Two years ago, Bolivian police found the 700-year-old mummy belonging to Peru. Recently, that mummy was returned to Peru.
Bolivian police say the mummy, which was that of a toddler estimated to be about 2 years old at the time of death, was about to be shipped to France by antiquities traffickers.
On Tuesday, the mummy was returned to Peru in an attempt to help the country preserve and protect its cultural heritage. Over the centuries Peru’s ancient artifacts from both the Incas and civilizations predating them have been stolen and sold off.
The mummy was recovered wrapped in five pieces of cloth, though only 2 originally belonged with the body. Looking to add additional value, the smugglers added the leg of another child, as the mummy was missing a leg.
The sex of the mummy could not be confirmed, and the mummy is believed to have come from a pre-Inca culture of coastal Peru. It is about 12 inches (30 cm) tall.
Bolivia’s Culture Minister Pablo Groux officially returned the mummy to Peru on November 6, 2012 and also signed an agreement to improve their cooperation in regards to fighting smugglers of cultural artifacts.
Last year another mummy was returned to Peru. It had been in Germany since the 1980s.
