Reconsidering the southern of the Chimú empire in Casma

Abstract

In this paper we contemplate the arrival of the Chimú in Casma and the way in which it changed the social, political, and geographical configuration of the valley. We present a preliminary interpretation incorporating new data collected from the middle Sechín River branch of the Casma watershed. While the arrival date of the Chimú is reasonably well attested, our understanding of the sociocultural situation they encountered is in the process of being modified. Consequently, our conceptualization of Chimú administration in Casma demands renovation. We question whether the Chimú conquest of Casma should be viewed not as a single event, but as a process of expansion through territories socially and politically linked to Casma, a process that provoked changes in Casma before the actual arrival of Chimú administrators in Casma itself. We also question whether the concept “conquest” captures well the sociopolitical changes taking place in the valley and offer alternative models for describing the Chimú intervention in Casma. Our superficial investigation – a foot and drone survey – found data consistent with a revised perspective on Chimú intervention in Casma. If future investigations, including excavation, sustain our preliminary interpretations, then the arrival of the Chimú in Casma will have been shown to be more complex than previously understood.