El antiguo Viñaqui: la transformación de rural a urbano en la Sierra Central del Perú

Abstract

The manner the urban center of Huari of the Peruvian central highlands was established is an important topic. However, the issue remains little discussed. Taking into consideration information gathered from a rural Huarpa settlement that existed in what eventually became the periphery of Huari, we discuss the manner Huari achieved a great transformation early during the Middle Horizon. The evidence suggests that at the end of the Early Intermediate Period a series of Huarpa settlements were deserted in what appears to be a very conflictive situation. The former inhabitants of the rural Huarpa villages found their way into much larger and better protected settlements. In this manner, settlements such as Huari started housing a much larger number of peoples, while the Huarpa settlements, viable for centuries, could no longer continue being occupied.