Ancient districts discovered in Peru

LIMA, Peru – An American-led expedition discovered five new districts in what its leader described as an ancient jungle metropolis on the slopes of the Peruvian Andes.

The complex, which covers more than 25 square miles, was used by the Chachapoyas – tall, fierce warriors who were defeated in the late 15th century by Inca ruler Tupac Yupanqui just decades before the Spanish conquest of Peru – expedition leader Sean Savoy, 31, told the Associated Press last week.

“It is the oldest Chachapoyan find that we know of to date,” said Savoy, who led a 21-day trip to the ruins of Gran Saposoa, located 335 miles north of Lima.

This year’s 40-person expedition marked the fourth time the site has been visited since its discovery in 1999 by Savoy’s father, Gene, a well-known explorer of ancient Peruvian sites.

Thousands of Chachapoyas once lived in Gran Saposoa, marked by hundreds of circular stone buildings in at least six interconnected districts.

The once-urban valley has scattered tombs built into its cliffs and is overlooked by three stone watchtowers up to 33 feet tall, Sean Savoy said. Today, there are about a half dozen subsistence farmers in the region.

The elder Savoy discovered dozens of ruins in Peru beginning in the early 1960s.

He is credited with finding three of Peru’s most important ruins: Vilcabamba, the last refuge of the Incas; Gran Pajaten, a citadel city atop a jungle-shrouded peak; and Gran Vilaya, a complex of more than 20,000 stone buildings.