Huaca del Sol — Moche Grand Pyramid
Moche (Early Intermediate), c.100–750 CE·Moche (Mochica)·🇵🇪 La Libertad, Moche Valley, Trujillo, Peru
About
About Huaca del Sol — Moche Grand Pyramid
Huaca del Sol — largest adobe pyramid in the Americas, Moche capital platform (c.100–750 CE, Early Intermediate). 370 × 160 m base, 41 m high, 143 million adobe bricks (7 brick-maker marks known), cruciform plan with 5 major terraces. S. Uceda & E. Mujica excavated Moche palace with friezes; Spanish colonists diverted Moche River (1602) to hydraulically mine gold, bisecting western third.
Why it mattersLargest pre-Columbian adobe construction; Moche state template for Chimú Chan Chan.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Function palace vs temple vs tomb pyramid still debated
Theories
- 01Colonial hydraulic destruction exposed societal reuse models
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c.100 CE initial, 350–550 CE major phases
- Period
- Moche (Early Intermediate), c.100–750 CE
- Culture
- Moche (Mochica)
- Builders
- Moche (Moche lords of Cerro Blanco)
- Purpose
- Palace-temple — administrative palace and huaca (sacred mountain) of Moche state
- Excavation
- Partially excavated
c.100 CE initial, 350–550 CE major phases
Initial construction / foundation
c.800 CE
Major refurbishment / enlargement phase
c.1100 CE
Abandonment or conversion
1890–1930
Modern rediscovery and first scientific survey
On the ground
Structures & features
8.1322° S · 78.9947° W · 35 m · 2 mapped features
Eastern terraces and brick-maker marks
terraceEastern stepped terraces showing seven brick types with maker marks (hands, stars, snakes)
8.1321° S · 78.9946° WPalace courtyard with polychrome friezes
palaceSummit palace patios with warrior friezes and storage jars
8.1323° S · 78.9948° W