27/04/2022
On April 16, the record-breaking international exhibition Machu Picchu et les trésors du Pérou (Machu Picchu and the Golden Empires of Peru) kicked off its European tour at La Cité d’Architecture et du Patrimoine (Palais de Chaillot) in Paris, France. Its doors will remain open for visitors to book their tickets until September 4th before changing venue.
This groundbreaking event, produced by CityNeon and World Heritage Exhibitions (the makers of Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of Pharaohs) in alliance with Inkaterra Asociación, is the largest exhibition to showcase Peru’s cultural legacy and extraordinary biodiversity. Machu Picchu et les trésors du Pérou is a fascinating journey through time to discover a culture that thrived in a mystical world. This sweeping exhibition spans 3,000 years across the ancient cultures of Peru, rivaled only by Ancient Egypt in longevity, and by the Roman Empire in engineering.
“50 years after coproducing Werner Herzog’s Aguirre, The Wrath of God to promote Peru through film (the cult classic played in Parisian theaters for almost three years), we bring you Machu Picchu et les trésors du Pérou as the most innovative way to welcome travelers from all around the world to explore the many wonders of culture and biodiversity you will find in Peru”, said exhibition partner José Koechlin at the official press conference.
An all-new, immersive museum experience will transport visitors from the cradle of civilization in the Southern Hemisphere to the jewel of the Inca Empire: the city of Machu Picchu. The exhibition boasts a stunning selection of 192 artifacts belonging to our very own Pre-Columbine historical patrimony from the Larco Museum – one of the most impressive collections of gold treasures to ever tour the world.
Additionally, visitors will be amazed by the first-ever VR tour of the Historic Sanctuary of Machu Picchu, designed with cutting-edge technologies, which recently won the Lumière Award in the category for Best Use of VR. At the exhibition’s gift shop, visitors will also find special rates and promotions for a dream trip across Peru staying at the Inkaterra lodges.
The exhibition has remained for consecutive days as France’s bestselling cultural event at ticketing marketplace Ticketmaster. France 24 News called Machu Picchu et les trésors du Pérou “an unparalleled event”, while the New York Times previously hailed the exhibition for being “the crème de la crème… the kinds of works that museums around the world are trying constantly to get on loan.”
Coming up next, join us in a brief but eye-opening highlight of some of the most remarkable pieces to conform this 192 golden artifact collection taking part in this unprecedented exhibit.
The following art piece belongs to the Mochica Culture which spans from 1 AD to 800 AD. It is the frontal ornament of an 18 karat gold headdres, which represents the head of a feline with a half-moon headress and two brids.
An earing belonging to the Pre-Inca Mochica Culture made of gold, shell and malachite turquoise-coloured stone portraying eight iguanas: 4 golden and 4 turqoise ones.
Sculptural vass which depicts an antropomorphous character apparently standing beneath an arch form by a two-feline-head snake. It has the head and wings of an owl, wears a cicrular bead necklace and a kilt shirt with interlocking spiral designs which appear to be waves. (The Mochica Pre Inca Culture was known for its gold and ceramic artwork but also for being extremely good sea navigators being famous for manufacturing hand made ‘Caballitos de Totora’ ships made out of Straw (Totora) hence the reference to the sea waves). Speaking of which, notice that in the neck or peak of the vass once again we can appreciate wave designs and patterns have been thoroughly drawn.
Ceramic handle-bottle portraying of a man turned into a crab – Mochica Culture (1 – 800 AD) Museo Larco, Lima Peru
Golden ornament, Chimu Culture (1100 – 1470 AD) Museo Larco, Lima Peru
Throughout the exhibition you will be able to behold royal ornaments, jewels and objects of worship. Each of these holds a specific purpose or reason of being upon the Pre Inca and Inca Civilization. “How these societies thought and saw the world on three levels: that of the upper celestial top; from below, ancestors and the dead; and in the middle layed men” said the Commissioner
Agriculture for example depended “essentially on the cycles of the seasons and the goodwill of nature” to survive, they are “in permanent connection with these worlds” to which they appeal.
The priests for example observed a natural phenomenon, studied the stars, deciphered them and constituted an “agrarian calendar”; which meant they know when to plant and when to harvest. Therefore, Astronomy played a fundamental role in the life, beliefs and basic activities of the Inca society. Incas believed there was an ancestral link between religion and nature. The shaman or healer, performed sacred rituals also known as shamanic transformation, by which they had to absorb hallucinogenic substances to access the perception of the animal: the bird, symbol of the world above, the snake which sneaks into the world below, and the feline that represents power on earth” as explained to us by the museum’s commissioner. (Source: lecourrier.vn)
Treat yourself to this ancient wonder and discover the mysteries of Machu Picchu and the Golden Empires of Perú – You won’t regret it!
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