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| Pre - Inca Archeology in the Metropolis |
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Differently from colonial buildings,
the main pre-Hispanic archeological remains in Lima
can be found, as should be expected, outside the Historical
Center of the city or in coastal valleys close to it.
Lima, the capital of Peru, is located at sea level and
virtually in the middle of the Peruvian Coast. Because
of its importance as a port during the Colony, it is
the only South American city located close to the sea.
Its benign weather knows no seasonal extremes (12°C-20°C
in the winter and 19°- 30°C in the summer) and
varies little between the day and night, so it is a
tourist city 365 days a year.
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| Temples or Huacas in
Metropolitan Lima |
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Huallamarca Huaca
An important archeological compound in the San Isidro
district is the small Huallamaca go from the third century
AD to the advent of the Incas in the fifteenth century.
Apparently, Huallamarca was a ceremonial center used by
a priestly elite, as sown by floors with little wear and
tear. A long sequence of use and abandonment of the center
reveals changes in the funerary habits over a long period
of time. During the early intermediate Horizon (stages
3 and 4), corpses were wrapped in bundles covered with
a mock head, a sort of mask made from fabric or painted
wood. Pucllana Huaca
This huaca is located in downtown modern Miraflores
district over a surface of about 5 Ha. An administrative
and ceremonial center for the Rímac valley residents
during the Early Intermediate Horizon (fifth to eighth
centuries AD), it features a 500 meters long, over 100
meters wide and 22 meters tall massive truncated pyramid,
built of small adobe bricks on a landfill. Besides,
it is surrounded by a set of smaller equally remarkable
areas, as well as rooms, hallways, courtyards and ramps
with a fine plaster finishing, and in some cases painted
yellow. The remarkable height of this ancient adobe
building is evidenced when from its top the visitor
can observe the sea the modern buildings surrounding
it.
Pucllana must have been the administrative center of
religious and productive activities in the valley, as
may be gathered from its architecture and the site.
Archeologists have recovered textiles, pottery –
decorated in red, white, black, gray and orange- rests
of corn ears, beans, broad beans, custard apple, pacae
fruit, and alpacas, llamas, guinea pigs, and ducks,
as well as finished and mollusks from the Pacific. |
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| Huacas South of Metropolitan Lima |
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The Pachacamac
oracle
Pachacamac, an ancient pre-Columbian oracle,
dominates the fertile Lurín valley, 31 km south
of Lima, and can be reached by the south Pan-American
highway. This well-known ceremonial center amazed the
Spanish conquerors and undoubtedly the Incas themselves
when they arrived at the coast.
Entirely built with adobe mud bricks, it ranked together
with Cusco among the main religious centers of pre-Hispanic
Peru. Pilgrims from the most remote palaces arrived there
from the most remote places arrived there to pay homage
to the Pachacamac God, creator of the world and its creatures.
The Inca section of the archeological compound (1 440-1
533) is the best-preserved area.
The site includes palaces, squares and carefully restored
temples and has a site Museum housing an interesting collection
of artifacts. Pachacamac was a pan-regional religious
center whose origins remain little known. It seems to
have been built as an important center of power at the
beginning of the Early Intermediate Period. Max Uhle,
a reputed German archeologist, discovered a temple of
that period whose facade was painted in red. This temple
is known today as the Old Temple. Uhle´s findings,
especially pottery and textiles, feature motifs from the
Highlands, which in many cases are of clear High Plateau
inspiration. Another construction named the Painted Temple
was built at a later stage, maybe at the end of the Intermediate
Horizon (ninth to tenth centuries AD). The name comes
from the remains of the frescoes on its walls.
During the ninth to fifteenth centuries AD construction
speeded up driven by the powerful ideology linked to the
god honored at the side. The temple-palaces reminding
us of the Near and Middle East zigurats and known as “ramp
pyramids” date back to this time. Fifteen of these
so called “provincial temples” have been identified.
They were the fruit of the effort of several central Coast
communities’ efforts to legitimize their belonging
to a surprisingly prestigious religion. The coexistence
of temples from different periods during this time and
the presence of offerings coming from coastal areas contribute
to the hypothesis that Pachacamac functions as an oracle
(European chronicler of the sixteenth century narrate
that the supreme deity was the Earth god Ichma). When
the Incas settled in the central Coast, they acknowledged
its power and effectively included it in their expansionist
policies. However, they also built a new sanctuary on
the summit of the rocky hill: the imposing Temple of the
Sun. From it we can observe the ceremonial center to the
east and the Pacific Ocean to the west (as well as two
nearby islands that have been Hispanic times). As a whole,
Pachacamac represents one of the most important hubs in
the long, complex and dynamic process of Andean regional
integration. |
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| Huacas North of Metropolitan Lima
The Paramonga Fortress |
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Paramonga, a terraced pyramidal of impeccable
preservation, lays 200 km north of Lima and can be easily
reached by the pan-American highway.
The summit of a natural mound on the fringe of agricultural
fields was completely transformed through the construction
of five high layered terraces. Restricted access doors
lead to the summit, where there is a solitary and small
construction of four rooms.
Characteristic pottery and large rectangular adobes dispel
any doubts about its Inca origin while the defensive appearance
is deceitful, because the building probably did not have
military but religious functions. Incidentally, the compound
is still one of the major Inca constructions on the coast,
together with the pyramid of the Sun in Pachacamac that
resembles this fortress because of its construction characteristics
and colorful plaster. |
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| Huacas in the Highlands of Lima |
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The
“Dead City” of Cajamarquilla”
The next stop in Lima should be Cajamarquilla,
one of the large urban centers in the Rímac valley,
only comparable to the Pachacamac site in neighboring
Lurín.
15 km east of Lima up the Central Highway, Cajamarquilla
lies in a gradually narrowing portion of the Rímac
valley where hills become taller, steeper and numerous.
Sitting at the crossing point of the main irrigation canal
intakes that carry water to the fields downstream, Cajamarquilla
was a regionally important center between the sixth and
seventh centuries AD. The citadel itself covers 120 Ha
on the left bank of the Huaycoloro ravine. The “dead
city” of Cajamarquilla comprises pyramids, squares,
streets, rooms and perfectly recognizable maze-like quarters
sitting in the middle of a barren landscape, very well-protected
from possible landslides occurring in the rainy season.
Human burial remains in various quarters witness to the
complex and dynamic life of the site. Artifacts found
there reproduce the ornamentation typical in the valley
and other motifs from the Coast and southern Highlands.
Numerous underground silos were used to store food and
supplies. Chicha corn beer was prepared in open courtyards
for celebrating. Water systems met the people’s
daily needs.
Towards the eighth century AD, the place seems to have
been abandoned, but a fresh cultural thrust brought it
back to life. Gradually, the people of Cajamarquilla added
several new buildings on top or by the side of the old
ones, until the site reached its present disorderly aspect.
Puruchuco
Puruchuco served as the residence and palace
of the chieftains that ruled during and shortly after
the Inca conquest of the Rímac river valley east
of Lima, along the present Central Highway.
Built with rectangular adobe bricks, the square Puruchuco
residential palace is confined by a thick wall, 4 meters
high and 60 cm wide, that surrounds a coherent array of
rooms, courtyards and hallways, some for public functions
and others reserved to private use.
The modern site museum houses valuable pre-Inca artifacts
found in the area, and many others from around the Rímac
valley. |
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Archeology |
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