My penultimate stop before crossing the border into Ecuador. Chiclayo! One of the drabbest towns that I have so far visited in all of Peru! It’s a place of dodgy street corners and seedy hotels; mine doubled up as a love hotel during the day, which is fine but ‘noise’ travels in a hotel with tiled floors and no carpets! The town offers only two things for the independent traveller. 1. It’s a ‘useful’ transit stop for a journey to or from Ecuador. 2. And the most important, it’s major draw card – El Señor de Sipán – the only real reason that anyone, in their right mind, would contemplate a visit to this god forsaken hole.
The Lord of Sipán (El Señor de Sipán) is the name given to the first of several Moche mummies found in the region by archaeologist Walter Alva in 1987.
Some archaeologists consider the find to be one of the most important archaeological discoveries in South America in the last 30 years – the main tomb was found intact and virtually untouched by thieves. It can probably be compared to the 1922 discovery of the boy king Tutankhamun, in wealth, importance and shear size
The museum of the Royal Tombs of Sipán is located in nearby Lambayeque (a short bus journey from Chiclayo) and holds most of the artefacts, along with stunning displays that help interpret the tombs. It is one of the most outstanding museums I have so far visited in Peru. Our tour guide spoke perfect English and managed to work us into a frenzy showing us one jaw dropping display after another.
For further information check out: Museo Tumbas Reales de Sipán
Next stage: Piura and the border crossing into Ecuador.
