Culture Groups
Moche Culture
Colonial Groupings
Citation Formats
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The Moche were an archaeological culture that flourished on the north coast of Peru from roughly 100 to 800 CE, known for elaborate irrigation systems, monumental adobe pyramids such as Huaca de la Luna, and finely painted and modeled ceramics depicting warfare, sacrifice and sexual and mythological scenes in vivid detail. They left no deciphered writing system, so their own name for themselves and their gods is unknown; Moche is a modern archaeological label taken from the Moche River near Trujillo, and deity names used in the scholarly literature, including Ai Apaec, are scholarly conventions rather than attested indigenous terms. Excavated burial and sacrificial deposits, especially at Huaca de la Luna, provide the primary evidence for Moche religious practice.
Facts
Origins
Origin RegionNorth coast of Peru, centered on the Moche and Chicama valleys near present day Trujillo 1 Whose Classification This IsA modern archaeological classification, named for the Moche River, rather than a self-designation; the Mochica language attested in early colonial records is linked to the culture but the people's own name for themselves is not recorded. 1 Cross-Tradition Connections
Associated With
Luna, Deities This source names Luna directly: "adobe pyramids such as Huaca de la Luna, and finely painted and modeled ceramics depicting warfare, sacrifice and sexual and mythological scenes in vivid detail."
This source names Peru directly: "that flourished on the north coast of Peru from roughly 100 to 800 CE, known for elaborate irrigation systems, monumental adobe pyramids such as Huaca de la Luna, and finely painted and modeled..."
Sources
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