LIMA, July 3 (Reuters) - Archaeologists on Thursday unveiled a 3,500-year-old city in Peru that likely served as a trading hub linking Pacific coast cultures with those in the Andes and Amazon, flourishing around the same time as early civilizations in the Middle East and Asia.

Drone footage released by researchers shows the city center is marked by a circular structure on a hillside terrace, with remains of stone and mud buildings constructed some 600 meters (1,970 feet) above sea level.

The urban center, named Peñico, is located in the northern Barranca province and was founded between 1,800 and 1,500 BC. It is close to where the Caral civilization, the oldest in the Americas, developed 5,000 years ago.

Caral, comprised of 32 monumental structures, is considered a contemporary of civilizations in Egypt, India, Sumeria and China. However, unlike them, it developed in complete isolation, according to researchers.

Ruth Shady, the archaeologist who led the research into Peñico, said the newly unveiled city is key because experts believe it emerged after the Caral civilization was devastated by climate change.

"They were situated in a strategic location for trade, for exchange with societies from the coast, the highlands and the jungle," Shady said.

Archaeologist Marco Machacuay, a researcher with the Ministry of Culture, said at a news conference that Peñico's importance lies in it being the continuation of the Caral society.

After eight years of studies, researchers have identified up to 18 structures in Penico, including ceremonial temples and residential complexes.

The walls of a central plaza stand out for their sculptural reliefs and depictions of the pututu, a conch shell trumpet whose sound carries over long distances.

In other buildings, researchers found clay sculptures of human and animal figures, ceremonial objects and necklaces made from beads and seashells, they added.

Peru is a center of ancient cultures and home to archaeological sites such as the Inca ruins of Machu Picchu in Cusco and the mysterious Nazca lines located in the desert region along the country's central coast.

(Reporting by Marco Aquino and Carlos Valdez for Reuters TV; Editing by David Gregorio)

((marco.aquino@thomsonreuters.com; +511 2779553; Reuters Messaging: marco.aquino.reuters.net@thomsonreuters.com/))