Before being able to share the findings at El Brujo with the community, 16 years of excavation were necessary in this archaeological site, because there are 100 hectares with evidence dating back as far as 5,000 years of continuous inhabitance. The work focused on Huaca Cao, a Mochica ceremonial centre of unique features. Amazing cultural evidence, like the sophisticated gold work, textiles and pottery, as well as revealing burials —such as the magnificent and enigmatic mausoleum of the Señora de Cao — add up to the murals, abundantly decorated and painted.

In its efforts to enhance the legacy kept by this site, the Wiese Foundation has formed partnerships with different institutions, among them the National Institute of Culture, the National University of Trujillo, the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú, the American National Geographic Society, the Dumbarton Oaks Institute of Washington and the universities of Tulane, Harvard, Denver, Oxford and Northern Arizona, with the Moche Foodways Project. All of them have joined forces with the Wiese Foundation in order to study and inform on this emblematic archaeological site..

The drive to recover the Archaeological Site of El Brujo comes from the enthusiasm and devotion of Mr. Guillermo Wiese de Osma, “Don Pancho”, who along with archaeologist Régulo Franco Jordán, director of the Archaeological Project of El Brujo, understood that those shapeless mounds of sand contained essential chapters of our history. At the beginning of the excavations they had the collaboration of archaeologists Germán Yunque, Juan Morales, Hugo Ríos, Antonio Murga and Máximo Salinas. The task initiated by Don Pancho Wiese is continued with dedication by Marco Aveggio Merello, director of the Wiese Foundation. The participation of other specialists has also been essential, like that of César Gálvez Mora, of the National Institute of Culture, and of Arabel Fernández López, head of the process of removing the funerary bundle and analyzing the Señora de Cao, along with John Verano, physical anthropologist at the University of Tulane.

In 2006, after 16 years of archaeological research, Huaca Cao was ready to be shared with the community. In order to protect the colorful friezes from the elements of nature, and at the same time allow a full understanding of the spaces in their actual dimensions, the north face of the pyramid was protected with a cover manufactured by the French company Ferrari, which let a third of the natural light to go through but filtering the UV rays entirely —plus, it is waterproof and non-flammable. The 2,187 square meter structure is visually integrated to the landscape highlighting the pyramid in a harmonious contrast. In order to allow the uninterrupted sight of the different platforms of the pyramid, the structure is held by peripheral supports instead of columns. This has also drawn attention to the area of the Ceremonial Square, which was previously unnoticed.

Protecting the surface of the huaca was essential. This is why instead of using concrete anchor points, which would have been impossible to remove later on, the posts holding the canopy are anchored to boxes filled with pebbles. Before installing the tempered roof, a scale model was subject to several intense tests of function and structural endurance in the wind tunnel and in the lab at the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú. The complexity of this structure was a 2-year project, led by architect Claudia Uccelli, also in charge of the design of the Cao Museum. The team also consisted of engineer Carlos Casabonne, engineer Daniel Torrealva and architect Octavio Valera, among others.

In 2006 a discovery in Huaca Cao shook the understanding the world had about the Mochica society. It was a richly decorated mausoleum containing the remains —remarkably well preserved— of a young woman buried with the attributes of a ruler. She was accompanied by a young woman who had been sacrificed, and from a nearby tomb the lady was protected by another three companions. Surrounded by offerings, and dressed with cloaks, headdresses, war clubs and nose rings, all indicating that this character belonged to the higher ranks —something never seen before in the burial of a woman. During an expert and thorough six-month project, the bundle was unveiled and the intact skin of the Mochica sovereign, surrounded by mystery: her body was tattooed with motifs as beautiful as symbolic. The Señora de Cao —one of the most remarkable archaeological finding of recent times— can be visited in the recently inaugurated Cao Museum.