Sicán National Museum

The Sicán, also called Lambayeque, dominated this part of the north coast from around 750 to 1375 AD, and their metalwork was produced on a scale unmatched in the Andes - arsenical copper alloys and gold worked into masks, ceremonial knives, ear ornaments and the naipes, small copper sheets used as a form of currency. Japanese-led excavations under Izumi Shimada at Huaca Loro and other mounds at Batán Grande found elite tombs of remarkable complexity, including a lord buried inverted with a gold mask painted red with cinnabar, surrounded by hundreds of kilograms of grave goods and accompanying individuals. The museum at Ferreñafe was built to hold this material and reconstructs the tombs at their excavated depths, which conveys the arrangement better than cases would. It is well presented and much quieter than the Royal Tombs museum in Lambayeque.

What you actually see

• The gold masks - Sicán ceremonial masks, including one painted with cinnabar.
• The tomb reconstructions - burials rebuilt at excavated depth and arrangement.
• The metalwork - arsenical copper and gold at industrial scale, including naipes.
• The excavations - the Batán Grande work that produced the collection.

When to go

Year-round. One to two hours. Closed Mondays. Combines with the Royal Tombs museum in Lambayeque and the Pómac forest at Batán Grande.

Honest expectations

Ferreñafe is a detour from Chiclayo and needs a taxi or colectivo. Photography is restricted. Signage is fuller in Spanish. It is less visited than the Sipán museum, which is an advantage.

Nearby

The Pómac Forest historical sanctuary is north; Lambayeque and Chiclayo are south-west.