Ancient Peruvian skulls unearthed in Florida

Recent research has hinted at an ancient Peruvian presence in the southeastern U.S. including Peruvian DNA showing up in Native Americans in north Georgia. Now two ancient Peruvian skulls have been unearthed in Florida. The skulls were found with  a newspaper that dated to 1978 which led archaeologists to hypothesize that these skulls were recent burials of ancient skulls looted from Peru. That’s certainly one possibility but it is also possible that someone discovered these skulls on their property and then simply reburied them elsewhere in order to avoid the hassle of dealing with authorities. Other possibilities exist as well. Read the story below:

In January, a plumber installing pump pipes for an in-ground pool in the backyard of a one-year-old house in Winter Garden, Florida found a piece of bone in the sand. He reported it to the police who brought the fragment to Orange-Osceola County Medical Examiner Dr. Jan Garavaglia. She determined that the bone had come from the face of a child of around 10 years. There was some mummified tissue still attached to the bone, which concerned her because most archaeological remains are devoid of any tissue. She informed police that there might be a recently dead child illegally buried on the work site.

University of Central Florida archaeologist Dr. John Schultz worked with the forensic specialists to ensure the site was handled as an archaeological dig instead of just as a pure crime scene. They didn’t find the remains of a murdered child, but they did find two crania, a dozen shards of pottery, bits of newspaper from 1978, textiles including an embroidered purse still carrying woven slings and a netted bag with a strap made out of non-human hair. When Dr. Garavaglia X-rayed the skulls, she and Dr. Schultz were able to confirm that they were at least hundreds of years old.

Read the full story here: “Ancient Peruvian skulls found under Florida pool

Gary C. Daniels

Gary C. Daniels is an award-winning, Emmy-nominated television, video and multimedia writer and producer. He has a M.A. degree in Communications from Georgia State University in Atlanta, a B.F.A. degree in TV Production from the Savannah College of Art and Design and an A.A. degree in Art from the College of Coastal Georgia. He has appeared on the Travel Channel, Discovery Channel, Science Channel and History Channel. His History Channel appearance became the highest-rated episode in the network's history. He has a passion for Native American history and art. He is the founder and publisher of LostWorlds.org.