An Early Subsistence Exchange System in the Moche Valley, Perú

Shelia Pozorski Thomas Pozorski

Section of Man
Camegie Muscum of Natural History
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Technologically, the Initial Period in Perú began wilh the infroductim of pottery and the
change from twined to woven textile production. Within the Moche Valley, it was the time
when a complex settlement first appeared in the valley interior — a relocation correlated with
the beginnings of irrigation agricuiture. This critical point in the process of adaptation to
irrigation agriculture is explored through an examination of subsistence data from two sites:
the Initial Period (1800-1400 B.C.) site of Gramalote on the coast and the Inland Period and
Early Horizon (1400-400 B.C.) settlement of Caballo Muerto located well inland. Evidence
from Caballo Muerto suggests that the shift from floodwater to irrigation agriculture was
complete, yet the inland site still relied heavily on animal protein from Gramalote on the
coast. Taken together, the two early ceramic sites fbrm an economic unit which, when
explored, reveals several important aspects of the transition from an exclusively coastal
orientation to a predominantly inland agricultural subsistence focus.

Introduction

The advent of irrigation agricultura was one of the most important events in the prehisiory of
Perú. On the north coast, íts introduction dates bctwecn 2000 and 1500 B.C. Immediately
prior to this time, coastai inhabi-"ta^Cs"sub--sisTcd-^argcly--oñ-
~marin<;~"fesou^c^£^"SQct^~^as~ shetifish and fish, suppkmer.ted by Íloodwatcr honi-
culturc. Irrigation did havc a tremendous impact on subsistencc patterns aod societal structure.
bul the change was not as rapid as previousty bclicvcd.' Data from two early sites ¡n the
Moche Vallcy, Gramalote ana Caballo Muerto (TABLE 1),' suggest the changeover was rnore
gradual. Enitially, the inland senJement of Caballo Muerto was heavily dependen! on [he
coastal resources for animal protein whilc the coastal site of ——Gf3ma(Qtc-Feli^d-&fl—thc
inland .Mtítemcirt-fef- agri^--cuitural producís. As time passed. a domesticated camelid
rcpiaced shciirish as che main source of" animal protein, ihe coastai sctticmcnt was no ¡onger
necessary, and the [nove iniand was esscntially comple'e.
Gramalote was first surveycd by C. M. Hastings in 1973 when he worked for the Chan Chan-
Mochc Vailey prOJect:, Sheiia Pozorski directed excavaüons during Scptembcr and
Octobcr.of 1973 with the aid ofDonaId Weaver for archilcctural dcaring. Shc laler returned
bricfly ¡n Í974 [o chcck specific architecturai dctails.
The etistence of Caballo Muerto has long been known. bul its age ana significance have oniy
been recognized wnhin the past 10 years. In 1930 George Johnson photographed Huaca de los
Reyes from [he air as part oí" the famous Shippec-Johnson expedilion- This pholograph has
never been publíshed. fn 193S, Laceo HoyIeJ published a map of the Moche Valiey indicating
[he localion of a "Grupo Herederos." but said nolhing about rhe site. tn 1942 and again m
1969, the Servicio Aero fotográfico Nacional pholographed theentirecom-plex as pan of the
aerial pholographic coverage of ihe enlire valley. ín 1950, Richard Schaedel and Antonio
Rodríguez Suy Suy surveyed the Caballo Muerto área and rnade a preliminary map of Huaca
tic los Reyes, but nevcr publishcd their findings.
No further work was done at [he Caballo Muerto compie?; until 1969 when Michael Moseley,
direcior of the Chan Chan-Moche Valley Project. surveyed the área and recognized the
Caballo Muerto mounds as dating lo at leasi ihc Eariy Horiion (1400-400 B.C,). In Juiy and
Augusí of 1970, Ctaude Chauchat excavated at "ihe mouná or Huaca Herederos Chica and
conFirmed the early date. He rcluraed in 1972 with Luis Waianabe and extended exea''aüons
ai the same mound. Latcr in !972, Watanabe returncd alone ana excavaled at Huaca de los
Reyes, Huaca La Cruz, and Huaca Guavatilo.
•Thomas Pozorski surveyeá and excavated at all ofthe Caballo Muerto-complex rnountís
between July 1973 and December 1974. Bo(h his worfc and that of Shciia Pozorski al
Gramalote wcre conducled under Lhe auspices of ihe Chan Cnan-Moche Valley Pro¿ect under
the direclion of Michaei Moscley and Carol Mackey. Permission lo survey and excávale was
granicd by the Peruvian instiluio Nacional de Cultura. Funding was provided by [he National
Sclencc Foundation, ihe Nalional Geographic Sodcty, and [he Instítute or Latin American
Sludics of Ihe University of Texas at Austin. The dala discussed ín ihÍs paper were gathered
by the authocs during invesügalions in 1973 and 1974.

Gramalote

The Initial Psriod site of Gramalote lies 10-3) m. abovc sea level near ihe modem fishing
village of Huanchaco on the noriii edge or the Moche Vailey (FIO. i). The oniy surface
indicadons of Üie nature of the site are abundatit ash anii shcll plus a fcw conccn-trations of
stone, since (he action of wind and salí has destroycd all surface [races of planE remains and
most ' -snc^as7Wil 5 ^^^he-'s^fe,-refusc^s"^sp'^:aalTy ^'cB-a^-o -d"¿ep-(30 cm. or more) in two
irregular áreas that covcr aboat 20.000 sq. ra. on the tops and slopcs of saveral stabilizcd
aunes (RG. 2).
EJicavaüons ai Gramalote began in 1973 with inteti-iive tesüng [o define the sile limits and lo
locáis áreas of cspocially rich middcn whCTc the rcfuse eouid be ffiost profitably sampied.
The SW part of ihe site where ihe refuse reaches its máximum depüi of ca. 2 m. wai ieiectcd
for controilcd stratigraphic excarations. Scv-cral test piu revealed wcll-prescrvcd bouldcr
wails. and a largo conEumous área af architecture in ihc NE sector was aiso clearsá. In thc
course of (hese cxcavalions ihree burláis were encounlered: two in thc área of dearcd
architocture and a tnird wilhin [he rnidden,

Architecture

Archilectural cicaring focused on rhc NE pan of '.he site whers "hcrc was !¡[tlc overburdcn. A
single struc-lural comp e< ca. 30 ai. x 20 m. was delined, rcvealing an opcn c;ntral couriyard
arca surrounded on Ihrce sides by snial! rooms (FIO. i). Thc highest sianding walls ar; aboul
60 cm. and ihe smali amount oi" wali-fall suggesis a maximun! original height of not more
ihan I m. Most walls are of doubk-faced unworked boulder eonstruciion willi eobbie chmking
and cobble, gravel, and carth rill- A few wails consist of singti; rows of bouláers with cobblc
chinking, Blocks of' colonial polychaete wonn sccretíon (a coral-like ronnalion) from Lhc
seaáhorc are occasionafly ¡ncorporalcd with ihe bouláers [n construction. In bcitcr preser^ed
áreas tbe boulders stand lwo rows high, and their placemeni suggests an effort to make an
cven wal! faec. FIne-sand to 5ilt monar. now salitriñed. is preservcd in scvcral watk and a
tingle malí raff was coVCEed-.hy_a-palch..aÍ"_piaster. Sevcrai smail rooros along the Sw and
SE sides are pavcd with a layer of rounded cobbles. while the rcmaining noors are formed of
packeti sand and silt. Thc NW edge, which [acks small rooms, is fonned by a. largc rectangular
plaifonn 25 cin. high topp«i wilh thrce small circular plalfomii 30 cm. in height.

