Mojeque, or ''Pampa de las Llamas-Moxeke'', is a large archaeological site located in the

Casma Province The Casma Province is one of twenty provinces of the Ancash Region of Peru. Political division Casma is divided into four districts, which are: Ethnic groups The province is inhabited by indigenous citizens of Quechua descent. Spanish is the ...

Ancash Region Ancash ( qu, Anqash; es, Áncash ) is a department and region in northern 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 i ...

in northern

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

. Archaeologists believe it functioned as a temple or religious structure. It contains two large mounds, many smaller mounds, and multiple human figures and heads believes to depict deities or divine rulers. Large crowds would gather at this site to observe and participate in rituals or ceremonies associated with the mounds. It is only one of the large sites of the Casma/Sechin culture in the

Casma Casma is a city in the coastal desert of Peru, located northwest of Lima. It is the capital of Casma Province and the third most populous city in the Ancash Region with an estimated population of 29,343 (2015). It is located in the lower Casma ...

and

Sechin River Sechin may refer to: *Sechin (surname) * Séchin, a commune in France * Cerro Sechin, an archaeological site in Peru * Sechin Alto, an archaeological site in Peru * Sechin Bajo, an archaeological site in Peru * Sechín River The Sechín River is a ...

valleys. The others are

Cerro Sechin Cerro is Spanish for "hill" or "mountain". Toponyms ;Bolivia: * Cerro Rico, the "Rich Mountain" containing silver ore near Potosi, Bolivia ;Brazil: * Cerro Branco, a municipality of Rio Grande do Sul * Cerro Grande, Rio Grande do Sul, a munici ...

Sechin Alto Sechin Alto is a massive architectural complex in Peru belonging to the Early Formative period (2000-1500 BC). It is located in the Casma Province, the Ancash Region, on the left bank of the Sechín River, east of the town of the same name. Othe ...

, and

Sechin Bajo Sechin Bajo is a large archaeological site with ruins dating from 3500 BCE to 1300 BCE, making it not only one of the oldest centers of civilization in the Western Hemisphere, but also one of the oldest civilization centers on earth. Sechin Baj ...

. The

is a tributary of the Casma River.

History of research

The site was first investigated by Peruvian archaeologist

Julio C. Tello Julio César Tello (April 11, 1880 – June 3, 1947) was a Peruvian Archaeology, archaeologist. Tello is considered the "father of Peruvian archeology" and was the first indigenous people of the Americas, indigenous archaeologist in South America ...

. His student Toribio Mejia Xesspe discovered large polychrome figures at Mojeque which are a striking feature of the complex. The images include the picture of the "Weeping God", found also at other Andean sites. The complex was thought originally to belong to the

Chavin culture Chavin may refer to: Places * Chavín de Huantar, an archaeological site in Peru built by the Chavín culture * Chavín District, Chincha, Peru * Chavín de Huantar District, Huari, Peru * Chavín de Pariarca District, Huamalies, Peru * Chavin, I ...

. American archaeologists Thomas and Sheila Pozorski studied the site in the 1980s. They placed its construction in the "Initial period", 1800 BC to 900 BC (i.e. before Chavin). The Pozorskis also saw that the site links with the neighboring ''Pampa de las Llamas'' complex.

Mounds

There are two very large pyramid-shaped mounds: "Moxeke" and "Huaca A", 1.3 km apart. They are aligned precisely to N 41° E. In the vicinity, there are also scattered more than 100 small mound structures aligned with the main mounds. The whole site covers about 2 km². The site also contains the remains of many other buildings, including the administrative buildings, and groups of residences of different sizes. Moxeke, the main mound, is a stepped pyramid containing at least six platforms. It was about 30 m in height, and almost quadrangular: about 160 by 170 m. It was built from megalithic stones, also using conical adobe bricks. The Pozorskis also found some evidence that there was still earlier construction on the site.Jerry D. Moore
''Architecture and Power in the Ancient Andes: The Archaeology of Public Buildings.''
Cambridge University Press, 1996 p42

Notes

Bibliography

*Sheila Pozorski, Thomas Pozorski, ''Recent Excavation at Pampa de las Llamas-Moxeke, a Complex Initial Period Site in Peru'', Journal of Field Archaeology, 13, n.4, 1986 *Richard Burger, ''Chavin and the Origins of Andean Civilization'', Thames and Hudson, 1992

External links

www.arqueologiadelperu.com.ar (Spanish, with map & illustrations) {{Coord, 9.507, S, 78.226, W, display=title Archaeological sites in Peru Archaeological sites in Ancash Region