pyramid containing three tombs was unearthed. Located at Sipan, 480 kilometers northeast of Lima on the Peruvian coast, this pyramid is a glorious monument of the ancient Moche civilization (Online i, ii). Of the three tombs, one contained the body of a male whose face was encased in a large copper bowl, beneath which was a finely detailed copper and gold funerary mask. Five gold objects were found in his mouth, and ornate sculptures in gold, copper, and clay-lined his tomb (Online ii). Christopher Donnan, an anthropologist from the University of California, Los Angeles (Online ii) says of the mask, [The mask is] "one of the greatest pieces of pre-Columbian art ever excavated."
             Priests and warriors, being among the most important people of Moche culture, were members of the urban classes and lived closest to the large ceremonial pyramids and other temples (Online i). Warriors having actually been found buried in these extravagant Moche tombs with their war clubs, spear-throwers, spears, and gold-plated shields showing them as being a part of the Moche elite (Online ii). Both these priests and warriors were honored and obeyed by the surrounding middle
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