Midden

Extensive lest-pitüng defined thc areal Mteni, depth. and eonieni of thc Gramalole niidden.
and site bound-arics were defiDed on ihe basis of iniddcn concentrations 30 cm. or more in
depth. A máximum depüi of almost 2 m. was recorded in ihc centra! sw sector. Deeply burieá
boulder wails comparable 10 partí of the rectangular siruCTure ¿Iscovereá during lesüng
suggest that adáilionai áreas of archilecturc are preseni, buE-concealcd by accumulated
middeti. In [.he arehitccturc of the NE secior, midden conecntrations approaching 1 m. in
deplh veré encolinicred oniy in the nonh córner área of unpaved rooms.
Thc two test pits .nal yieided the mosi varied and best-prciervcd piant ana anima! remains
were seiecicd for conírolled straligraphrc excavaEion lo secure de-lailcd inrormaüon abouí
specific midden components and utiimately Gramalole subsisience (FiG. 2: CUTS i-2). In boih
cases we worked from a wall ofihe lest pit; rirst deílning and pronitng'scraia visible in ihc face
and ihen. rcmoving Ihe deposit by carefully controiled uniís. In Cut 1, we removed, by
isolaling visible straia, a volume 0.50 cm. x 0,75 m. i: 1.30 m. decp which was screened
through 'fl-inch mesh lo recover arlifacts for daling the site. in Cu'. 2. 1.0 m. x 0.50 m-1 1-95
m. deep, we em-phasced thc colleclion ofa sample orplant and aninial rcTnains in addilion lo
arüfacli. Each of thc !hree levéis visible in the exposed Face was Furtiier divided into 10-cm.
arbitrary levéis, and a!l material was screencá through. fi-inch mesh. The discussion of
Gramalote subsisience bclow is bascd on data Írom Cut 2.

Burials

Two burials were encounlered during excavaiion of the archileciure, and boih were in poor
conáítion. The first was a seeondary ourial of an aduk whose long bonos and verlebraa were
'.vrapped ¡n several layers of Iwincd cotion lextlle, Eorming a bundie ca. 20 cm. x. 40 cm. The
bundie was buried 40 cm. deep in an ¡[regular pit dug into reluse wilhin a room. Scveral large
cobbles and blocks of colonial polychaele wortn secretion haá bcen placed around and on top
of ihc bundie- The seo-ond burial wnhin the architcciure was the tighiiy fiMeá bocly of an
infant !ying on Its back wkh its h=ad toward -!Ílc- oortti- It- had- heeo-ata.pped in [hrri-
layers ofeotlon-textiics: Ihe inner wrapping was a riñe twncd iayer, and the sccond a plain
weave which was in Etirn. cncased ia an outer laycr of coarsc iwincd material. The bunai pit
was dug about 40 an. into refuse, ana largc cobbtes acd a single biock of colonial polychaete
wonn secreaon completdy surrounded !he bundie containing the body. A third blirial' was
encounnired ^ ;1^:
stralum of the middcn m Cut 2 at a dcpth of i.66 m. The pit was dug mío ihe sarli&st scralum
while the deposition of the ;econd stratUTn was in proccss. The body occupied an oval pit
within the ccfusc ca. 1.0 m. x 0,65 m. x 0.25 m. deep. Ths individual was niale, 30 lo 45 years
of age, and ihe body lay In a ncted posilion facing south with the head Eoward the west-
Sixteen. _sí o n.es_wc.rs_ÍQca lcd_Ln_!.h e_northerti_tnd^o_f_tAe_git^^'ott^_ sufTOiinding
and slighiiy bdow ;hc body- TTie burial was accompanietl by Íew artifacLs: 2 gourd bowls. a
jet micror, matling. and textiles. The jet mirror was small (fi cm. y. 5 cm. y. 2 cm.), findy
polished. and eovercd with a Lhicii layer ofrsd pigmeni. Severai layers ofwo-vcn cotton
textile ai "lell as SOCTC wovcn bast mat-líng had üccn present, bu[ had dicomposcd almost
sompleteiy along with itic softer pans of Ule body.'
Ceramics

Ofthe 1.119 shcrds recovcred ai Gramalole, 110 are rim shcrds and oniy 17 are decorated.
Olidized and re-áuced ihin-v/aikd (3-6 muí.) coarsewarc makcs up 93% .. of Ihs asscmblage
v-ilh lhc'rcmainder consisting- ot-ois^. idized ana reduced íme '."are. The primary vrssel fonn-
is ihe ncckiess olla, bul iher- are aiso some short-neck jars wnh everted rims and (all single-
neci; bottics. Decoración i:onsists of incisión preienied as-slaahea^. zoncd puncíaiion. and
¡ncised and fingec-impfessed faised bands or ribs. Ali incisión wa5 executed on wet day.
Low-lusicr, sircaky burnishing i5 a!so very charac-lerisüc of many sherds.
Textiles

Both twiscd and woven collón textiles- we^:—cfts-'~ covered ai Gramalote along wiih fcnotted
netting, cord-age, and unspun riber.T Woven '.e^iilca are most numerous, bu[ much more
simply consiructed ihan twined ciampics. Viriually all ars p:ain wcave with one cxample of
patterncd weave and two of Iwill. One small piece of plain wcave was colored with red pajnt
or dust. Gramalole iwireá te.iiiies are more complex and varied in construclion and design, !n
one «ampie, ¡nirieate bands of twin^g are evidcnl as part of an oiherwise plain weave 'niilc.
The fragmenis of knoEEed nstting from lishnets •eparaics inlo two groups based on rnesh.
sizc and nuinber of yarns used in consiruction. Large-rnesh netting has 2 lo 8 yarns per
element and a mesh sÍ2c ranging 0-5-1 cm. Coniclin poinis ou; thal the nctling from
Gramalole is considerably stronger tnan ihe other textiics because of replied, niultiyarn
etenient consiruction and lac use ofsirongercoiton üi ihe iniiial yarn manufaclure.'
Worked Stone

About 80% of Ihe more than 200 slone tools were chippcd from rir-c-grain basalt. Alt
chipping was done by thc pcreussion mcihod, and ihcre is no evidence of rclouehing. Cuiting
loots account for abom one-halfof ""T&C champíes' wrnte ünífaLid! ainíbifacíai ch opp ni
g'tools— are aiso very common. Olher less conimon typcs ¡n-cludc 6 corea, a bladc, 3
demicuiales. a saw. a scraper. a cteaver, 5 pianes. ana 5 hammersiones. Thc rcmaming Hthic
arüfacts are of ground or peckeá stone- These in-dude smooth rounded cobbles ihai show
evidenM of use for srnoottúng. hanimering, or paint proeessing. Three probable nct weighis
were encountercd: lwo are roundcd ováis with a fíat pcckcd band around the i "/[dest parí.
and the third ¡s a smail ilal ova! pebble wilh a hole pccked ihrough ihc ccnler. Olher stonc ar-
tifacts worked by packing, grindmg, and often polishing . , include a single cylindrical pestk,
a stonc bowl frag- i rnent. and a whole}ct mirror plus icveral fragmcnts.
Other Artifacts

