Cajamarquilla Pyramids
Cajamarquilla — Jicamarca
Early Intermediate Lima to Middle Horizon Wari 1–800 CE·Lima culture (later Wari influence)·🇵🇪 Lima, Jicamarca–Nievería, Peru
About
About Cajamarquilla Pyramids
Expansive urban center (1st–8th century CE) on Rimac–Huaycoloro confluence occupying 167 ha (largest in coastal Peru after Chan Chan), with 15 pyramid-mounds (6–15 m) of Colca Lima and later Wari–Ichmay phases in adobito tapia technique; labyrinthine tapia walled sectors, causeways and cemeteries. Sectors Tello and Sestieri yielded lima white-on-red and Nievería Wari pottery. Peak 600 CE Lima culture post-Moche contemporaneous expansion, abandoned before Inca.
Why it mattersSecond largest Andean coastal city after Chan Chan; type-site for Lima culture and adobito construction and early Wari influence in Lima.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Abandonment cause: Wari conquest vs river avulsion
- 02Adobito vs tapia phasing cultural assignment
Theories
- 01Lima culture desert metropolis via Rimac irrigation control
- 02Wari introduction of orthogonal compounds at Jicamarca sector
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c.1–800 CE
- Period
- Early Intermediate Lima to Middle Horizon Wari 1–800 CE
- Culture
- Lima culture (later Wari influence)
- Builders
- Lima culture (Pachacamac–Maranga)
- Purpose
- Desert metropolis and trade hub controlling Rimac–Huaycoloro valleys
- Excavation
- Partially excavated
c.1–800 CE
Initial construction
c. 1566 CE
Rediscovery
On the ground
Structures & features
12.0228° S · 76.9142° W · 400 m · 2 mapped features
Cajamarquilla Pyramids central feature
featureMain architectural feature
12.0228° S · 76.9142° WCajamarquilla Pyramids secondary sector
sectorSecondary sector
12.0218° S · 76.9132° W
Gallery