Moche culture

The Moche civilization lived in northern Peru from about 100 to 800 AD. They lived during a time called the Regional Development Epoch. One of their main cities was near a place now called Moche, Trujillo.

Many experts think the Moche people were not one big country. Instead, they were many smaller groups who shared the same culture. We know this from the beautiful pictures they made and the big buildings they built that are still standing today. Their culture is very interesting because of these amazing creations.

Background

The Moche society was based on farming. They built many canals to bring river water to their crops. Their artifacts show scenes from daily life, including hunting, fishing, and ceremonies. They were known for their beautifully painted ceramics, gold work, big buildings called (huacas), and irrigation systems.

Moche history has three main periods: early (100–300 AD), middle (300–600 AD), and late (500–800 AD). The area they lived in stretched along the coast of Peru, covering many valleys such as La Libertad, Lambayeque, Jequetepeque, Chicama, Moche, Virú, Chao, Santa, and Nepena. One of their biggest buildings was the Huaca del Sol, a large pyramid made of adobe bricks. Nearby, the Huaca de la Luna has colorful wall paintings that are still being studied by archaeological experts.

Southern and Northern Moche

Two parts of the Moche civilization have been found, called the Southern and Northern Moche. Each area might have been its own little country. In the past, people thought the Moche were all one big group, but studying their pottery showed they were two separate places. This idea was started by Rafael Larco Hoyle, who helped us learn about the Moche.

The Southern Moche area, thought to be where the culture began, included the Chicama and Moche valleys. A big site there, Huaca del Sol-Huaca de la Luna, was likely the capital. It has a large wall painting of warriors and prisoners.

The Northern Moche area included three valley systems: the upper Piura Valley near the Vicús culture, the lower Lambayeque Valley with three rivers (La Leche, Reque, and Zaña), and the lower Jequetepeque Valley. The Piura Valley was only part of the Moche for a short time before becoming independent.

These Moche centers seem to have developed in their own ways, each with their own leaders. Sometimes, they might have been controlled together, but this didn’t happen often.

Pampa Grande, in the Lambayeque Valley, became one of the biggest Moche sites. It was important during the Moche V period (600–700 AD) and had many Moche V ceramics. The site was built quickly and includes a huge ceremonial area with Huaca Fortaleza, the tallest ceremonial platform in Peru.

San Jose de Moro is another northern site in the Jequetepeque valley. It was important from 400 to 850 AD. Many Moche tombs have been found here, including some with important women called the Priestess. There are three types of tombs: boot-shaped, chamber tombs, and simple graves. Chamber tombs were for special people, like priestesses.

Differences between the Northern Mochicas and the Southern Mochicas

The best known differences are:

Material culture

Ceramics

Moche pottery is very varied and decorated. People think the Moche were part of a big organized system because of this. The pottery shows many shapes and topics, like war, farming, and metalwork. It often has pictures of real people and everyday life.

The colors on Moche pottery are usually simple, with yellow cream and rich red. White and black are not used much. The Moche made pottery portraits of real people, including some with special physical traits. The detailed pottery may have helped pass down knowledge.

Textiles

Because of the weather and delicate fabrics, not many Moche textiles survive. But some have been found in tombs of important people. These textiles are often incomplete, but they still give us clues about Moche culture. The Moche made clothes from cotton and wool from vicuña and alpaca. Richer people had more colorful and fancy clothes, while poorer people had simpler ones. Moche people today still have strong weaving traditions.

Metalwork

The Moche learned how to cover copper with thin layers of gold or silver. They were very skilled at working with metal. Important metal objects were found in tombs, like the Warrior Priest tomb. The Tombs of Sipán had many metal objects, more than any found before.

Moche metalwork was very advanced for their time. They used many different techniques and made very fine objects. Some molds used to shape metal sculptures have been found, made of metal or wood. Researchers have tried to copy their process and found it very delicate.

Agricultural engineering

The Moche culture grew because they produced more food, like corn, cotton, beans, and squash. This helped them build a big community in the Valley of Moche in Peru.

The north coast of Peru is very dry with almost no rain. But the Moche built amazing engineering works to bring water from rivers to dry areas. Many of these systems still work today, like the Ascope aqueduct and the La Cumbre Canal.

These water systems gave the Moche more land to farm, which helped them grow a lot. With more food, some people could specialize in other jobs, helping the Moche civilization grow.