Two picces of colonial polychaele wolrn sccrelion werc abraded into cónica] shapes 3.9 em.
and 5-4 cni. long, and each has a small hole pccked inlo the largcr end, The oniy additional
artífacu are a lew small pieces of cul shell [Choromydius chorus and ProiOihaca ihaca) and
one lafge whoie clam sheil [Semele cornigam) wilh rea miriera! pigment ihickiy cncrusted on
ils inner surface-
Radiocarbon Dates

As part of the controiled siraligraphic excavation oí' Cul 3. six carbon-14 samples wcre
eollected rrom ihe threc dislinguishabie sirata of the midden.' These sam-ples wcre submitted
to the Univcrsity oí Texas Radio-carbón Laboraiory. and thcy yklded uncorrecied dales of:
1100±110 B.C. (TK-1930, sccond siratum from sur-¡"ace); 1120±90 B.C. (Tx-1929, •,,iird
stratum from sur-face): 1300±120 B.C. (Ti,-1929, -.hird siratum from sur-fice). 1430±60 B.C.
(T<-1931, r.rsi itralum from sur-fac¿); 1580±130 B-C. (Tx-!931, first stralum from sur-Íace);
and 1590A80 B.C. (Tx-1930. second siralum from surface). Though not in agrecment wiih the
sirali-graphic order of the straia, the absolute dates cluster well enough 10 siiggest the general
time period when Gramalote was occupied.

Caballo Muerto
The Caballo Muerto complc^ (FIGS-1.4) is loctlcd ¡n the Moche Valley. ENE o( the city
ofTrujillo, about 17 km. inland from the Pacific coasi. The compic» is com-posed of eight
plaiform mounds of varving archilec-iurai co^^piexll-y. covcring an área 2 km. N-s by 1 km.
E-w, and situated in the Rio Seco quebrada (dry gully) about 3 km. north of the Moche River.
Scven of ihe eighl mounds are clustered within the southern half of the [otal área v¡ Ihe
coniplex while a smal! eiehth mound is located ai ihe etíreme north end, This last mound.
however; ia connected to the rest of ihe cotn-plex by a long. wide road.
Architecture and Chronology

Individual mound size ranges from 100 m. x 120 m. x 18 ni- high lo 24 m. x 25 m. n 2 m.

high, ihough in lerms ' OÍ toial site arca, ihe elabórale Huaca áe los Reyes is the laraest. Each
mound ii large enough 1.0 have beca a corporate labor siructurc, ihai is. a product of the iabor
of numerous individuáis workmg coilectivcly under the authority of one person or a few
people.
Based on survcy and excavalion by T. Pozorski. il ap-pears thai each of the mounds has, or
probably once had, a pair ofsrnali pafallel wing siruclures e^lending out írora ita front face lo
forTí a large "U." The consis-tent "U" pattern plus Ihe large sw of the mounds rela-tive to
known domcstic architecture of thc time pcrwá SuggesI ihai all had a similar
nondornesticTunctiün,
Within the Cabailo Muerto compleí, howevec. csr-tain archileciurai features dilTer, ihcreby
indicating gradual chronologicai change, These fcaEures — orien-lation. size and configuras
ion. location reialiue lo certain types of terrain. entry patiern. and oíher associated features —
were used [o arrange the Caballo Muerto rnouncis chronoiogicaUy inio ihree groups (TABLE
i).
Orcering *nhin cach group has becn reñned by córrela-lions with arlifacis cecovsrcá and
radiocarbon dales ob-tained.
It shouid be remembered, though, that ths groupings in Table 1 indicaie relalive dales of the
principal con-strucilon for each mound. Later archkeclural additions and ovsriap m artiract
assemblages suggesi extended use oí" sonic mounds during and after construction of others.
One of Ihe mounds, Huaca de los Reyes, bears a iarge number of clay friezes bordering ils
plazas." Friczes have not been found al the othcr mounds wilhin the complex, but severa!
painicd wail fragroents have beca recovered.
Domestic Componet

No large domestic occupaüon áreas have been found associai.ed wiih thc comple?; dcspite
survey and test ex-~cavat[Otls-on-ttcaTby-hTHsidc3~3[Ki-a(l^acCTrt-f;e^ds--This———
circumstance, however. is predictabie because 1) th& neighboring hills were subject to 3,000
years o f su ose-quent occupalion waich have badiy disturbed cultural rernains, and 2) thc
open arca among the rnounds has been buricd by scvcraf melera or alluvium. Thc latter is
verified by our test pits inio Huaca Herederos Chica (F[G. i) which uncovered rcfusc aboui 4
m- bclow Üie modcrn ground surfacc.
Ceramics

Out of a total of 10,240 sherds, the majority wcre found within architeciural fiit and wall-fail,
bi« a sig-nificant percentage was a!so associaled wiih plaslered
-floor levéis. Thin-wailed (3-6 mm.) coarsc miliLarian wace. boti'i onidized and reduccd.
makes up the bulk of [he colleclion, varying from 80% lo 90% of Ihc Group I assemblage to
05% lo 70% for Ihe later mounds. On-idized and reduccd fine ware constiiutes the remaining
portion of the sample. Vessei forms are resiric;sd to neckicss ollas, short-neck Jars wiih
everted rims. open bowls with straight or everied sides. íncurving bowls, slirrup-spout botties.
and. rarely. iail single-neck bot-ties- Ncck!ess ollas, alt made ofihin-waited coarseware,
predomináis Lhroughout. the ccraiiiic sfiquence. bul are-- -espedally frequeni at the Group I
and Group IÍ mounds. Bowl forms and short-ncck jars are aiso nu-merous and acc made
ofboth coarsc and ñnewarc-Bottie forma are resiricted lo fine ware. Incisión made inio wcl"
clay is the most common fonn of dccoralion. found in such modes as broad-line and ii.-ic-iinc
slashes, circular and diagonal punciations oílen separated inio zones by incised lines, cross-
haiching. and conibing. Applique' bumps, modclling, and incised and fingsr-impresscd raised
bands or ribs are aiso prssent. Low luster, streaky burnishing is v!:ry coiTimon, especially on
coarse-ware sherds. Occasional new rnodes are intro-duced through time, but once each [s pan
of [he dec-oralive reperloire, it persists until the =nd of the sequence. The most
chronolcgically diagnostic dtc-orative trait is the use of black paint. probabiy made of graphile
and/or manganese- It was used both as a fiHer of incised lines and for blaek bands and zones
painted on fíat surfaces. These lwo techniqucs appear at Huaca de los Reyes in the Group II
rnounds ano last inrou.gh Group III.

Worked Stone

Five types of stonc anifacts are aiso chronotogically imporiant: jet (TlÍrrors, slone bowis.
hammcrstones, smooth siones, and stone palettes. Severa] smoolh black jet mirror fragmcnts
wcre recovered from Huaca Herederos Chica. Huaea Cortada. ani¿ Huaca de lo»
-Reyes, Flal-topped slone bowl rims *ere found at Huaca Cortada and near the road
conneding Huaca de los Reyes and Huaca San Carlos. Ham mentones, oftcn bcaring traces
of red pigment. «ere fotind at Huaca Herederos Chica. Plain smoülh stoncs, bcaring no l
cvidencc af red pigmcnt and often showing no signs of e wear, bul unusual becausc the
material ;s foreign lo !he immediala site environment, wcrc found al Huaca Herederos Chica
and Huaca ác los Reyes. The worn ex-ampies may have bcen pottery polishers- Al Huaca e
Herederos Chica, a few fíat stones actcd as paief.es or reccptaeles for red pigmcnt. and traces
oí' the pigmeni i are stiil presenten the flat sides of the stones.

