Áncash Archaeological Museum

Archaeological museum located in the Peruvian city of Huaraz, dedicated to exhibit collections of the different cultures that inhabited the department of Ancash.
Áncash Archaeological Museum
Image credit to Marita Contreras
Type: Archaeological Museum
Country:
Peru
Establishment: 1935

The Áncash Archaeological Museum (Spanish: Museo Arqueológico de Áncash) is a museum located in the city of Huaraz in northern Peru.

History

The museum was created in October 1935 by the priest Augusto Soriano Infantes.[1] Between 2018 and 2019, the museum held an exhibition with a sample of different sculptures of heads made of stone belonging to the Recuay Culture, such archaeological pieces were collected by the archaeologist Mirko Brito Salvador, in addition to the exhibition was in charge of the artist Micha Valverde Robles.[2]

In 2016, to commemorate the 61st anniversary of the museum, different local organizations of Ancash plus the Chamber of Commerce of Huaraz decided to organize different activities to promote the culture, art, dance and traditions of the region in the Alpamayo and Huascaran rooms of the museum, these rooms are named after two important mountains in the department of Ancash.[3]

Collections

The museum collections include monoliths, as well as models of different archaeological sites of Huaraz in addition to stone stelae, which are structures used as monuments in ancient times.[4] The museum has ceramics made of kaolin, from the Recuay Culture found in the "Balcón de Judas" (lit. Judas' Balcony) hill.[5] Among the collections of the museum, it has a series of conopas, small objects used for certain rituals of various cultures that reside in the Peruvian Andes, these conopas are characterized by having a design reminiscent of the shape and structure of a corn.[6]

The museum also has exhibits about the stone monoliths found in the Lanzón Gallery within the Chavín de Huántar Archaeological Site, in addition, the museum includes exhibits of different cultures and ancient civilizations of the department of Ancash, such as the Huaras and Wari that inhabited mainly the mountainous areas, as well as the Moche and Chimu civilizations that settled on the coast of northern Peru.[7]

References

  1. Serna, C. (2001). Mapa cultural de Ancash: Datos preliminares, introducción, selección y organización de datos. G & L Editores. (Page 21) (in Spanish)

  2. Impresionantes cabezas clavas de la cultura Recuay | Museo Arqueológico de Áncash. (2022-07-13) Canal Museal (in Spanish)

  3. Hermoza, L. (2016-10-27). Museo Arqueológico de Áncash Celebra 81 aniversario con actividades artísticas Ancash Noticias. (in Spanish)

  4. Rachowiecki, R. (2022). Peru. National Geographic. ISBN: 9788854419384, 8854419389 (Page 24)

  5. Ibarra Asencios, B., & Wegner, S. (2003). Arqueología de la sierra de Ancash: Propuestas y perspectivas. Instituto Cultural Rvna (Page 134) (in Spanish)

  6. Escudero, W. K. (2007). "Mapa cultural y educación en el Perú." Asamblea Nacional de Rectores. (in Spanish)

  7. Lau, G. (2016). An Archaeology of Ancash: Stones, Ruins and Communities in Andean Peru. Routledge.

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