Huaca de la Luna
Huaca de la Luna
Peru · La Libertad
In brief
Huaca de la Luna is an important temple complex in the Moche urban center. In particular, the project begun in 1991 has revealed structures rebuilt on top of one another and polychrome decorations.
What was found?
- 1Polychrome wall reliefs
Painted reliefs and geometric decorations were preserved on the temple walls. Examples from different building phases allow changes in religious imagery over time to be traced.
- 2Superimposed temples
Earlier structures had been covered with adobe fill, and new structures were built above them. Excavations revealed that what now appears to be a single monument underwent a long process of renewal.
- 3Ceremonial courtyards and platforms
Open spaces at different levels were connected by ramps and passageways. This arrangement allows researchers to investigate how movement within the temple and access to ceremonial areas were organized.
- 4Human remains in Plaza 3
Remains of adolescent and young adult males were found in this area. Researchers associate the finds with human sacrifice ceremonies.
What does it point to?
The architecture and wall imagery show that ceremonies held a prominent place in Moche public life. According to researchers, the renewal of the temple and the ceremonies performed here may have served to maintain religious authority and governing power.
What did it teach us?
- Showed that the monument was not built in a single episode but was repeatedly renewed by covering earlier structures.
- Enabled continuity and change in religious imagery to be traced alongside building phases.
- Made it possible to base the interpretation of human sacrifice on archaeological human remains as well as representations.
Images
Record
- Culture
- Moche
- Team / historical
- National University of Trujillo; Huacas del Sol y de la Luna Archaeological Project
- Coordinates
- -8.1350°, -78.9914°
Sources
- repositoriodigital.bnp.gob.pe
- wmf.org
- es.wikipedia.org
- World Monuments Fund — Huaca de la Luna
- World Monuments Fund — Huaca de la Luna: Moche Temples and Gods
- Huacas del Sol y de la Luna Kazı Projesi — insan kalıntıları ve törenler
Nearby excavations
- Chan Chan 10 km
- El Brujo Archaeological Complex 42 km
- Huaca Rajada-Sipán 163 km
- Chankillo Archaeoastronomical Complex 178 km
- Chavín de Huántar 257 km
- Sacred City of Caral-Supe 346 km
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- 12.000
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