To the border: Chimú imperialism in the adjacent chaupiyungas

Abstract

Though the expansion of the Chimú Empire across the northern coast of Perú has been widely documented over the past 50 years, the nature and degree of Chimú imperialism and expansion eastward into the chaupiyungas and highlands is a subject that has only recently begun to be explored in detail. This article focuses on the closest and most enduring eastern frontiers of the Chimú Empire along the chaupiyungas of the Moche and Virú valleys during the Late Intermediate period (1050/1100-1450/1470 dC) and synthesizes a combination of archaeological survey and excavation data to understand Chimú imperialism in these regions. Working from a deep record of archaeological indicators used for understanding Chimú imperialism and the geographic particularities of the chaupiyungas of the Moche and Virú valleys, we explore the patterns and variability in the evidence for Chimú expansion into the Moche, Sinsicap, and Carabamba valley chaupiyungas. Marshalling our excavation and survey data, we argue that the Chimú expansion into the chaupiyungas was variable and selective: with some limited examples of direct Chimú control and colonization but far more instances pointing towards indirect affiliations with the Chimú Empire and relationships structured around exchange, alliance, and conflict with chaupiyunga communities.