Gallery

[Moche portrait vessel](/wiki/Moche_portrait_vessel),  

[Musée du quai Branly](/wiki/Musée_du_quai_Branly), Paris

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Resting [deer](/wiki/Odocoileus_virginianus),  
[Larco Museum Collection](/wiki/Larco_Museum), Lima

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Alpaca wool tapestry (600–900 AD), Lombards Museum

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Earplugs of gold inlaid with precious stones

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Moche warrior pot, [British Museum](/wiki/British_Museum), London

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Crescent-shaped ornament with [bat](/wiki/Bat), CE 1–300 [Brooklyn Museum](/wiki/Brooklyn_Museum), Brooklyn

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Copper [alloy](/wiki/Alloy) mask with shell, CE 1–600 [Walters Art Museum](/wiki/Walters_Art_Museum), Baltimore

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  Copper knife with removable figural handle, 50–800 AD Walters Art Museum, Baltimore

Moche headdress with feline ornamentations, 400 AD [Larco Museum](/wiki/Larco_Museum), Lima

Gold Moche necklace with feline faces, Larco Museum, Lima

Gold Moche whistle with turquoise depicting a warrior, 1–800 AD Larco Museum, Lima

Bronze and shell Moche mask depicting the hero [Ai Apaec](/wiki/Ai_Apaec)

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  Copper ceremonial knife (Tumi), 3rd – 7th century AD, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City

A ceramic depicting a [spider](/wiki/Spider) from around 300 [CE](/wiki/Common_Era)

A ceramic depicting potatoes

Ceramic depicting a [sea lion](/wiki/South_American_sea_lion) pup

Burial Mask

Gold headdress ornament

Ceramic depicting a bat

Sculpture depicting a seated man or deity

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  Foot

Religion

The Moche people believed strongly in their religion, and they held special ceremonies led by important figures. These ceremonies showed power and strength.

Scholars have different ideas about these special people. Some think they were part of games between leaders, while others believe they were from battles with nearby groups.

The Moche told stories about powerful creatures, like a spider, a winged animal, or a sea monster. This creature was an important part of their beliefs.

Social stratification

The Moche society had different social classes. There were royalty and other upper and lower classes. Each class had smaller groups. It was possible to move up within a class, but switching between classes was difficult.

The elite class included priests and priestesses. They likely used religion and ceremonies to keep their power. They may have also used other ways to stay in charge. Burials from the Moche show differences in social status. People with lower status were buried simply. Those with high status were buried with valuable goods like copper masks, silver, pottery, and gold. The more valuable items buried with a person, the higher their status seems to have been.

Collapse

There are many ideas about why the Moche political system ended. Some experts think changes in the weather played a big role. Studies of ice from glaciers in the Andes show big climate events between 563 and 594 AD, perhaps a very strong El Niño. This brought heavy rain and flooding for a time, followed by a long dry period. These changes happened after the climate changes of 535–536. Such weather could have upset the Moche way of life. Their farming depended on canals that used water from the Andes mountains, and a long drought could have damaged this system.

But other signs show that these events did not fully end the Moche way of life. Moche groups kept living past 650 AD in places like the Jequetepeque Valley and the Moche Valleys. Later settlements in the Jequetepeque Valley had walls and defenses built to protect them. Even though there is no proof that a foreign army, like from Huari, attacked, these defenses hint that there may have been trouble in society, perhaps because of the changing climate.

Links with other cultures

The Moche was an Early Intermediate Period culture. It came after the Chavín horizon and the Cupisnique, and was later followed by the Huari and Chimú. The Moche lived at the same time as the Ica-Nazca culture to the south. Scholars think they may have traded with others and used guano for fertilizer. Moche pottery has been found near Ica, but Ica-Nazca pottery has not been found in Moche areas.

The Moche also lived alongside the Recuay culture in the highlands. Some designs from Recuay can be seen in Moche art. The Moche also had contact with the nearby Virú culture. By 700 CE, the Moche had control over the Virú area.

Archaeological discoveries

In 1899 and 1900, Max Uhle was the first archaeologist to dig at a Moche site called Huaca de la Luna. This is where the famous Pyramids of Moche are found.

In 1938 and 1939, Rafael Larco Hoyle dug at Moche sites and helped people learn about Moche society and their art.

One important project was the Virú Valley Project, starting in 1946. It showed an older style of pottery that stopped being used.

In 1987, archaeologists found the first fully intact Moche tomb at Sipán in northern Peru. Inside, they found the remains of an important man called the Lord of Sipán, along with other people, animals, and valuable items.

In 2005, archaeologists found a well-preserved Moche woman known as the Lady of Cao at Huaca Cao Viejo, near Trujillo, Peru. Her tomb was decorated and had items like weapons.

In 2005, a special gold mask was found in London by the Metropolitan Police. It was returned to Peru in 2006.

In 2013, archaeologists found another important female skeleton. This added to the idea that Moche society may have been ruled by priestesses-queens. The discovery was made at San José de Moro, near Chepen, in the Sechura Desert, in La Libertad Region, Peru.

The error of the term "Mochica culture"

Some historians think that calling the Moche people the "Mochica culture" is not right. They say this name should only be used for the Lambayeque culture. Using the right name helps us learn about history better.

One historian said:
"Calling the makers of the famous huacos-portraits the Mochica culture is as wrong as if we called the builders of Chavín the 'Aymara Culture.'"