Archaeologists in Panama have uncovered a tomb dating back over a thousand years, containing human remains alongside gold and ceramic artifacts, the lead researcher revealed to AFP on Friday.
The find comes from the El Cano site in the Nata district, roughly 200 kilometers (124 miles) southwest of Panama City, an area that has been excavated for the past two decades.
Julia Mayo, an archaeologist involved in the dig, explained that the skeletal remains were accompanied by gold objects and pottery adorned with traditional motifs, suggesting they belonged to “high-ranking” individuals.
“The individual with the gold was the one with the highest social status in the group,” she said, noting that this person was buried with two bracelets, two earrings, and pectoral jewelry featuring bats and crocodiles.
The El Cano site is linked to the societies that lived in Panama’s central provinces between the 8th and 11th centuries.
“This is where they buried their dead for 200 years,” Mayo added.
She also mentioned that nine other tombs “similar” to Friday’s discovery had already been excavated at the site.
Panama’s Ministry of Culture described the finding as “of great importance for Panamanian archaeology and the study of pre-Hispanic societies of the Central American isthmus,” highlighting the region that connects North and South America.
Experts say that such discoveries reveal how death was viewed not as an end, but as a transition to another phase in which social status remained significant.
