Archaeologists working at Pañamarca, an ancient Moche site in Peru’s Ancash Region, have unearthed a throne room belonging to a powerful Moche woman.

Painted architecture within the Hall of the Moche Imaginary. Credit: Lisa Trever / Pañamarca Digital / Denver Museum of Nature & Science

The site, which sits on a granite hill in the lower Nepeña Valley, dates back to the Moche culture, an Andean civilization that thrived between the 1st and 8th centuries CE in the coastal valleys of northern Peru.

The excavation, part of the ongoing Archaeological Landscapes of Pañamarca project, has been active since 2018. The project is a collaboration between Peruvian and U.S. archaeologists, art historians, and conservators, supported by the National Geographic Society, Columbia University, and the Avenir Conservation Center of the Denver Museum of Nature & Science. Their efforts aim to uncover the ceremonial activities and artistic representations that took place in Pañamarca and its surroundings.

During the most recent excavation season, the team uncovered an adobe pillared throne room that project director Jessica Ortiz Zevallos has named the “Hall of Moche Imaginary” (Sala del Imaginario Moche). The room, surrounded by intricately painted walls and pillars, features four distinct scenes of a powerful woman—sometimes depicted receiving visitors in procession, and in other instances seated upon her throne. The throne room is decorated with symbols ᴀssociated with the crescent moon, sea creatures, and the arts of spinning and weaving, all elements tied to Moche religious imagery.

Lisa Trever stands, with research ᴀssistants Joseph Senchyshyn and Riley Tavares, behind the painted throne within the Hall of the Moche Imaginary. Credit: José Antonio Ochatoma Cabrera / Pañamarca Digital / Denver Museum of Nature & Science

The throne itself, coupled with the imagery on the surrounding walls, provides evidence that it was used by an elite female leader during the 7th century. While scholars continue to debate whether the woman depicted is a priestess, goddess, or queen, the physical wear on the throne’s backrest, as well as the presence of greenstone beads, fine threads, and human hair, all suggest that it was occupied by a real person. According to Lisa Trever, a professor of Art History at Columbia University, “Pañamarca continues to surprise us, not only for the ceaseless creativity of its painters but also because their works are overturning our expectations of gender roles in the ancient Moche world.”

Pañamarca is renowned for its vibrant wall paintings, first documented in the 1950s. These murals, found in the plaza and platforms, depict priests and warriors in procession, supernatural battles, and ceremonial activities involving human prisoners. The recent discovery of the throne room is unprecedented in Moche archaeology, marking the first time a queen’s throne has been uncovered at Pañamarca or any other ancient Peruvian site.

The project has also revealed a new monumental structure known as the “Hall of Braided Serpents,” located in the southern corner of the large walled plaza. This hall features murals depicting intertwined serpents with human legs, a unique motif in Moche art. Other paintings include representations of warriors, anthropomorphized weapons, and a monster chasing a man. The hall appears to have been renovated multiple times, with evidence of ritual burnings, offerings, and the resurfacing of walls and floors.

Digital illustration of one of the painted pillars within the Hall of the Braided Serpents. Credit: Michele L. Koons, Jorja García, and Lisa Trever / Pañamarca Digital / Denver Museum of Nature & Science

Alongside the excavation, conservation efforts are a key focus of the project. Due to the fragility of the murals, they are currently not open to tourists. “If left open to the elements without a permanent conservation program on-site, the invaluable murals of Pañamarca would begin to deteriorate immediately, as we know happened to the murals first uncovered in the 1950s,” notes José Antonio Ochatoma Cabrera, one of the project’s archaeologists. To protect the site, the team follows the Peruvian Ministry of Culture’s recommendations, covering the excavations at the end of each season and constructing roofs and windbreaks to shield the painted structures.

Digital preservation is also a priority. Using both traditional techniques and modern 3D scanning technology, the team is creating detailed records of the painted architecture. These renderings are being shared through academic publications, conferences, and online platforms, including a new website, Pañamarca Digital, launched in 2023.

More information: Pañamarca Digital