British Museum Exhibition: Collection of ancient Peruvian objects

A "landmark lending of ancient objects" from Peru will be part of a new British Museum exhibition.

The museum stated that the exhibition will include over 40 "remarkable items", some of which have never been to the United Kingdom before.

In a new exhibition Peru: a Journey In Time, they will be displayed alongside approximately 80 pieces from the London Museum's collection.

Cecilia Pardo is co-curator for Peru: A Journey In Time. She said that while the Incas are a well-known civilisation from Peru, they are actually quite recent in the region's long history.
 

"We will be taking visitors back thousands of years ago, to show how extraordinary past cultures of Peru were shaped through unique ways of living in the central Andes, one the cradles for world civilisation.

They'll learn the story of ancient Peruvian societies and their unique approach to economy, gender, power, and beliefs. And how they survived the odds up until the Spanish conquest.

"It will be eye-opening and will challenge Western assumptions about the construction of societies."

Peru: A Journey In Time will be the British Museum's first major exhibition on Peru. It will examine the rise and fall six different societies throughout the country over thousands of years.

It coincides also with the 200th anniversary the country's independence form Spain.

A Peruvian artifact that traveled from Peru includes a 2,500-year old gold headdress and a ceremonial drummer believed to date from 100 BC to AD650. This drum depicts the capture of defeated foes in ritual combat.

The oldest object on loan, a ceremonial vessel in shape of a human body contorted from Cupisnique culture, is believed to be from around 1200 BC.

Hartwig Fischer, the director of British Museum, stated: "A single step through a front door of the British Museum will always be the first step on any journey. And with this exhibition, we invite visitors to travel through one of the most fascinating regions in the world's history.
 

"The generosity of Peru's museums to loan ancient objects is extraordinary and it's a rare opportunity to see them in the UK.

"The amazing range of material displayed collectively challenges our perceptions of the world.

Promperu's support made it possible.

Promperu, a government promotional agency, supports the British Museum's Peru: a Journey In Time exhibit. It will be on display from November 11 through February 20.