca. At their height of power, the Chimu ruled about 620 square miles. The new discovery is important because it confirms a theory based on etchings and writings that large ritual killings were practised in the region.

“This confirms that the Chimu were part of a long religious tradition that included sacrifices in their ceremonies,” Walde said.