Sonia Guillén

Research and career Guillén is one of Peru's leading experts in mummies. She is the Director of The Bioanthropology Foundation Peru, Centro Mallqui. She has investigated Ilo in Southern Peru, where she established the Centro Mallqui. In 1997 Guillen discovered hundreds of mummies in an ancient mausoleum in Ilo. The mausoleum was located in a cliff around 300 feet above a lake. Guillén and co-workers were the first to show that the Inca's reserved their royal dead. The Inca mummies are believed to be an important part of ancient life, and were even present in meetings. Guillén was responsible for the valuable artefacts in the site, including well preserved knotted springs known as khipu. She studies the mummies in climate-controlled laboratories, and has to act fast to prevent degradation.

She discovered the mummies of the chiribaya dog, which was the second breed of dog to exist in Peru in the pre-Columbian era. She was concerned about the mummy being on show at the National Geographic Society. She uncovered that Lady of Cao had likely suffered from eclampsia. Guillén used electron microscopy to identify salt crystals, which implied that Lady of Cao was washed with sea water. She has studied the burial sites of Peruvian Hairless Dogs.

She has been involved with the creation of the Ciribaya and Leymebamba Museums. She was appointed Director General of Museums and Vice Minister of Culture. Guillén was appointed director of the National Museum of Archaeology, Anthropology and History of Peru in 2018.

Awards and honors Guillen was elected a foreign associate of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) in 2012.