Other Artifacts

Huaca Herederos Chica produced on; piece of a [arge shd! {Argopecm pwpuralwn) tha[ bears
traces of ^ red pigmeni on iis interior surface. Presumably, this ' was afso uscd as a paint
paletts-i

Textiles

Trough no dirccí evidencc of textiles was found at Caballo Muerto- bccause of limited p
reserva t ion, im- -[ pressions ofcloth and fiber ropc were found on burned and unburned
adobs roofing fragmentí at Huaea ; Herederos Chica, Huaca Cortada, and Huaca de ios ;"
Reyes. Exarnplcs of simple weaving and knitting are i comrnon. bul there acc aiso examples
o'' straight-paired twining, Roofing fragments from other Caballo Muerto r mounds do nol
show any tc-itile impressions.

Radiocarbon Dates
Supplementing the retalivc daüng of the mound, of Caballo Muerto are a numbcr oF
radiocafbon samples taken frorn one mound within each ofthe ihree mound groupings.'2 For
Oroup I. two dates froro the same cultura] contest (FIG. i: CüTS !-3) are avaiiabfe froni
. Huaca Herederos Chica: 1090*60 a.c. (Tx-1937) and 1500±70 B.C. (Tx-1938). Four
saniples froin th¡e carlicr of lwo construction phascs of Huaca de los Reyes yielded dales of
850±60 a.c. (Tx-2180). 1190±60 B.C-(Tx-1973). 1360±80 B.C. CT)i-1972), and 1730-tSO
B.C. (Tx.1974). For Group III, one dale from Huaca
———&ttavatoo-Í3-44e±?0-B^^s^939)rAH-iá3tes-arrTm—-corretícd and are dcrivcá from
samples of cañe (Carta breña, Gyneriwn sagiltatwn} processed by ihc üniversity ofTcxas
Radiocarbon Laboratory.
Chronological Correlations

Relative and absoiutc chronologica! evidencc points lo the contemporaneity of Gramalote and
the eariiest mounds of Cabaito Muerto (TABLE i). Though tne ceramic asacmblaga flf Caballo
Muerto contains more variety in terms of decoration and form, all of ceramic from Gramalote
fall within the range of variation…………
Muerto, In view of the !arge size of Caballo MUCHO rdativc to Gramalote, ¡t appears that
Caballo Muerto wouid have been doininant OVCT- Gramalote. Sincc Gramalote comains no
Collón Preccramic componen!, the establishment boih oí it and Caballo Muerto wouid
presumably havc besn a developmenc oui of the other— Cotton Prcceramie sites of Ihe valley.
Alto Salaverry and Padre Aban (Fig. 1).

Quantification of Subsistence Data from Gramalote and Caballo Muerto

During analysis, p!ani and animal species rrom Gramalote and animal species froni Caballo
Muerto were idenlified by Shelia and Tilomas Pozorski; discrete units such as who!e shsll
'/aives ar-d fruit stems of sesds were counied and often nieasured. and; the total ínate-rial for
eaeh species from a given contcxt *as weighed. Resullant quantitativc mformation about
Gramalote and Caballo Muerto plant and animal rernains is pre-scnted w Tables 2-4. Columns
i, 2, ano 3 of ihe iables-are simple quantitalive assessmenis for each species. The ñrst coiumn
records the number of ieveis wiihin which cach species oocurred; coiumn 2 records a count
for the species; and eolunin 3 gives Ihe weighE of the plañe or animal material collectcd.
Tlicsc dala are vital -becausc [heir iníernai consistcncy provides a eheck on Ihe uniformily
orihs distribuüon oreach species wiihin each controSIed cut and uiliinaicly on ihc reliabiiily of
assuming species proportions for onc conietí are lypical of lile site as a whole.
Columns 4 and 5. on the olher hand. present the reconsiructed dielary contribution of eaeh
speeies. first in tenns ofan absoiute volume. and then as a percenl-agc, by volume, of Ihe total
die;. Reconstructions of diet are difticuit because of the large number of variables lo be
considered. The sampting and analysis of subsistcncc materiais. and ullimately the
rcconstructed; dietary proportions. were based on the assumption that plant and animal
remains within an cxcavated volume occur in freiqueneies that are indicaüve of their impor-
lance to the occupants of tne site. In lieeping with this. a nielhodology was designed which
icrved 'O evalúate as ncarly as possifale oniy thosc remains within tile iam-ple volume in
tenns of iheir dictary conmbulion. Counts were most imporlani. in the rinal quantification
procedure to arrive at amounts meaningful for eom-parison. For plants. pans such as sieros or
sceds couid be retaied directly ;o añ average fruit food volume. us-ing an e,(panded and
siighfly revised. versión of thc procedure describcd by MacNeish for vegetal matcrial from
Tehuacan." Similarly, wholc shells. gastropod whoris. or bivalvo hingcsofmollusks and claws
ofcrabs couid be correlatcd wiih an average meal volume for <ach species that was
experimenta U y determined by ihc authors. Insiead of using cvalualions oniy of mínimum
(iumber of individuáis, which are often abused.'* nieat-volume contribulions fo! vertebrales
wcrc asscssed in íerrns of ihc number of diagnoslic skcletal elemenis actually present in the
excavated sampie compared lo thc s^pected number oí diagnosiic skeletal dements. Based on
ihe average meat volume for a given vertébrale species and the number of diagnosiic
(archaeo-logical meaningfui) skelctal ciemenis, It was possible lo calcúlate an average rneat
votume per diagaostic sheletai elemeni which couid be dca!t w:th ¡ndsp;náen[ of ihe
minimuni-number-of-individuals count lo givc a more accurate reconsiruction of ihe meal
votume repre-stínied by an excavaied bone sample. Afler valúes ror piant and animal food
volumes for each species had bcen-caicula^ed.-each"wa5 e^prcssed as a percentagc of. ... [he
plant or animal díet.
Gramalote Subsistente Data

A quanliiative analysis of ihe plañí and animal rcmains from Cut 1 in ihí Grarnalote midden
provides evidence of the subsistence activities al ihe site. The results are prcscnied in Tablei 1
and 3.
Animals Utillizet Gramalote

