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Sipan and Huaca Rajada

While thousands of prehispanic objects of considerable artistic value lie on Peruvian and foreign museum shelves, the vast majority of these come from looted graves and thus offer only limited insight into the lives of the Moche people, who lived from about IOO BC to 650 AD. Thus, the discovery of the intact, unlooted tombs of Sipán haas been enormously helpful to our understanding of American prehistory.

The complex of Huaca Rajada, Split Huaca, lies in the upper-middle section of the Lambayeque valley, south of the Reque River. It derives its name from a large cut made through the site by road-building. This huaca consists of two large, badly- eroded pyramids to the east of the road and a smaller platform on the opposite side of the road. Recent investigations have centered on the smaller platform, often called simply "Huaca de Sipan", which belongs to the Moche culture and was used for burials of people of the highest rank within Moche society. The other two structures, large, badly-eroded, stepped pyramids, seem to have been remodeled in post-Moche times and are still under investigation.

Construction of the adobe pyramid that yielded the renowned "Royal Tombs of Sipan" was begun during the first century AD; the sixth and last phase of major construction was completed about three centuries later. Even during the clearing of rubble left behind by some initial looting of the site, sumptuous objects began coming to light. The looters had left behind ceramics, metal masks, metal earplugs, and even an elaborate royal scepter.

So far, researchers have excavated three major tombs of spectacular contents, and many other minor burials also have been found all through the platform. The first major discovery, Tomb 1, was uncovered shortly after excavators found an enormous cache of 1,137 ceramic pots, which overlay the skeleton of a man in sitting position. This position was unusual because the Moche normally buried their dead lying flat and facing upwards. Later, the researchers nicknamed this man "The Guardian" because his feet had been cut off, perhaps to prevent him from leaving his position, and because of his position above (i.e. guarding) the tomb of "The Lord of Sipan".

The burial of this prominent Moche leader, which represents an extremely complex archaeological find, has been carbon-dated to 290 AD. It includes many dedicatory offerings that were to accompany him in his afterlife, as well as all the items of clothing and insignia that marked his high status, and other items considered necessary to protect him in the world of the dead.

This “Lord of Sipan” was 5’4” tall and died of an undetermined illness at 35-45 years of age, within the average life expectancy of the Moche population. He was buried in a wooden coffin with full regalia, including pectoral shields made of shell, bone and stone, several blankets adorned with ornate, gilded, copper platelets, two necklaces of very fine metalwork, feather ornaments, headdresses and three sets of earspools inlaid with turquoise. Also buried with him were many ceremonial utensils such as tropical sea shells of the genera Spondylus and Conus, silver and gold rattles, knives, golden death-masks, and a scepter-like object shaped like an inverted pyramid held in his right hand. His coffin takes up the central position in the burial chamber, which has additional burial niches on all sides. Six other individuals were buried in the tomb with him: a 9-10-year-old child placed at the head of his coffin, two robust men on the long sides but in opposite orientations, and three 15-25-year-old women at the head and foot of his coffin. Their coffins were made of cane. Some of these individuals had had a foot removed, and the robust men, possibly warriors, may even have been ritually sacrificed on the occasion of the burial of the Lord. The young women, however, appear to have been long dead by the time the tomb was built and hence most likely were reburied at the time the Lord was laid to rest. The funerary ritual included the slaughtering of a dog and two lamas and the deposition of several dozen vessels that probably contained food and drink. The lamas were placed at the bottom of the chamber and the offerings in specially constructed niches in the sides of the rectangular chamber.

A careful study of Moche iconography has led Dr. Walter Alva, currently director of the “Tumbas Reales” Museum (Royal Tombs Museum) in Larnbayeque, to suggest that the buried person was a high ranking warrior-priest, or a Moche lord (the "Lord of Sipan").
From the point of view of the organization of the burial and the choice of exquisite regalia, the second major tomb found at Sipán is very similar to the first. For instance, in both there is a marked emphasis on the color contrast between silver and gold. While in the case of Tomb 1, this contrast can be seen in the disposition of identical objects made out of different materials, such as the peanut-shaped necklace segments. In the case of the second major tomb, we see instances of objects that have golden halves and silver halves.

The differences are subtle and telling. Only one pair of earspools accompanies the "Lord" found in Tomb 2 and the metal rattles also were not as elaborate, and the metal necklace beads show uncanny, smiling human faces. Unlike in Tomb l, the “lord” of tomb 2 holds a copper cup in his right hand. One of the central pieces of his attire, the headdress, features an owl with spread-out wings, suggesting that this person could have been linked to a particular branch of the Moche hierarchy.

The five accompanying burials in Tomb 2, which itself is commonly referred to as the tomb of "The Priest", were also arranged somewhat differently. The "guard" also had his feet cut off, but was placed in a coffin and had with him gourd vessels, a feather ornament, and a copper headdress. Two women were buried alongside the “lord”, one facing up and one facing down. Neither of these women were placed in coffins, although they were probably wrapped in textile shrouds. The young woman to the left of the “lord” had an elaborate copper headdress similar to the one worn by the female buried at the feet of "The Lord of Sipan", a fact that may indicate that these women may have shared similar social rank.

Unlike tombs 1 and 2, which are contemporary with the sixth and last phase of construction of the pyramid, Tomb 3 is far older. lt was found 16 feet below the current surface, associated with the earliest platform, which dates back to about 100 AD. lt shows a somewhat different type of interment, with neither a niched chamber nor a wooden coffin. Lying on top of the “lord” of Tomb 3 (now referred to as “the Old Lord of Sipan”) was an impressive, 7’6”-foot-long by 2’7”-foot-wide mound of crushed and corroded copper and gold-copper alloys, representing the bulk of the funerary regalia. The copious metalwork of this third tomb is of outstanding quality, and it has been masterfully conserved and restored by the archaeological team. Many pieces exemplify the characteristic use of thin, hammered plates of gold, guilded copper and alloys, all held together with very fine wire.

Arguably the finest of all metalwork of Sipán comes from Tomb 3. These include a barely 38mm-tall gold figurine found above the nose of the "Old Lord", between two pairs of earplugs, one in silver, one in gold. The miniature figurine represents Moche warrior in full dress. This figurine holds a shield and club and wears turquoise inlaid earplugs, a turquoise shirt, a moveable nose ornament and an owl headdress with tiny, moveable platelets. This headdress resembles a miniature version of the headdress of the "Priest" of Tomb 2.

The Moche noble buried in Tomb 3 must evidently also be considered a "Lord" in his own right. The ceramic offerings found in his tomb, however, are not of the same high quality found in the southern Moche Valley. Overall, ceramics of outstanding quality are relatively scarce at Sipan, which in turn supports the notion of a strong regional differentiation within the Moche realm.

lt would seem that the people lavishly buried in the "Huaca Rajada de Sipan", who one must assume ruled the area around the site, and quite possibly a large portion of the valley, engaged highly-skilled metalworkers. Many items found in their graves come from afar, like the tropical mollusk shells laid down whole or as fine beads for the elaborate pectorals. These were trade items, and it is quite possible that exquisite Moche style metalwork like that found in the graves was used for engaging in just such long distance trade.

Thanks to the elaborate figurative painting on many Moche vessels, one can recognize the recurring depiction of scenes at which identifiable individuals, maybe mythical ancestors, engage in complex interaction. A burial scene, for instance, has been identified and gives us a glimpse of the complexity of Moche funerary rituals. On other painted vessels an owl-faced, humanoid figure stands atop a stepped pyramid. Comparing archaeological contexts with iconographic representations is a method that, it is hoped, will carry to a new level of understanding the investigations into Moche society.

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