Ancient city built from mud

Chan Chan is the capital of the Chimor kingdom in ancient Peruvian history, with buildings built from unique mud.

Chan Chan - The city built from mud

Inca civilization is one of the pre-Colombo civilizations (named after Christophe Colombus, the Portuguese explorer who found America) most notably ever existed in Peru. However, there were many other prominent civilizations before, typically the civilization of the Chimor kingdom.

According to Ancient Origins, this is the largest civilization in Peru before being invaded by the Indian Inca. The capital of the kingdom, Chan Chan City , is one of the most impressive cities of pre-Colombo South America.

Decorative works on the wall throughout the city.(Photo: Planedia).

Chan Chan means the Sun, about 5 km from the city of Trujillo in northern Peru. The city was built in 850 and invaded by the Inca Empire in 1470.

Chan Chan is not only the capital of the Chimor kingdom, but also the largest city of pre-Colombo in South America . Its most prominent feature is the world's largest mud brick complex. Chan Chan covers an area of ​​about 20 km ² with about 100,000 people in the heyday in 1200. The whole city, from the most majestic temples to the most humble houses, is built with dried mud bricks . The walls of the city are decorated with sculptures, reliefs and embossed carvings.

Chan Chan represents the political structure and the tight society of the Chimor kingdom. This is evident in the way the city is built. The center of the city is 9 rectangular blocks, or walls, surrounded by thick, high earth walls.

In each citadel, buildings such as temples, houses and warehouses are arranged in an open space. Water reservoirs and burial sites are also built in the city. In addition to the 9 main cities, there are 32 smaller areas and 4 production areas with textile, iron industry and wood processing activities.

Layout of a complex of buildings in the city.(Photo: Lizardo Tavers).

The more remote areas to the north, east and west of the city are large agricultural areas and traces of residual irrigation systems. This shows that Chan Chan city has a clear hierarchy. The central city is provided with industrial products from suburban and agricultural products from more remote areas.

The first European in Chan Chan was Francisco Pizarro, a Spanish expeditionary general. He and his troops came here around 1532. Since then, the city has always been robbed by Spanish treasure hunters and "huaqueros" (grave bandits).

In Pizzaro's reports, on Chan Chan walls and other structures are decorated with precious metals. Pedro Pizarro, one of Francisco's relatives, found a silver-covered doorway, estimated to cost more than $ 2 million at current prices. Archaeologists also found the oldest phone in the world at 1,200 years old in Chan Chan.

However, the most dangerous threat to Chan Chan is not treasure hunters, but weather. Heavy rains, floods and strong winds can dull the dry mud structures of the city. During the existence of the Chimor kingdom, the El Nino phenomenon , which occurred every 25-50 years, caused the greatest damage to the city.

Cover up to protect monuments.(Photo: Martin Garcia).

Today, El Nino occurs more frequently due to climate change, threatening to destroy the remnants of this city. Many solutions have been proposed to protect the relics, such as using tarpaulin to cover rain. Some decorative walls are also hardened with a solution of water mixed with cactus resin, others are photographed and covered to protect.