The Museo Nacional de Arqueología Antropología e Historia del Perú

The Museo Nacional de Arqueología Antropología e Historia del Perú is the largest and oldest museum in the country. The museum is home to more than 100,000 artifacts from all over Peru. The collection of art focuses on the pre-Hispanic past of the country. Besides paintings, there is a wealth of ceramics, textiles, metals, organic objects, and lithics. Documentation, in the form of books and videos, showcases the colonial and republican heritage of the country.

Exhibits are displayed chronologically. The famous works include Raimondi Stela and Tello Obelisk. The ancient city of Machu Picchu is displayed in the form a scale model. Exhibitions are arranged at frequent intervals. The bibliographical collection includes the library, archive, and publications. The museum was involved recently in the accumulation of musical instruments, belonging to the pre-Hispanic times.

The funeral offerings and stone carvings are the highlights of the museum. Art belonging to the pre-Inca times are more than 8000 years old.

The museum is situated in Lima’s Plaza Bolívar. This country house was home to two freedom fighters, José de San Martin and Simón Bolívar. Looking at the structure of the museum, you get a sense that the art collection is priceless. The museum displays only a fraction of its entire collection. On the downside, the country lacks the financial and human resources to preserve the art collection. The sovereign rights over its cultural treasures are therefore seldom exercised.

Grave-robbing is widely spread. The grave-robbers are locally called ‘huaqueros’. Given the poverty of the local people, this is quite acceptable. Even the most remote village gets an idea of how much the gringos are set to pay for Inca artifacts in the black market. An infamous incident involved the theft of pre-Columbian jewelry worth five million dollars.

A famous tumi, a ritual knife that depicts a Lambayeque ruler, was melted in order to extract gold. Thus, it can be inferred that Peru is not able to conserve its heritage and culture. The museum has the largest collection of advanced Indian cultures that lies south of the Isthmus of Panama.

Chavín, a mythological creature of ancient America, greets every visitor in the lobby. A mute sentry or Estela Raimondi guided you to ancient civilizations. The Chavín collection is, however, the highlight of the museum. It comprises of demonic stone heads that once adorned temple walls. The stones pose an important question to the visitors: Did these creatures serve as a caution for the faithful or were they meant to scare off evil spirits.

The Tello obelisk is another major attraction. Many theories surround this mythical creature. The Chavinoid style permeates all areas of the country and was, without doubt, the dominant culture between 1200 and 200 BC.

Other exhibits include the civilizations of Moche, Nazca, and Chimú. The clear, stylized drawings and natural colors of the Nazca ceramics enthrall the visitor. The Mochica collection of art has given us lifelike portraits that feature dignitaries, warriors, and musicians. The hare lip people and laughing blind man still have the power to move us.

Several galleries are dedicated completely to Inca art. The art features plant and animal themes. Mythology and religion are secondary in nature. It is also possible that the Spaniards destroyed the Inca art in their blind religious fervor.