Museo de Oro

Museo de Oro Review

When you see examples of how these societies manipulated gold—from a mantle made of postage-stamp-size pieces worn by a Lambayeque priest to an intricately designed sheet that once decorated an entire wall of the Chimú capital of Chán Chán—you begin to imagine the opulence of these ancient cities. The museum has other interesting items, including a child's poncho of yellow feathers and a skull with a full set of pink quartz teeth. Upstairs are military uniforms and weapons. None of the displays are particularly well marked, either in English or Spanish, so you might want to see the museum as part of an organized city tour; it's a pretty good deal, as you'll save the cost of a taxi. At any rate, be prepared to pay one of the steepest admissions of any of South America's museums.