The Chinchorro Mummies are mummified human remains. The name 'Chinchorro' came about because many mummies were discovered on the Chinchorro beach in Chile. The word Chinchorro means fishing nets. They were discovered on the Pacific Coast of Peru and Chile. The main towns where the Chinchorro mummies were found are IIo in Peru and Arica, Iquique and Antofagastain in Chile and are 7000 years old. They were discovered in 1983 by workers who were installing pipes along the northern coast of Chile. By accident these workers discovered 96 bodies that had been buried around 1 meter below the surface. There have been around 282 mummies discovered, just over half were mummified artificially and the rest mummified naturally by the dry coastal climate.