LIMA, PERU—A Polish-Peruvian team was amazed to discover a pristine imperial tomb holding the remains of three queens of the Wari Empire, which ruled much of Peru from A.D. 700 to 1000. Typically such tombs have already been looted, but this one, about four hours north of Lima, still held not just the remains of three queens and some 60 of their subjects, but also lavish grave goods. The royals were buried with weaving tools made of gold, silver bowls, bronze axes, and ceramics from throughout the Wari Empire. The dig was kept secret for months to insure looters stayed away from the site. "I had a nightmare about the possibility," says University of Warsaw archaeologist Milo Giersz. “We are talking about the first unearthed royal imperial tomb."
