Pachacamac Idol’s true colours are finally revealed as chemical analysis shows that the ancient Peruvian wooden statue was once painted in many shades
- The idol was found in Pachacamac, an archaeological site 19 miles south of Lima
- Experts found red marks on the idol to be not blood but mercury from cinnabar
- Evidence was also found of white paint on its teeth and yellow on headdresses
- Carbon dating suggests the idol was carved from wood cut around 760–876 AD
The true colours of the sacred Pachacamac Idol of ancient Peru have been revealed as a chemical analysis has shown that the statue was painted in many shades.
The idol is a symbolically carved wooden statue from the Pachacamac archaeological complex that lies 19 miles (31 kilometres) south of Lima.
During the 15th-16th centuries, Pachacamac was the principal coastal Inca sanctuary.
The idol was reportedly damaged in 1533 during the Spanish conquest of the region, and the full details of its antiquity have been unclear.
Now researchers have unlocked the mystery of the wooden idol’s red colouring using non-invasive and non-destructive analysis.
They found that red was not the only colour present on the piece of wood — finding white on the teeth of one figure and yellow on some headdresses.
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The true colours of the sacred Pachacamac Idol of ancient Peru have been revealed as a chemical analysis has shown that the statue was painted in many shades
Researchers discovered that the red colour of the idol was not blood, but mercury from cinnabar — a mineral known in that region for more than 2,000 years.
Cinnabar sources in the Andes are found around 248 miles (400 kilometres) from Pachacamac.
The idol must have therefore been painted intentionally to show economic and political power, by carrying a pigment from a faraway region even though others were available on site, the team argue.
In their study, archaeologist Marcela Sepulveda of the University of Tarapaca, Chile and colleagues chemically analysed a wood sample from the idol.
Using carbon dating, the researchers were also able to determine that the wood was cut — and likely to have also been carved — around the years 760–876 AD.
This suggests that the statue was worshipped for almost 700 years before the Spanish conquest, the ream concluded.
The idol is a symbolically carved wooden statue from the Pachacamac archaeological complex that lies 19 miles (31 kilometres) south of Lima. During the 15th-16th centuries, Pachacamac was the principal coastal Inca sanctuary
Researchers discovered that the red colour on the idol (highlighted in the above) was not blood, but mercury from cinnabar — a mineral known in that region for more than 2,000 years
‘Here, polychromy of the so-called Pachacamac Idol is demonstrated, including the presence of cinnabar,’ the researchers wrote in their paper.
‘The unpublished chemical results obtained in this study show an exceptionally colourful palette for a venerated and sacred wooden statue preserved for nearly 700 years.’
This, they added, demonstrates ‘the significance of the idol for those who worshipped it.’
The idol was reportedly damaged in 1533 during the Spanish conquest of the region, and the full details of its antiquity have been unclear
The ancient societies of Africa, Asia and Europe typically decorated statues and other objects of adoration in colours, the researchers noted.
‘The polychromy revealed in the so-called Pachacamac Idol provides evidence of a similar practice and adds a new material dimension for cult and pilgrimage in the Andean region,’ they added.
The full findings of the study were published in the journal PLOS ONE.
The idol is a symbolically carved wooden statue from the Pachacamac archaeological complex that lies 19 miles (31 kilometres) south of Lima. During the 15th-16th centuries, Pachacamac was the principal coastal Inca sanctuary
