Warfare and Captive Sacrifice in the Moche World: New Data from Excavations at Pampa la Cruz, Moche Valley, Northern Coastal Peru

Summary

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2023: Individual Abstracts" session, at the 88th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Depictions of combat and the capture and killing of captives are well known in Moche (ca. AD 200-850) art. Since 1995, the iconographic record has been joined by archaeological evidence of the practices themselves. The most dramatic discoveries were made in Plazas 3A and 3C at the Pyramid of the Moon between 1995 and 2001, with scattered deposits discovered at the Uhle Platform and the New Temple (Platform III). More recently, captive killing has been found at the site of Pampa la Cruz, about 13 km northwest of the Pyramids of Moche. Discoveries include both partial and complete skeletons and a mass burial of disarticulated remains of at least 50 individuals. Skeletal trauma (perimortem fractures and cut marks) and the remains of ropes around the necks, wrists, and ankles of some victims indicate that they were physically restrained before meeting a violent death. Patterns of trauma seen in the Pampa la Cruz victims are quite distinct from that seen at the Pyramids of Moche, while similarity is found in complex post-mortem treatment of bodies. Local traditions and periods of increased political and territorial conflict may explain the distinctive forms of violence documented at these sites.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• SAA 2023: Individual Abstracts   •
• Society for American Archaeology 88th Annual Meeting, Portland, OR (2023)

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 36698.0