All the animal protein consurned at Gramalote derived ultimaiely from ihe nearby occan
(TABLE 2). Cleariy. Ihe major subsisEsnce activuy at Gramaiols in-volved ihe proeurement
and processing otiheJIfish. Vir-[ually ail ihe species identified at Gramaloti were abo
coifected by the inhabiiants or Padre Aban (FIG, l) who occupied the región at an eariier
date." Such coín-ddences documenc the consisisnt locali;ation of rnany shetliish species
within reatricted arcas aiong the coasi-
EiTicieni shellfish procureinent systems wcre in op-eration al Gramalote. Most of the highiy
visible anrf -easílx-accessibíc.spedcs-oí-ela RK,- gasi ropedfr-afrf'- e»-— pecially musseis
were takcn by persons based ai [he rite. Shellfish galhercrs from Gramalote, ilowcvcc, wcfe
the first peoplc in thc valley aiso lo sys temática 11 y coilect bs thc dceper burrowing
ciams (Protoshaca thaca. Eurho-or malea rufa, Semeie corrúgala, ana Ganel solaia). which
he suppiy mora meai per individual Ihan ali but the large n! mussel (Choroinyii/itS
chaiw) of the more accessible it- specicá- It appears thal once a meihod was established in
fbr taking these largs moUirófcs efficiently, procurement U adivines focused on shcllfish
colleclion.
Specimens or [he large mussel (C. chorus) recovered a. froni Üie Gramaiolc refusc were
usually largc aduli r- ¡ndívirfuats. and somc werc aiTccied by parasites. Very 3- few
juveniles wcrc recordcd. This suggests ihai the peo-,o pie or Gramalote wcre wploiling beás
of ola individ-¡c uals which had not reccmly been depleled or dcstroyed it - as a resuil of
human Of cnvironmcnia! faciórs,
a Large mussds and large clam spccies. as wdl as rnany !- gastropods, had becn bashed
opcn in a consistent manir ner lo extract Ihe mcai. Unnalural, bul consisicnl [rac-d lure
palierns producing breaks al righi angtes werc i{_ .-., notcd ni-ar [be tunges of bivalvcs, an¿
chunks ofwhor! seciions had bccn chopped away to faciiitate access to rctractcd gastropods.
Such shell cracking eouid have been performed easily uiing a beach cobble- Dead or J
cooked sheilfish are caaily op<ned; the spccits tafcea s near Gramalote, ¡herefore, were
probably cracked: and e eaien while stili fresh and raw. A numbcr of whoie or nearly wholc
large mussti vaives wcre etíremdy worn along Ihe posterior margin from use as simple scrapcra.
In addilion lo moilusk sheils, largc nurnbcrs of as-adían tests (leathcry outer coveríngs) wcre
recovcred from the refusc. Tnese animáis wírc easily accessible, atiached to tids-zonc rocks.
and the soft interaal part* were apparenüy caten raw, much as sea urchins are consuined. This
same species was idenlified in Ihe field as a tunicate by Moseley" who, along with Tnomas
Patterson, found ihcm in iarge quanliles in early sites aiong the central Peruvian coasi.20
At Gramalote, Icss than 10% or [he total meat proleío was derivcd from fish (Tabte 2): sharfc
(Musielus sp.) provideá more meat than ail oiher fish sp<cies com-___bined. Rays (,.Vy!
¡obaiis.pearríamií)^gsul2iÍish-(R}iuw— baíos pianicepí}, afd three rnembers of ihc croaker
family {Sciaerta gilberti. S. dfiiciwa. and Paralo/ichüfw perwmus} wefe aiso rspresenEed,
Ofihis group, thc'.hrcc non-bony fishes and mullcl (Afugil cephalus) frequeol shailow water
ncar shore, and thc members of the croaker family are occasionally aiso caugót there."
Fishing implemcnU recovcrcd during cxcavatíons ¡n-ctude three stone net sinkers (two
grooved and onc per-foraied) and scvcral small-mesh and iarge-mesh collón net fragments,
Fróhing. thercforc, was probably done using both simple smail-mesh haui sdnes and large-
meail gilí neis stakcd oui in shatiow water.
A selection of bird bones fron! Gramalote was iden-tified by Elizabeih Wing." Coi-morams
(Phatacrocorax sp.) appeaf lo be ihe mos! common. bul bañes of a gull (Laridae) and a single
p-sngum {Sphi-niscus sp.) veré aiso idenüfied. The relaüvciy nigh proponion of bírd rcmains
suggests thal cormoranis w;re locally abundant and niay tia^c had rookeries in ihe área.
The oniy maroma! of diciary significance was the sea lion (Otaria byronia) which was [akcn
and consumcd in a quantity rcprsseiiling just ov<r 7% of ihe meai diet. The oniy other mammal
remains wc.-c occasional ncariy compictc sksiclons of rais and micc which were probabty
aitracted lo ihc dscaying garbage.

Plants Utilized at Gramalote

Plant cukivaíion was not possible in the vicinity of Gramalote. The site's tocation wc|[ away
from ihc Moche Rivcr in combinalion wiih surcounding terrain irregularilies precludcs local
canal irrigaiion, Therc is no evidencc of sunken garden cullivallon in ihe área; the site lies on
a P!eisloci:ne terract al an elevalion that wouid raake excavaLion to ground waicr very
difficull." Thcreforc ihs planis utilizsd al Gramalote were necessarily cuitivatcá and broughl lo
thc si(e from áreas ofihe vailey \»here agriculiure was possible.
Plant culligens prcscnt al Gramalote are numerous and varied. Thesc ínciude coiton
(Gossypium barba-dense), gourd {Lagenaria ticeraría). squash (Cucúrbita sp.), conimon bean
(Phaseol^s vulgaris), pepper {Ctipsician sp.). avocado (Penca americana), cansaboca (a pluBi-
iike fruil) (Bunciww armeniacá), aníi lúcuma (Lwwna aiwwta), which have bcsn iáentified at
one Coltoo ¡'rcccramic site ¡n Che valley. plus corn (Zea mays) and pcanut {Arac^Ss
hy/wgaea) which are ncw additions lo Ihe plant inventory.
In keeping w[th dala froni earlicr sites," collón gourds, and squash continucd to be abundant,
bur food spccies oiher shan squastrwcre aiso pfcscnt in substan-lial amounts (TABLE J).
Lúcuma, avocado, the common bean. and pepper had become espcria!ly [niponant cle-nients
in the vegetable diel. Com was srill verv siarce:
oniy two cobs and a single husk fragmeni wcre recovcred rroin ihc cntire sile, indicanng ii
w.is not yet an important fooá plañí.
Locally availaüle TiUamisia sp. aoá grass were (he niost common wiid plañís, and much of ihc
Tiliawlsia sp. was burneá as fuel. From ihe river. cañe (Gyneríum saginatwn) was brought \¡\
subsianlial quantiiies. and loiora (Scirpus ¡atora) recds ¡n lesscf amounts. Atgor-roba (Prasopu
chitensis) secas are presen 1, b ni rara.

Caballo Muerto Subsistence Data

Most of the subsisience dala froni Caballo Muerto come from three tesi pits excavaied by
T,iornas Poz-Ofsi;i" wnhín Huaca Herederos Chica (FTG, 5). one OÍ.. ihe eariiest mounds or ihc
Caballo Muer,o sequence. Cut I measured 1.65 m. < 1.45 m. i 6 JO m. deep. Cut 2 was 1,30 m. x
1.20 m. .1; 8.20 m. dcep. ard Cut 4 was i-70 cm. x 1,0 cm, x 7.0 m. dccp. Thcsc etcavations cn-
counisred a one-meler [hicí; band of rci'me ca- 4 m. below ihe modern ground surface.
Apparently ihis li"-¡ng surface. In use *'hcn Caballo Muerto was occupied, had been covered by
alluvium over a pcriod of many ceniuries. Tbc local domeslic componcnt, therefore, is
Ínaccessible and mueh spccinc conieitual mformation for Ihe refuse is iacking. Finaily. no plañí
remains are preserved bccausc the área has becñ keps moist by prehiitoric and modern ¡rngation.
Wiihin the complex. ihe rnoünd of Herederos Ctiica yidded cnough faunal remains to apply
ihc quantitaüva methotíoiogy used at other Moche Valley siles and to 'Tnalw eAiEnsive
i;uiiipdibuii!i.'*''The' period-^hctr-tms-mound was uscd has be=n shown to üc conicnipofary
with the occupation of Granialotc on the coast- In view of thesc factors, wiih respect lo
Caballo Muerto, the evaluation of Initia] Period añil Early Horizoa sub-sislencc wiil iocus on
this Herideros fauaaJ nialerial. Relevaní dala from oiher mounds wiüun ihe compiex are usetí
where po&sible-

