Huerequeque: An inland outpost of the Initial Period Sechín Alto Polity in the Casma Valley of Peru

• Published in: Journal of field archaeology Vol. 41; no. 4; pp. 428 - 447
• Main Authors: Pozorski, Shelia, Pozorski, Thomas, Lovett, Bobbie, Marín, Rosa Jave
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Routledge 03-07-2016
• Subjects: complex society; Huerequeque; Initial Period; Peru; Sechín Alto Polity
• DOI: 10.1080/00934690.2016.1199341
• EISSN: 2042-4582
• ISSN: 0093-4690

The Sechín Alto Polity effectively controlled the Casma Valley zone on the Peruvian north coast during the Initial Period (2100-1000 cal b.c.) through an inclusive administrative strategy whereby large inland centers and their component monumental architecture served specific, complementary functions within the polity. Smaller satellite sites established on the coast insured a supply of marine protein to the inland agricultural centers. The political strategy of the Sechín Alto Polity also included expansion inland to colonize the mid-sized site of Huerequeque at a key location in order to annex abundant agricultural land, to access a trade route to the highlands, and to extend and define the eastern Sechín Alto Polity boundary farther. Huerequeque is unique, however, because of its distinct cultural heritage, and excavations there have made it possible to examine the process through which the expanding polity established an administrative presence, imposed Sechín Alto Polity practices, and eventually abandoned the site. More broadly, elucidating this process is critical to a better understanding of the development and expansion of complex societies.