Peru - Lonely Planet Publications [10]
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The salient feature of the Chavín influence is the repeated representation of a stylized feline (jaguar or puma) with prominently religious overtones, perhaps symbolizing spiritual transformations experienced under the influence of hallucinogenic plants. One of the most famous depictions of this deity resides at the Museo Nacional de Antropología, Arqueología e Historia del Perú in Lima (Click here): a bas-relief carving from Chavín de Huántar of a many-headed god. (The piece is known as the Raimondi Stela after the Italian-born explorer who found it.) The feline deity also figures prominently in some ceramics of the era – particularly the finely crafted, black-clay specimens referred to as Cupisnique, a style that flourished in the Virú and Chicama valleys on the north coast. Methods of working with gold, silver and copper were also developed. In short, it was a period of great development in the areas of weaving, pottery, religion and architecture – in a word, culture.
For more on the Chavín culture, Click here.
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THE BIRTH OF LOCAL CULTURES
After 300 BC, Chavín lost its unifying influence and several local cultures became regionally important. South of Lima, in the area surrounding the Paracas Peninsula, lived a coastal community whose most significant phase is referred to as Paracas Necropolis (AD 1–400), after a large burial site. It is here that some of the finest pre-Columbian textiles in the Americas have been unearthed: colorful, intricate fabrics that depict oceanic creatures, feline warriors and highly stylized anthropomorphic figures. (Some absolutely stunning examples of these are on view at the Museo Larco in Lima, Click here; for more on Paracas culture, turn to Click here.)
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Chavín: Art, Architecture and Culture, by William Conklin and Jeffrey Quilter, provides an excellent, accessible overview of Peru’s first widespread culture.
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To the south, in the area of Nazca, the local culture (200 BC–AD 600) carved giant, enigmatic designs into the desert landscape that can only be seen from the air. Known as the Nazca Lines (Click here), these were mapped early in the 20th century – though their ultimate purpose remains up for debate. (Everything from alien landing strip to astronomical calendar has been posited.) The culture was best documented by German-born archaeologist Max Uhle, who cataloged a lot of the fine textile and pottery works, the latter of which utilized, for the first time in Peruvian history, a polychrome (multicolored) paint technique. Visitors today can view Nazca mummies at the Chauchilla Cemetery (Click here), and also visit the pyramids of Cahuachi (Click here), which are still being excavated.
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1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus by Charles C Mann is an engaging look at what daily life was like in the Americas before the arrival of the Spanish.
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During this period, another distinct culture noted for its exceptional pottery blossomed in the north: the Moche, which settled the area around Trujillo from about AD 100 to 800. Using press molds, this coastal society created some of the most remarkable portrait art in history – astonishing, highly individualistic ceramic heads, no two of which are exactly alike, each bearing signs of human asymmetry and imperfection. (Once again, Lima’s Museo Larco best displays some of this absolutely sublime work, Click here.) In addition, the Moche left behind temple mounds – popularly called ‘pyramids’ – such as the Huacas del Sol y de la Luna (Temples of the Sun and Moon; Click here), located near Trujillo, as well as the impressive burial site of Sipán (Click here), near Chiclayo. The latter contains a series of tombs that have been under excavation since 1987 – one of the most important archaeological discoveries in South America since Machu Picchu. In 2006, archaeologists in the vicinity of Trujillo made another important find when they unearthed an elaborately tattooed mummy of a woman who was likely a significant leader. A catastrophic