Marcahuamachuco

Marcahuamachuco is a site of Pre-Incan ruins in the La Libertad Region of Peru. Although less known, it has been referred to by archaeologists as "Machu Picchu of the North" and "The Jewel of La Libertad."

History

Construction of Marcahuamachuco began around 400 AD -- prior to the imperial expansion of the Incas and the Huari -- and continued until approximately 800 AD. Before being conquered by the Incas, Marcahuamachuco was known as Peru's most important political, economic and military center. The function of the site, although not fully clear, was that of a ceremonial oracle, as well as a religious and political center, including turning into a burial site in its later stages. Its social gravitation extended all of northern Peru and contemporary southern Ecuador.

Previous Investigations

Max Uhle and Julio C. Taylor explored the ruins of the city, seeking the identity of the builders. Theodore McCown in 1940 excavated several months between the monumental galleries, looking for other material that would allow the chronological determination of the residents of the city and its relationship to other better-known cultures of the Andes.

Huamachuco Archaeological Project, a Canadian project has been dedicated since 1981 to study the prehistory of the area and provides some specific data and assumptions about the site and its history.

The Site

Marcahuamachuco is set atop the nexus of three mountain valleys at an altitude of more than 3,200 meters (10,000 feet). Encompassing more than three kilometres of land, the site is celebrated for its massive castillos and unique circular double-walled archaeological structures. Over many centuries, however, the ruins have been degraded by natural elements, and today face accelerating threats from grazing livestock, plant growth, lack of conservation and surveillance, and the continued effects of natural elements and weather. The site's location, in the northern Peruvian highlands of La Libertad, was until recently a difficult to access place. Today a new road makes it accessible on three and a half hours ride from the city of Trujillo, the third largest on the country´s Pacific coast, and location of major Moche heritage sites.

The domestic residences are multi-storied galleries which originally housed numerous individual families..

Conservation

In May 2011, Global Heritage Fund (GHF), a non-profit organization whose mission is to save endangered cultural heritage sites in developing countries, announced that it will provide funding and technical expertise for the first conservation program in Marcahuamachuco's history. This will include scientific planning, GIS and mapping, archaeological conservation, and community development and training of guides, artisans, and local conservation workers.

Marcahuamachuco is GHF's second project in Peru; the organization has also been working since 2004 to preserve Chavín de Huántar.