AGRICULTURE AND LIVESTOCK OF THE CHIMÚ CULTURE - HISTORY - 2024

The Chimú culture was a pre-Inca culture, spread along the northern coast of Peru, from 1100 to 1400 AD. Its center was the city of Chan Chan, which extended through the valley of the Moche River.

They conquered a vast amount of territory until they were defeated by the Incas in the mid-15th century. Although they had an important development in architectural constructions, they stood out in a considerable way both in agriculture and livestock.

Agriculture and livestock of the Chimú culture: characteristics

farming

Agricultural activity was the most important of the Chimú culture in terms of economic organization. They were able to use and build important hydraulic structures for the irrigation of the plantations.

They used complex irrigation systems that included channels and serpentine cropping patterns. These were irrigated with canal waters. The cropping patterns basically worked through flood irrigation.

The Chimúes built stone canals for irrigation systems. Due to the complexity of the hydraulic engineering techniques they used, this culture is considered the best of the pre-Inca cultures in terms of architecture.

Thanks to these advances, they were able to grow beans, corn, squash, lucuma, soursop, squash, and cotton. The vast majority of agricultural production was organized, managed and distributed by officials of the Chimú state.

Cattle raising

Livestock was another activity practiced by the Chimú culture, although with less intensity than agriculture. The diet of this culture was supplemented with domestic animals: the llama, the dog, the guinea pig and the duck were the main elements of consumption.

They also carried out other complementary activities for the consumption of meat, such as hunting sea lions and deer. Llama breeding had a preponderant importance both in the Chimú culture and in the vast majority of the pre-Inca peoples.

It was used in good part for the use of its meat and wool. Besides that the llama was a pack animal before the arrival of the Spanish to South American territory.

Uses of farmed animals

Livestock contributed to the development of textiles, especially thanks to the breeding of four specific animals: the llama, the alpaca, the vicuña and the guanaco.

The same was achieved with the planting of cotton, which allowed the manufacture of fabrics, embroidery and double fabrics.

The fishing activity was an outstanding activity in the consumption of food of the Chimú culture due to two factors: the enormous amount of marine resources provided by the sea and the possibility of building wooden boats for fishing on the high seas.

For this they used nets and hooks with which they were able to collect fish, shellfish, mollusks, snails and seaweed.

References

1. Chimú culture. (2017). Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved on December 17, 2017 from Wikipedia: wikipedia.org.
2. Universal History - Chimú Culture. (sf). Retrieved on December 17, 2017 from Cultural History: historiacultural.com.
3. Chimú culture: history, origin, characteristics, and much more. (2017). Retrieved on December 17, 2017 from Let's Talk about Cultures: hablemosdeculturas.com.
4. Chimú culture. (2015). Retrieved on December 17, 2017 from Peruvian History: historiaperuana.pe.
5. Risco, L. (2013). Chimú agricultural system in the pampas of Huanchaco.. Trujillo.