The Museum of the Royal Tombs of Sipan: It Looks Like A Moche Pyramid.

Drawing Of An Animation Of The Lord Of Sipan Holding Court; Created By Susana Meneses. When Visiting The Museum, This Is A Must See Exhibit.

The Museo Tumbas Reales de Sipán (Museum of the Royal Tombs of Sipán), located in Lambayeque, is one of the best museums in Peru. Constructed in the shape of a Moche Pyramid, this modern museum was built to showcase the treasures unearthed from the Royal Tombs of Sipán, particularly the Lord of Sipán, El Señor de Sipán. Unlike most of the archeological sites along the coast of Peru, which were pilfered by grave robbers, the tomb of Lord Sipán remained undisturbed until it was discovered in 1987. The discovery was made by Dr. Walter Alva, who is now the director of the Museo Tumbas Reales de Sipán. The tomb contained a wealth of treasures, meant to accompany the Lord of Sipán on his journey to the after life. The museum has three main sections. One floor is devoted to Moche artifacts, primarily ceramics. Below this is the floor which contains the stunning gold and silver treasures recovered from the tomb. On the lowest level is a reproduction of the tomb as it was when it was discovered. There is also an audio visual presentation on El Señor de Sipán. The Museum of the Royal Tombs of Sipán is shaped like a Moche pyramid, containing the gold masks, scepters, jewelry, and other objects of the royal Moche tomb discovered by Walter Alva in 1987. This museum succeeds in evoking the full grandeur and sophistication of the ancient Moche civilization (100–750 A.D.) in a way that adobe pyramids, now reduced to mud mountains, often do not. This museum, a dark red pyramid, rises out of the dry, flat streetscape. Visitors climb an exterior stairway and enter the building at the top. Descending through the galleries, they encounter objects in the same sequence as the archeologists did – hammered-gold sheets that cradled the lord’s head and rested on his eyes, nose, mouth and chin: bracelets strung with hundreds of turquoise, shell, and gold beads; a gold-and-silver scepter depieting a warrior and his nude prisoner; gold-and silver backflaps (sheets the Moche suspended from the back of their belts) inlaid with shell and semiprecious stones, depicting a figure with a large, ganged mouth holding a human head by the hair and a tumi, a sacrificial knife. Each object or jewel displays artistry and craftsmanship that astounds and delights at every turn. We have placed on this page some images which we were able to obtain while in Lambayeque of some of the objects and displays in the museum. NONE OF THESE IMAGES ARE AVAILABLE TO PURCHASE OR TO USE. We hope that after viewing these images, you will go to the Lord Of Sipán Museum and see these for yourselves and enjoy them as much as we were able to do.

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Drawing Of The Reconstruction Of The Lord Of Sipán Burial Chamber

The Lord Of Sipán's Ear Ornaments

The Lord Of Sipán's Ear Ornaments

Priest Of Sipan On Left Lord Of Sipan On Right	Gold Pieces Covering Eyes Nose, And Mouth Of The Lord Of Sipan
Scepter Knives Of The Lord Of Sipán	Main Ear Ornament The Lord Of Sipán
Gold Discs	Feline Heads
The Old Lords Necklace	The Old Lords Necklace
The Old Lords Bells	Gold & Turquoise Earrings From The Fourth Tomb
Gold Rattle Representing Chalchalcha, "The Decapitator"	Chalchalcha, "The Decapitator" Supreme Moche God
Octopus Pectorals	The Priests Ear Ornaments
Gold Coccyx Protector	Silver Coccyx Protector
Gold Necklace	Gold Banner
Gold Crab God	Gold Feline God
The Lord Of Sipán's Bracelets	Bracelet Of The Old Lord
The Lord Of Sipán's Pectoral	The Lord Of Sipán's Gold Chin Plate
The Old Lords Back - Flap	Necklace Of Ten Gold And Ten Silver Peanuts
The Lord Of Sipán's Gold Crown	Gold Human Head
The Lord Of Sipán's Pectoral	The Lord Of Sipán's Pectoral