 Map of the Recuay culture | |
| Geographical range | Callejón de Huaylas |
|---|---|
| Period | Early Intermediate |
| Dates | c. 200 BCE – 600 CE |
| Preceded by | Chavín culture |
| Followed by | Wari culture |
The Recuay culture was a pre-Columbian culture of highland Peru that flourished from 200 BCE to 600 CE and was related to the Moche culture of the north coast. It is named after the Recuay District, in the Recuay Province, in the Ancash Region of Peru.
This culture developed in the Callejón de Huaylas valley, and its artistic style is also known as "Huaylas."
The Recuay area is very close to the area of the earlier Chavín culture. The important site of the latter, Chavin de Huantar, lies just to the west. Recuay people came to occupy much of the territory of the Chavín and were influenced by them. Chavín influences are seen in architecture (for instance, in the use of underground galleries) and in stonework, such as in sculpture and steles. The Recuay ceramics were also influenced by the Moche culture.
While the Peruvian coastal cultures of that time, such as the Moche, the Lima, and the Nasca, are much better known, the high sierra also saw the emergence of powerful cultural polities. These were the Cajamarca in the north, the Huarpa in central highlands, and the Pucará in the Titicaca highlands. [1]
The relationship between the Recuay and the Moche state in the north must have been rather tense because they shared borders and competed for the same water sources. There is evidence of considerable warfare, and of the warrior-oriented society as reflected in their fortified buildings and iconography. In fact, the Recuay are associated with the earliest emergence of fortified centres and towns in the Peruvian Andes. [2]
Recuay peoples built rectangular-shaped tombs with multiple rooms and levels. [3]
The culture especially flourished in the Callejón de Huaylas region, and along the Marañón River. It also spread to the valleys of the Santa, Casma and Huarmey rivers. To the north, it reached the area of Pashash, in Pallasca. Willkawayin was one of their important settlements.
Recuay culture features a distinctive pottery with decoration in three colors: black, red, and white. Recuay potters sculptured small figures of humans, jaguars, llamas, and other animals, which they attached to the vessel. Their pottery is related to Virú cultural pottery (also known as Gallinazo). The Viru Valley lies just north of the Recuay area.
Like the Cajamarca, Recuay ceramics used kaolin clay, which involved highly complex work; the ceramics acquired a white color after firing. One of the central figures in Recuay art is the so-called "moon animal," a foxlike or feline animal with a long, toothy snout and head crest. [4] [5]
Recuay textiles were of very high quality, and used similar decorative motifs as the ceramics.
Recuay stone carvings called Aija are found throughout the Peruvian Highlands. They are related to those of the Pucará and Tiwanaku cultures.
Pashash culture (500 – 1000 CE) is seen as a later development of Recuay culture. It developed in the northern Sierra de Ancash (Cabana) region. Its remains are found in Chacas, a town located in the east-central region of Ancash, in Cabana, Peru, also in Ancash, and in other places.
Metallurgy was also advanced at this time. At Pashash, very fine Recuay style jewelry of gilt arsenic bronze were excavated, as well as fine pottery; the dates are between AD 300 and 600. [6]
Ancash is a department and region in western Peru. It is bordered by the departments of La Libertad on the north, Huánuco and Pasco on the east, Lima on the south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. Its capital is the city of Huaraz, and its largest city and port is Chimbote. The name of the region originates from the Quechua word anqash, from anqas ('blue') or from anka ('eagle').
The Moche civilization flourished in northern Peru with its capital near present-day Moche, Trujillo, Peru from about 100 to 700 AD during the Regional Development Epoch. While this issue is the subject of some debate, many scholars contend that the Moche were not politically organized as a monolithic empire or state. Rather, they were likely a group of autonomous polities that shared a common culture, as seen in the rich iconography and monumental architecture that survives today.
Cajamarca, also known by the Quechua name, Kashamarka, is the capital and largest city of the Cajamarca Region as well as an important cultural and commercial center in the northern Andes. It is located in the northern highlands of Peru at approximately 2,750 m (8,900 ft) above sea level in the valley of the Mashcon river. Cajamarca had an estimated population of about 226,031 inhabitants in 2015, making it the 13th largest city in Peru.
La Libertad is a region in northwestern Peru. Formerly it was known as the Department of La Libertad. It is bordered by the Lambayeque, Cajamarca and Amazonas regions on the north, the San Martín Region on the east, the Ancash and Huánuco regions on the south and the Pacific Ocean on the west. Its capital is Trujillo, which is the nation's third biggest city. The region's main port is Salaverry, one of Peru's largest ports. The name of the region is Spanish for "freedom" or "liberty"; it was named in honor of the Intendancy of Trujillo's proclaiming independence from Spain in 1820 and fighting for that. It is the ninth smallest department in Peru, but it is also its second-most populous department after Piura and its second-most densely populated department after Lambayeque.
