Red paint on 1,000-year-old gold mask from Peru contains human blood proteins

Thirty years ago, archeologists excavated the tomb of an elite 40--50-year-old man from the Sicán culture of Peru, a society that predated the Incas. The man's seated, upside-down skeleton was painted bright red, as was the gold mask covering his detached skull. Now, researchers have analyzed the paint, finding that, in addition to a red pigment, it contains human blood and bird egg proteins.

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