Animals Utilized at Caballo Muerto

At Caballo Muerto, for thc first lime in ihe Moche Valley sequence. iand mammals figure
significanüy in the fauna! inveniory (TASLE 4). Marine resources. how-evcr, continué to be
slighdy more important. Thc unique cornbination of loca! and imported coasial rauna!
resourcss used by the peopis of Caballo Muerto maltes the slie especially importaní in an
¡(tvesügation ofchanging subsistence patlems.
Marine shellfish. mainly molluiks, werc the [argcst singie source of animal protcm in Ehe
Herederos ¡ampie (TABLE 4). Thcy conaiituied over 50% of the meal volumc consumcd al
Herederos and thus establish a firm link bctween the inland complex and [he coast. e Their
abundancc suggest5 that they represen! the i marine resource in grealest áemand during ai
least ihc carliesi pcriod of the Caballo Muerto occupation. e Shellfish wcre recoveríd in
suhsiflñuai quaatiües from il ali the mounds. indicalmg (hat '.hey persistcd as an im-)
portant parí oí die diel as long as íhe compiM was oc-1 cupied.
Major meat-produdog ipecas inciude the large ' t mussel (C. chorw), and threc iarge clams
(/'. ¡haca. E. ; rufa, and S. corrúgala). Oilier bivalves and gasiropods t are prescnt. bul their
total diciarv contribuiion is i minor. The rangc of" sptcies idcnlincd from Caballo Muerto
correlaies well with thc species inventories of Gramalote and the ncarby Cotton Prcccramic site
of Padre Aban. This indícales that the Caballo Muerto sheitfish were aiso coUecied in the
vicinity of Huan-chaco Bay.
A large number of shclls from Sw¡a!us sp., a locai land snail. was Identiiled in ihc Caballo
Muerto mats-nal- These animáis are common upvalicy in áreas of sparsc vegetation and in
small lomas (fog vegelalion) áreas where they generally may be found adhering lo rocks and
shrubs. Although not a major meat-produc-ing itera. (he frequency of Scuíaius in the Caballo
Muerto sample suggesis ihat they wcre collected for food.
Both birds and r;sh wi;'s very minor elements in the faunal invenlory (TABLE 4). Thcy are
imponam, how-ever. as further evidence of eonnections between Caballo M ilerto and the
seacoast.
In the má'erial frorn Herederos, almost 20% of the total meac volume (TABLE -t) was supplicd by
dccr--..-(probably Odocoileus virginiantis), Upvalley and near thc river In the área of Caballo
Muerto, wi[d plañís were probably sufficicntiy dense to provide food and protection for a smáll
populaiion of thesc animáis. The oniy othcr bone idcntiñed as decr carne from Huaca Cortada,
anoihcr mound in the earliest group. The ab-senee of deer al the !ater mounds sugg&sts ihat the
small populación of deer which local vegelation couid havc supported was hunted lo near
e<tinctíon or largeiy ¿is-piaeed by land alteración for agriculture early in ihe history of the
complex.
One of ihe camelids. probably the domesticated 'ilatna (Lama gluma}, supplied a siightiy smaller
volume of [neat than deer. Reiying on data from 2S sites in thc Peruvian and Ecuadorian sierra,
Wing has suggesteá that camelids raay have been domeslicated as eatly as 4400 to 3150 B.c.. and
by 1000 B.C- domesticateá fornis wcre fully ¿eveloped. Her evaluation of ihe very early sampie,
which comes from Pikimachay Cave in the Ayacucho Valiey, is basca on the presence of two
si^es which_p_arallel modern camelid varieti&s. ihc relalive abundance of the remains, and íhe
lugh proportíon"o'f juvenite individuáis of approi.imately 18 months wnicb were butchered
during the hightand dry season when charqui (sun-dried meat) is usually made." By 1000 B.C..
data from severa! sites document increased size and variability among the camelid remains."
These data suggest ihat thc eamclid ¡deaüfieá al Caballo Muerto ' was probably inilially
introducta into the Moche Vallcy fl6m the siwa in a domesticated fonn.
In addilion lo theif valué as food, llamas mighl aiso have servcd a ceremonial funetion.
suppiicd médium quality woo!. and servcd as beasu of burden. Camclid reftiains were aiso
identified froni Huaea Cortada. Huaca de los Reyes, Huaca la Cruz, and Huaca Guav-alito- The
conlinuous presence o{ these animáis suggests Ihat, unlike deer, carnelids persisted as a meat
source throughout thc duration ofthc Caballo Muerto occupation.
Four of ihe total boncs identified as camelid and two - of the boncs idenlified as deer slio»ed
cvidence of cuts made during thc process of butehering. Marhs occur on rib heads, thoracic
vertebrae, and a tarsal bone. The sample is too small to suggest a pattern, bul all the cuts
probably rcsulied from etTorts to disaniculate the Skeleton.
The oniy other iand mammal of potcntial food valué was the dog [Cani-s fcuniiians), but in
the case of Caballo Muerto, the amount of meat representcd is m-signincant. Rodsnt
skcletons represeniíng one mouse and lwo rats are probably fcorn animáis aitractcd io ihe
refuse-
The single marine mammal ofcconomie signiricance is (he sea ¡ion. Oniy [he excavations al
Huaca Cortada and Huaca la Cruz yielded bones ofthis animal. The ¡n-Frequency of its
occurrence plus the time difference be-twecn tile mounds wherc rernains were found argüe
against the sea ¡ion as an important food animal. It Ís impor'ani.. however. as funhsr
evidence oi" conlinued coastal coniact.

Plants Utilized at Caballo Muerto

No securely datcd food plañí maieria! was preserved in the Caballo Muerto comple^.
Evidence for plant cultivatioo, thereforc, is necessarily indirect. The varied spccies inventorics
for Gramalote and sarlier sites indícate that ischniques of plañí cultivadon were wei!-
developed by late Collón Preccrainic and [nilia! Píriod limes within thc Moche Va^ey^-AÍ-
Ieast'a'"i:bnlpai-áB^t^ cotlection of skiUs and species can be assurned íor the Caballo Muerto
área. More specincally. ¡he variely and relative quanities of plañís identified for Gramalote are
probably good indicaüons of the species ulilized wilhin Caballo Muerto.
The principal argument ror an agriculiural base for thc Caballo Muerto complex is iis iniand
loeation. Though rioodplain agricuilure undoubledly did exist in Colton Prectcamic and Iniüal
Period times, agricuilural expansión beyoná the narrow iimits of the normal floodplam wouid
havc bcen impossible without irrigation because of ihe nature of" the Pcruvian áesert coast.
Thc shift inland [o [he vatley neck. ihcrefore, is bcst un-dcrstood in terms of the posilioning or
canal intakes. Caballo Muerto ¡s locaied at Ihe poini where ihc gradicnt of thc land is
sufficienUy stcep so '-hai oniy short cañáis are needcd lo water reialively large tracts of land.
To irrígale land cióse to ;he river mouth wou]d require cañáis of much greater length which
wouid aiso be more difi1cutt [o mairUain bccausc of ihe shaHower land gradient.
No cañáis daimg to ihe time of the Caballo Muerto complex are etíant. but two modern cañáis,
the Moro and thc Vichansao, which generally follow [he contours of anden! river tcrraces. have
their iniakes at the valiey neck and irrigate !and adjaceni !o ihi complot. Presumably, shon
canals roughiy ['oiiowing ihe rouies of these modem cañáis were in use In ihe [nilial Period and
Early Horizon. The cióse proximity of Caballo Muerlo lo Ihe cañáis and their inlakes is logical
with respect lo büth ¡niliai consiruction and subscquent canal maintenancc.
Thc establishment of the center impiies a considerable populalion. which has becn eslimateá at
aboui 1200" based on the área potenlially under culti-vation and the labor ncccssary for mound
consir-JClion.
Initial Period and Early Horizon Subsitence