The Chavín culture is an extinct, pre-Columbian civilization, developed in the northern Andean highlands of Peru around 900 BCE, ending around 250 BCE. It extended its influence to other civilizations along the Peruvian coast. The Chavín people were located in the Mosna Valley where the Mosna and Huachecsa rivers merge. This area is 3,150 metres (10,330 ft) above sea level and encompasses the quechua, suni, and puna life zones. In the periodization of pre-Columbian Peru, the Chavín is the main culture of the Early Horizon period in highland Peru, characterized by the intensification of the religious cult, the appearance of ceramics closely related to the ceremonial centers, the improvement of agricultural techniques and the development of metallurgy and textiles.
Huaraz, founded as San Sebastián de Huaraz, is a city in Peru. It is the capital of the Ancash Region and the seat of government of Huaraz Province. The urban area's population is distributed over the districts of Huaraz and Independencia. The city is located in the middle of the Callejon de Huaylas valley and on the right side of the Santa river. The city has an elevation of approximately 3050 meters above sea level. The built-up area covers 8 square kilometers and has a population of 120,000 inhabitants, making it the second largest city in the central Peruvian Andes after the city of Huancayo. It is the 22nd largest city in Peru. Huaraz is the seat of the province's Roman Catholic Bishop and the site of the cathedral.
The Santa Valley is an inter-andean valley in the Ancash Region in the north-central highlands of Peru. Due to its location between two mountain ranges, it is known as Callejón de Huaylas, the Alley of Huaylas, whereas "Huaylas" refers to the territorial division's name during the Viceroyalty of Peru.
Peruvian territory was inhabited 14,000 years ago by hunters and gatherers. Subsequent developments include the appearance of sedentary communities that developed agriculture and irrigation, and the emergence of complex socio-political hierarchies that created sophisticated civilizations, technology and monumental construction.
The Huaraz Province is one of twenty provinces of the Ancash Region in Peru. It was created on August 5, 1857 during the presidency of Ramón Castilla. Geographically, the province is located over the Callejón de Huaylas and the western slopes of the Cordillera Negra.
Huamachuco District is one of the districts of the Sánchez Carrión province located in La Libertad Region in Peru. It contains the capital of the province and the important archeological site of Marcahuamachuco, which was active, likely as an oracle center and place for religious and political elites, about 350 CE to 1100 CE.
San Martín de Chacas is a Peruvian town, capital of the eponymous district and the Asunción Province, located in the east-central region of Ancash. It has an urban population of 2,082 located at 3,359 meters; and a district of 5,334 people. The district, located in the sub-basin of the Marañon River, has an area of 447.69 km², which represents 85% of the province.
Recuay District is one of ten districts of the Recuay Province in Peru.
Recuay is a town in the Ancash Region, Peru. It is located at the border of the Santa River, 3422 msnm, and it the capital of the Recuay Province. it was created by law 11326 on April 14, 1950.
Rafael Larco Hoyle, raised at Chiclin, his family's estate, was sent to school in Maryland, United States, at the age of twelve. He later entered Cornell University to study agricultural engineering and by 1923 returned to Peru to work on the family's sugar cane plantation. After spending most of his youth abroad, Larco Hoyle arrived to Peru with the eyes of an outsider. With this foreigner's curiosity he explored the country and discovered an ancient cultural patrimony in the north coast. Larco Hoyle recognized the need to house these objects in a safe place. It was at that point, Larco Hoyle dreamt of a museum, one like he had seen in the United States.
Aija is a town in central Peru, capital of the province Aija in the region Ancash, on the west side of the Cordillera Negra.
Guitarrero Cave is located in the Callejón de Huaylas valley in Yungay Province, in the Ancash region of Peru. The cave stands 50 m (160 ft) above the Santa River and 2,580 m (8,460 ft) meters above sea level.
The Andean civilizations were South American complex societies of many indigenous people. They stretched down the spine of the Andes for 4,000 km (2,500 mi) from southern Colombia, to Ecuador and Peru, including the deserts of coastal Peru, to north Chile and northwest Argentina. Archaeologists believe that Andean civilizations first developed on the narrow coastal plain of the Pacific Ocean. The Caral or Norte Chico civilization of coastal Peru is the oldest known civilization in the Americas, dating back to 3500 BCE. Andean civilization is one of the six "pristine" civilizations of the world, created independently and without influence by other civilizations.
Honcopampa or Joncopampa is an archaeological site in Peru. It is situated in the Ancash Region, Carhuaz Province, Aco District, at a height of about 3,500 metres (11,483 ft). Hunqupampa is considered one of the most important archaeological sites of the Callejón de Huaylas. It lies in the little populated place named Hunqupampa (Joncopampa).
A huanca or chichic (tsitsiq) is an elongated vertical stone considered sacred, with multiple symbolisms, in the Andean worldview. Huancas were worshipped and given rituals and offerings. The stone placed at the top is called chacrayoc;.
The stela of the cactus bearer is a monolith or stele of a single piece of granite, belonging to the Chavín culture of ancient Peru, which remains in its original location on the northwest side of the circular plaza at the archaeological site known as the ceremonial center of Chavín de Huántar in the Ancash region of Peru. It was discovered during the 1972 excavation season by Peruvian archaeologist Luis Guillermo Lumbreras.