Chinese laborers were brought to Peru in the mid-1800s, to harvest cotton and sugar after slavery was ended in 1854. While some laborers traveled back home, many more stayed. Even today Peru has a distinct Chinese cuisine developed by the laborers and their descendants.
Recently, archaeologists in the Peruvian capital of Lima excavated the bodies of three workers, buried with a number of Chinese artifacts. The men were wrapped in blankets and then placed either directly in the earth, or in simple wooden coffins. The bodies were well-preserved. They were either intentionally mummified before burial, or accidentally mummified by the arid climate. Whether on purpose or accidental, their preservation is a boon to archaeologists.
One of the laborers was buried naked, with his clothing folded on his torso, alongside an opium pipe and tarot cards. The two other laborers were buried in typical tunics and sandals. One was sporting a straw hat. The men apparently wished to be buried with the artifacts they had used when alive.
And like in life, they were foreigners in a foreign land: Chinese immigrants were excluded from Catholic cemeteries in Peru hence the three men being discovered buried alone, away from a larger burial ground.
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