General trcnds in subsislence during Initial Period and Early Horizon limes can oniy be properiy
evaluated by considering dala from bolh Gramalole and Cabailo Mucrio as compiemenlary parís
of a cornplex economic system. As an isolaKd site. Gramaloce can be sum-marized as a marine-
oricnied site wherc 1) shellñsh procurcment was exiremely systsmatic and 2) severa! food plañís
equalled industrial species in ¡mporiance among the cultigens. Cabailo Muerto stands a;one ai an
inland mound group where 1) animal protein was sup-plicd by contributions froni boih marine
and inlarid sources and 2) increasingly efñcieni ano productiva irrigalion agricullural systems
werc in operalion. Viewed together. Ihe sites emerge as two parts of an -econ ó'm icuñn.: o^c-
wilh-ari'Tnl a-^d~agn¿ü ftürariocus and one wilh a coaslai marine focus.
Assurnmg that Ihe localion of Cabailo Muerto was predicated on water conü-ol, ihe move
inland repre-scn'ed by the peopling of ihe Cabailo Muerto área reftecis a chango in
subSiSSence pnornics. During ihe Colton Precerarnic. thc coastal location of the Moche Valley
sites. Padre Aban and Alio Salavcrry (FIG. l) eouid becorrelatcd *ith ihc marine subsislence
focusof each sile-ln In contrast. ihe localion of Caballo Muerto rellecis an emphasis on inland
procuremeni systcms. es-pccially irrigalion agricuiture. and a corres pona i ng dc-emphasis of
marine producís.
Using dala from Padre Aban and Alio Salaverry. il has been argued dsewherej' thal plañí
cullivation dur-ing the Cotlon Preceramic focused on two industria! planis. cotton and gourd.
To people wilhout poitery and with a [narine focus, gourd containers and floaU and cotton net
and cord wouid have been extremeiy ¡m-porlaní — rnore importaní liían plant food sincc
unimal protein was so riadily available. As a result, people viewed plant cultivalion
essenUally as a mearis for ob-laining necessary raw malcriáis. Il is suggested Ihai the
cullivaied plant inveniory of Alto Salavcrry reprcsents Ihe result orsuch ancmphasison
indusiriai plantsivhen cuilivation was lirnued both spatíaily and seasonaily [Q ihssmall Moche
Vailey floodplam. Deapitegreat species 'variabifíty, Ihe quantuy of food plañís grown at Atto
Salavcrry reníaincd. smal! because moit of lhc' iimiled [and área was devoted EO collón and
gourd production.
By Initiai Period limes, artas of coastai deseri were opened to agricuflure year-round ihrough
irrigalion;
and lhc conirol and mamienance of 'hese early Irriga-tion sysirrns nccessilalcd relocation rnland
near cañáis and irrigaied Sieids, With potentially "así arcas open to conlinuous cu!'iva('on. erop
resirictions ihai were ¡n operation earlier on Ihe noodpiain were no ionger appli-cable, The
increased quanuly and reialive frequency of cultivaled plañís used by ihe peopie oí" Gramalote
comparcd to earlier siles indícale thal ttie/ are the product of irrigaüon agricuiture near sites in
the Caballo Muerto área. many of wnich may now be fargely desiroyed or decply buried.
An increase in piant-seed size when Cotton Prece-ramic and iniliai Period iamples are
compared may aiso be eorreiated 'vith certain featur=s of irrigatíon agriculture. Avcrage
lenglh and wiáth mcasuremenis ^ror sccds""frOTTr "C otton" PicccranTic'^rie^ ^¿•ele-c0t^p
ar^d^ wiih similar data from Gramalote for two plañí species:
squash and gourd." These are ihe oniy plants for which aven a small number of measurable
seeds was availabte and measurements were significanl. The best evidcncs for seed-sizc
Incresse comes from squash and secondiy from gourd. A comparison of sanipics for the two
periods re"eaU that the tnitial Psriod squash material is • for ifl' significamiy (ovcr 10%)
larger. Taken together, gourd In and squash seed-size avcragcs are larger in Initial Valle'
Period material. suggesting a trend that may be signiri- menL cant. This mercase in sced
size is probably largely a ihe i rcsull, of tiie regular ind adequate water supply that agrie
irrigalion provídsd. Annuals [ike gourti and squash popu grown oa ihe floodplain reeeived
no addilional waier prod afier the scasonal nooding had subsided. and under coasi such
unfavorable eonditions plañí growüi and dcvelop- for i meni werc retarded. Wiih an
irrigation system anti gaiei regular sciiedulc. eulligens reeeived adequate water and decr
ihercrore tiitained Iheir fuli potential size.
For ihe int1abtta^].s ot" Caballo Muerto, an inland locanon msant setlltrncnt at some disiancc
from the abundant marine resources — cesources which '*'ere tra-ditionally considersd ihe
most stablc and itiost abun- ^i[' dant. Certainty through the earliest phaal and possibly .. .. S -
duringthc cnlirc.occupalion. ihc inhabiíants of Caballo rroi Muerto continued lo rely heavily
on rnanne producís.
While the irrigateti inland nelds wefc suppiying both Peí Caballo Muerto locally and
Gramalote on ihe coasi coi with cultivated plañí food .ind producís, the marine val
producís collected in the arca of Huanehaco Bay ^cre Pe:
suppiying all the animal protein consumid at Grama- su' lote and well over half the protein
voiumc consumed sy! during the earliest phase 'vhen Caballo Muerto was oc- Gi cupied-
The coilection of shelirish by ihc people of Cl Gramalote to supply the inland group is
documented by in ihe large ptOportion oí m a riñe-de ri ved species in the O faunal
portion of the inland diet. The dommaní species V at Caballo Muerto are the same species
that wcre the Si focus of the efficient Gramalote procurement system. L The speciHc
orientation of this procuremeni sysiem plus e' sh'' narrow range of non-subsistence site
activilies at Gramalot': suggesi thai ihe site might have been a sub- í-, siáiary or even a
=oiony established to insure a con- i) tinuous supply of marine producís for the inland
complex.
Within Caballo Muerto, dala from Huaca Herederos ( Chica revcal that the marine protein
supplied by E Gramalote '•"as siippicinented by meat from local inland sources, Local
alternalives to ihe large-scale im-ponalion of marine protein werc apparcnüy bcing explored.
Deer contributed a substantial amouní at first. but ihcsc animáis were probably soon severely
depleted in (.he Caballo' Muerto arca. More important are the domwlicatcd camelids which
appcar für the ñcst time in the Caballo Muerto material. The use of camelids as food is an
important featurc of the Caballo Muerto subsistcnce pattern because sucb targe domesticateá
animáis can potenliaily próvida a stabte protein source for inland peoplc that is as reliablc as
shcilfish.
In aummary. inicial Period subsistcncc in the Moche Vailey ís marked by thc establishmeni of
inland seitlc-ments correialcd wiih canal irrigatiori sysicms- Cespite ihe change In subsistente
priorilies implied by an agricultural rather [han a marine emphasis. ihc Inland population
continuad lo rely heavily on coaital iood producís. Marine animal protem was supplied by a
coastal population of shcllfish collectors in e^change for ináustriai and foüd-plant producís
from thc irn-gated áreas- Supplemental meal for inland siles froni decr and domcsücaied
camdnis reveated ihat oiher 3Eumal prolein sources were aiso being cxploitcd.

