Qhunqhu Wankani

Qhunqhu Wankani (also known as Khonkho Wankane) is a ceremonial centre in Bolivia founded in the late 1st century AD, predating the rise of the nearby city of Tiwanaku. Located south of Lake Titicaca in Ingavi Province, the site at its peak covered approximately 17 acres and featured at least three sunken temples, multiple platforms, and a central plaza. Excavations between 2005-2007 uncovered 972 bone fragments from at least 25 individuals in a circular structure, revealing evidence of a mortuary ritual where specialists used heated caustic limewater to disarticulate and clean bones of the deceased before returning them to families.