La Centinela is an archaeological site in
Peru
, image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg
, image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg
, other_symbol = Great Seal of the State
, other_symbol_type = National seal
, national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...
which was an active administrative center during both the
Inca
The Inca Empire (also known as the Incan Empire and the Inka Empire), called ''Tawantinsuyu'' by its subjects, ( Quechua for the "Realm of the Four Parts", "four parts together" ) was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The adm ...
and pre-Inca periods.
History
La Centinela was the Incan capital of the kingdom of the
Chincha. It is "an unusual site in that it is one of the very few places where the Incas incorporated a major state installation into a preexisting, and still functioning, non-Inca capital." In 1958, Dwight T. Wallace discovered a system of straight roads emanating from La Centinela, suggesting a highly centralized pre-Incan administration.
Site
La Centinela lies about 200 km south of
Lima
Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of the central coastal part of ...
in the
Chincha Valley and about 1 km away from the Pacific Ocean and is surrounded by irrigated agricultural land. This means that the residents of La Centinela exploited plant, animal and marine resources.
There are 11 well-defined pyramid structures and minor buildings constructed by adobe bricks. There are examples of adobe walls decorated using the technique of
Champlevé
Champlevé is an enamelling technique in the decorative arts, or an object made by that process, in which troughs or cells are carved, etched, die struck, or Casting (metalworking), cast into the surface of a metal object, and filled with vitre ...
.
A black and red on white geometric painting can be found within the principal Inca building.
[{{Cite journal, last1 = Menzel , first1 = Dorothy , date = 1959 , title = The Inca Occupation of the South Coast of Peru, journal = Southwestern Journal of Anthropology , volume=15 , issue = 2 , pages=125–142 , doi=10.1086/soutjanth.15.2.3628802, s2cid = 131557376 ]
Notes
Archaeological sites in Peru
Archaeological sites in Ica Region