Examples from Other North Coast Valleys

Subsisiencc data for eariy ceramic sites come largely from coaslal settiemenis. On Ihe nonh
 coasl. Huaca Prieta. Huaca Negra, añil Las Haldas have initial Period and Early Horizon as
well as CoHon Preceramic components- Like ihc Moche Vailey, ihc nonh coast valleys ¡"rom
Jequetepeque to Casnia contain Iniüat Period and Early Horuon sites locaíed iniand. pre»
surnably to manage newly developed irrigalioni sysiems." Thcsc siles indudc Limoncarro and
Monte Grande in the Jcquetepeque Vailey: Jaguay in the Chieama Vailey; Huaca el Gallo and
Huaca la Gallina Ín the Viru Vailey; Tangucheli in ibe. Santa Vailey;
Cerro Blanco, Punkuri. and PV31-37 in the Nepeña Vailey; ana Sechin Ako. Taunachi and
K.onkán. Cerro Sechin, Pallka, La Cantina, Moxeke, and Pampa de las LIainas m the Casma
Vailey, U n fortuna te ly, subsistente evidence is not availablc for thesc Ínland centén.
The Initial Period and Early Horizon dcposits at Huaca Prieta in the Chieama Valley ana
Huaca Negra in the Viru Vailey contain large proportions oíshellfish and rish, ana at Huaca
Negra ihe shcllfish are mainly restrictcd to a few largo specics." There is no indicalion
"ora "depe:l?en''c!^o-^~Ta'^d-^ta^^!Tlals- for-any-of-thc" animal protcin at eilhcr site. but
lour burials of domesticalcd llamas *tre rccordcd at ihe Temple of the Llamas near Huaca
Negra.»
Almost no plañí remains werc prescrved at Huaca Negra, but thc inveniory Fbr Imüal Period
and Eady Horizon tcvcis at Huaca Prieta is both varicd and abundant.
The Initial Pcriod-Early Horizon componen! al thc coastal site of Las Haldas south of the
Casma Vailey mcrits spccial mcnlion, The magnilude of the early ccramic occupation was nol
rccognizsd by carlier visitors to thc sile '*'ho tended to c).aggcrate the impor-tance of ihc Couon
Preccramic component." Subsc-quent e^cavalions. howcver, indícate thai ihc artiricial molinds
and ochcr arcnilcciure wcre built during ihe In-ilial Period occupalion of ihc área." Marine
animáis, cspeciaily sheltrish. are cxtremcly common — mueh more so ihan in carlicr Cotton
Preccramic refusc," and thc authors havc noted niany eoneeturaiions of predominantly onc
ipecics oF shelirish, Uppcr ceramic levéis defíned by Funglc as Early Horizon contained
significanily fewer sheilrish species- bu! many nctting fragments. suggcsiing ¡ncrcascá
en-.phasis on fishing in prcfccencc lo she!irish coilccting.
Plant remains from the Las Haldas Initial Period and Early Horizon phascs are rare, but vaned,
anci include stveral non-indusiriai specics such as maize, avocado, and peanul."
As this bricf evalualion indicates, subiistcncc data from oiheí coasial and Inland -arly ccramic
siles are ratc or nonw.isieni, thus malcing it dilTicull lo a&sess othcr seis of sites in tenns of
thc tconomic symbiosis documenled herc for Caba!lo Muerto ar.d Granialote. Thcrc are
fcatures of each of the sites, howcver. Ehai ril wcll w|ih Ihc Gramalotc-Caballo Muerto
model. First, although all speciñc data are from coastal liles. *c know that potentia!ly
complementary inland siles are prcstnt in Chicama, Viru. and Casma as well as othcr north
coast valisys. Thc analogous localion of thcse sites at thc optimum point in caeh valley for
eon-
stfucting snort and eflicieni irrigalion cañáis argues for irrigation agriculture oí ihe lype
suggesleá For Cabalfo Muerto. Second. ihe plañí spccies documcntcd !br '.he early coastal
siles are generally varied aod occasionally abundant. Huaca Prieta plañís, sspecially maize.
wouid secrn loo abundan! lo be grown locally. and Las Haldas ¡s over 30 km- from ihc nearcst
land suitable for even f1oodwali-r farining. Such data poini lo a non-tocal and probably inland
source for plants used at these coastal sites.
At Huaca Prieta, Huaca Negra, aad Las Haldas, atl anifnal rood is tnarinc-dcrived, although
camclid re-mams are present near Huaca Negra. Subsisience ai.liv-iücs at cach sllc apparsntly
focuscd on a ícw large shelifisri species, many oí which wcre aiso common at Gramalote, The
apparent change from intcnsive shell-nsh collecting to prcdominantly fishing al Las Haldas may
be indicalive of further spceíalization of a differeni typ?. Thus. ii wouid swm ihal ihese coasial
siles were well-equipped to supply inland sites wilh marine producis. The caindids al Huaca
Negra are thc eartiest documented ai a North Coast site, and they may havs been f..rnishcd from
an Inianá ecnier for ceremonial use in ihe '.;mple.
Thr etaboratc non-dornestic archifeclurc of Las Haldas at rirsi appcars incongruous *hen ihe
site is compared wiih early ccramic componcílts ai ihc other coastat siles considered. The [nitial
Pcriod and Eariy Horizon inland siles ¡n Casma. the vailey nearcst lo Las Haldas, howcvcr. are
aiso much larger. more numcrous, and more elabórate than e^arnpies in any other North Coasi
vailey." Thus, ihe Las Haldas-inland Casma sci of sites is best seen as a much magnified
versión of ihc Caballo Muerto-Gramalote cconomic unit documented for Moche.
In conclusión, ic wouid scem that both of (he key fealures defined for Gramalole are preseni in
one or more of (he coastal siles from whicn dala are' available, —Theic-inciiide- e^Kienc^-of I)
ielective .uid-iftteMmg-sheUfish procurcnicnt acüvities and 2) varied and abundant plañí
rcmains which couid not be supplied by local noodwater cuilivaüon. !n contrasl. ihe onty aspect
of inland sites which matcM [heñí comparable to Caballo Muerto a their intaná locaüon. What
are critical subsistcnce data froni these inland sites which shouid confinn ihe ¡nierdependcnce o
r coasta! ana inland early ccramic siles during Ihe transilion lo irriga-tion agriculture.