Choqepukio
Choquepukio · Choqepuqio
Early Intermediate – Late Horizon (c.200 BCE–1532 CE, Wari peak 600–1000 CE)·Wari – Qotakalli – Inca·🇵🇪 Cusco, Quispicanchi, Huacarpay, Peru
About
About Choqepukio
Choqepukio occupies the flat valley floor at the Huacarpay lagunas gateway to the Cusco Basin, 21 km southeast of Cusco. Occupied from Early Intermediate Qotakalli villages to Wari, it became one of the largest Wari urban centers in the basin (c.600–1000 CE) with a walled acropolis, orthogonal patio-groups, D-shaped temples, aqueducts and 4 km of stone-lined canals that modified the lake outlet. Gordon McEwan's Bhutan? Actually McEwan's BHAP campaign revealed superimposed palaces, Inca road causeways and faunal assemblages marking the shift from Wari to Inca control of the southern basin. The low-lying موقع, unusual for Andean defensive cities, highlights Wari hydraulic engineering.
Why it mattersChoqepukio occupies the flat valley floor at the Huacarpay lagunas gateway to the Cusco Basin, 21 km southeast of Cusco. Occupied from Early Intermediate Qotakalli villages to Wari, it became one of the largest Wari urban centers in the basin (c.600–1000 CE) with a walled acropolis, orthogonal patio Type-site defining regional sequence.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Chronology and phasing of construction
- 02Function of elite vs communal architecture
Theories
- 01Regional capital coordinating irrigation and exchange
- 02Ritual-ceremonial amphitheatre aligned to astronomy
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.400–600 CE Wari core, reoccupied by Qotakalli and Inca to 1532
- Period
- Early Intermediate – Late Horizon (c.200 BCE–1532 CE, Wari peak 600–1000 CE)
- Culture
- Wari – Qotakalli – Inca
- Builders
- Wari and successors
- Purpose
- Wari valley-floor administrative city and hydraulic terrace system at the Huacarpay lakes gateway to Cuzco basin
- Excavation
- Partially excavated
c.400–600 CE Wari core, reoccupied by Qotakalli and Inca to 1532
Initial construction
c.800–900 CE
Major occupation / refurbishment
c.1000–1532
Late horizon / Inca incorporation where applicable
On the ground
Structures & features
13.6170° S · 71.7320° W · 3200 m · 2 mapped features
Wari Acropolis and D-Shaped Temple
temple200×150m raised acropolis with D-shaped temple and niched halls facing lake
13.6167° S · 71.7318° WStone-Lined Canal and Gateway Causeway
hydraulic4 km Wari canal system with causeway and bocatoma at Huacarpay lake outlet
13.6174° S · 71.7323° W