Peru’s history dates back more than 11,000 years, with the presence of nomadic hunter-gatherers who appeared in the country’s current territory long before the Norte Chico civilization, one of the six oldest in the world, The sacred city of Caral, for example was established there.
The Inca Empire, which united Peru between 1438 and 1532, was the largest dynasty in pre-Columbian America and its influence can still be seen today. However, the Incas were not the first ones to inhabit the Peruvian territory, there were different civilizations predecessors to the great Inca empire known all over the world today.
Here we will explain in the most summarized way possible about the importance of these Pre-Inca cultures to the history of a whole nation such as Peru, but also its impact in Latin America and to the discovery of world history .
To always keep yourself informed and acknowledging all your surroundings while being on your trip to Peru you may need to keep communication or a translation app. That’s why you may need to use one of our mobile phone plans for tourists to have a tourist SIM card.
In order to understand and discover new cultures here in PeruSIM. Let’s find out more about pre inca cultures and their importance to the world advances:
Pre Inca Cultures
The ancient Peruvians were able to sustain their diet with a constantly developing agriculture and livestock that complemented it. This completely transformed their lives, giving rise to the pre-Inca cultures. Weaving and ceramics constitute a great documentary source for our history, since they recorded scenes and the way of life of their peoples.
Chavin Culture
- It developed in the department of Ancash.
- The men of Chavin were skilled stone sculptors.
- Their most important activity was agriculture.
- Their pottery is black with a stone look.
Tiahuanaco Culture
- It developed in the department of Puno.
- Livestock was the basis of their economy.
- They worshiped mysterious gods carved on their pottery and monoliths.
- Their main god was Huiracocha.
- Their pottery is represented by the kero, which was a ceremonial vessel.
Mochica Culture
- It developed in the valley of Moche, in the current city of Trujillo.
- They built monumental huacas of adobe and mud.
- The ceramics of the huaco portraits record expressions of the human face.
- Intact royal tombs have been found, of characters of great political and religious power.
Chimú Culture
- It was developed in the department of La Libertad.
- They were the best architects of the coast, its maximum construction is the citadel of Chan Chan.
- They used the gold tumi as a ceremonial knife.
- They were great navigators, for this they used the caballitos de totora (reed horses).
Paracas Culture
- It was developed in the department of Ica.
- They stood out for their famous weavings of beautiful colors.
- They skillfully practiced cranial trepanations.
- Their funerary bundles were true chests of admirable fabrics.
Nasca Culture
- It was developed in the department of Ica.
- They made the largest calendar in the world, known as the “Nasca Lines”.
- They built dams and subway channels to carry water.
Achievements and progress of pre-Inca cultures
Well throughout the development of the pre-Inca cultures, the Peruvian territory was developed for approximately 26 centuries, between the years 1200 BC to 1460 BC where there are a myriad of cultures throughout the Peruvian territory either coast, highlands and jungle.
However, all the studies would be in vain if we would not look for and analyze the most important achievements and advances made by the pre-Inca cultures, which were later assimilated and taken advantage of by a people from Cuzco called “Inca”.
Increased Agricultural Productivity
This was achieved mainly by making maximum use of the land, through the construction of terraces and the rotation of land and crops.
Vertical Control of Ecological Floors
They founded colonies at different altitudinal levels in order to achieve access to the greatest possible amount of products from different altitudes. This system survived into Inca times.
Construction of terraces
They are enormous terraces, in the form of bleachers, raised thanks to stone retaining walls on the slopes of the hills. In this way, the pre-Inca people “won” land from the difficult relief of the Andes Mountains and converted it into land suitable for agriculture.
To irrigate these lands, canals and aqueducts were built that originated in the upper part of the valleys, in high places, where the rivers originate.
Best Irrigation Systems
Ditches or canals at the surface of the land, aqueducts or subway canals, reservoirs, etc. were built. Thanks to these systems, water from rivers, lakes and subway reservoirs was managed more efficiently.
Land and Crop Rotation
In this way, constant exploitation and the consequent decrease in the fertility of the land was avoided. Crop rotation consisted of sowing different crops during the year, in order to achieve a diversified production in the different seasons of the year.
Large number of domesticated plants
The number of plants domesticated by the ancient Peruvians is numerous. This is why Peru is considered one of the largest centers of plant and animal domestication in the world.
In Peru there were domesticated plants approximately 8,000 years ago (beans and corn were the first). Not all plants were cultivated at the same time. Among the domesticated plants we can find :
- Food: Potato, corn, quinoa, beans, sweet potato, cassava, pallar, pumpkin, cañigua, tarwi, oca, chili, olluco.
- Industrial: Cotton, coca, achiote, palillo.
- Fruits: Pineapple, custard apple, guanabana, papaya, avocado, pacae, guava, cucumber, lucuma, etc.
Fishing
It was more developed on the coast than in the highlands because fishing in lagoons, lakes or rivers was not very important. Fishing developed intensively from 3,000 B.C. onwards. The resources exploited were varied: fish, shellfish, crustaceans and sea lions.
For the extraction of marine products, fishermen built caballitos de totora (reed horses). We have, for example, the caballitos de totora built by the Chimúes, the Mochicas and the Chinchas. In the highlands, fishing took place mainly in Lake Titicaca. There they also built caballitos de totora, more developed than those of the coast. They were used for fishing and maritime trade.
In addition to the caballitos de totora, the following were used for fishing: nets (they used gourds that served as floats), harpoons and hooks (made of seashells, thorns and metal).
Livestock
Thanks to livestock, they obtained a stable and safe meat production. From the alpaca they took advantage of its very fine wool, while from the llama they took advantage of its meat, wool, leather and above all its use as a pack animal, that is to say, as a means of transporting objects.
Both alpaca and llama wool were used for clothing and to make strong cords for tools, means of transport and weapons. Llama and alpaca dung had two functions: as fertilizer and as fuel in places where firewood was scarce.
In the development of other crafts such as weaving, silver and gold work, and the carving of gourds, we do not find a direct influence of the pre-Inca craft tradition because the motifs and techniques are different, but there is no doubt that the enormous skill of Peruvian artisans is an inheritance of their ancestors.
Finally, we know that you have to keep communication with your relatives and friends, that you need to be able to orient yourself in new cities, that you might need help with translation and that you might need to search for restaurants or hotels. That’s why with PeruSIM you can buy a SIM card including the data plan of your need without having to worry about high roaming costs.