A team of researchers decided to explore South America’s Mount Llullaillaco. They were expecting some groundbreaking discoveries as the summit had not been explored much. They had no idea what they were about to find was not only going to create a ripple in the community of archaeologists but the entire world.

Johan Reinhard

Johan Reinhard, Explorer-in-Residence of National Geographic Society and his team had been marching towards this mountain for many days and now as they had reached they thought of taking some rest. It is an incident that occurred in March 1999.

Continuous Efforts

On March 16, 1999, they decided to take some rest as they had been walking continuously facing heavy snowfall and untamed winds on the summit of South America’s Mount Llullaillaco with height 20,000-foot. They had been looking for this site all this while. They had high hopes with this place but never had they expected what was in the offing. 

Constantly Them

Johan Reinhard

This was not the first time, Dr. Reinhard was roaming on Mount Llullaillaco. He had made several visits to this place. He used to examine ruins and try trails to reach the top of the mountain. The team faced the worst situation previous month when they had to fight ferocious winds and snow around the summit. He explained, ‘We had several days of finding nothing,’ ”I was about to give up.”

Rare And Beautiful

This place is well known for housing rare things. The mountain was not like any other mountain capped with snow. This very place was way more mysterious then it seemed. It may surprise you to know that this is the spot where “the best-preserved Inca fossil ever found.”

Coming Down

The archeologists descended the summit only to be welcomed by Argentine military vehicles. They came down the summit with a cargo of fossils covered in plastic, foam insulation, and snow.