Somewhere Along the Way

I saw some strange beasts when I was touring the Peruvian ruins of Huaca del Sol y la Luna. Have you ever seen those articles from a few years ago about strange dead animals in Texas that some said were mysterious, livestock killing chupacabra? Well, that,s what these animals looked like.

It turns out that these strange, hairless black beasts were actually dogs. A historic dog breed that’s been around since the time if the Moche. It’s called the viringo. It has almost no hair except for some on the top of its head and maybe a little the limbs. Supposedly it has medicinal properties. The warmth of its body is said to be therapeutic for those with asthma or bronchitis. They were considered sacred in ancient times and are still found running around ancient sites. Apparently purebred viringos are expensive too. I don’t think I’d spend the money, though.

Before the Republic of Peru, before the Spanish, and even before the Incas an ancient civilization known as the Moche lived in the Moche River valley just outside of Trujillo.  The ruins of their capital city are still there today, waiting to be uncovered from the sand,

At one point, the dry, barren landscape was rich with vegetation and teeming with life.  Colonists who wanted to irrigate their crops diverted a river and altered the landscape, letting harsh winds and sand cover the land.  Over time this site became a landfill, but then the mystery beneath was rediscovered.

Two mountains peer over the flat lands.  On the one side, a square mountain, actually a huge adobe building, housed the Huaca del Sol, the administrative center of the Moche civlization.  On the other sat the Huaca de la Luna, the religious center.  In between the people of their city lived and worked for hundreds, or even thousands, of years.

Now, a small museum and a fleet of guides tells their story as archaeologists continue to unearth the past.  They have discovered that the Moche worshiped nature and their god, Ayapec.  In order to appease Ayapec and ensure that fate smiled upon them, the Moche practiced a kind of human sacrifice.  Warriors fought ritual battles and the loser lost his life upon an altar to ease the turmoil caused by El Nino.

The temple is actually composed of many layers.  Each time the temple was renewed, perhaps due to some natural phenomenon, the entire structure was rebuilt upon the remains of the old.  The temple rose higher and grew wider.  It’s walls were carved and painted with beautiful murals depicting scenes of nature and of the god.

To this day the paint has remained vibrant on many of the murals.  If you squint, you might be able to imagine what this would have looked like over a thousand years ago.