Huari

An empire and large city in the central Peruvian Andes near Ayacucho, dating from 600-1000 AD (Middle Horizon). The local culture first came under Tiahuanaco influence, and Huari acted as a secondary center from which a modified version of the Tiahuanaco art style was spread to the Pacific coast and into the northern Andes. As many as 100,000 people lived in the capital and the empire included most of Peru. There was polychrome pottery; early ceramics (Chakipampa A) date to the Early Intermediate Period and are seen as a blend of Huarpa (a black-on-white geometric style) and Nasca styles. The later Chakipampa B style shows a strong Tiahuanacan influence. Structures include huge rectangular compounds with multi-story and subterranean masonry. Unlike Tiahuanaco, there are no megalithic structures and although there is some dressed stone work, cobbles of unformed stone are also widely used. The Huari empire collapsed and was abandoned c 800 (Early Intermediate Period), after which the regional traditions began to reassert themselves in art and politics, with the eventual emergence of new states (Chimú, Cuismancu, Chincha). The Huari were also skilled in metalwork. The well-to-do were buried in stone tombs.

A major site of the Middle Horizon, located near Ayacucho in the Mantaro River basin in the Peruvian Andes. Strongly linked to Tiahuanaco, it is thought to have been a secondary centre for the diffusion, possibly by force, of the cultural traits of that city. Early ceramics (Chakipampa A) date to the Early Intermediate Period and are seen as a blend of Huarpa (a black-on-white geometric style) and Nasca styles. The later Chakipampa B style shows a strong Tiahuanacan influence. Having no formal plan and covering an area of several square kilometres, the type site is a huge conglomeration of ‘contour’ architecture — that is, there is no alteration of the natural topography. Structures include huge rectangular compounds with multistorey and subterranean masonry. Unlike Tiahuanaco, there are no megalithic structures and although there is some dressed stone work, cobbles of unformed stone are also widely used. The site seems to have been abandoned some time in the latter half of the Middle Horizon.