Vicús culture

Vicús culture was an important early culture in Peru from 1000/200 BCE to 300/600 CE.[1][2] They lived in the Piura region in the northern Pacific coast of Peru. Its administrative headquarters, located in the "Cerro Vicús", at an altitude of 170 meters above sea level, and which gives its name to this culture, served as a link with other Andean cities located further north.

Vicús

Map of the Vicús culture in Northern Peru
Period	Early Intermediate
Dates	c. 200 BCE - 600 CE
Major sites	Cerro Vicús
Preceded by	Chavín
Followed by	Tallán, Wari

Vicús Feline Vessel from Walters Art Museum

The most important feature of this culture is agriculture, the basis for their economic development. It is known that they cultivated squash or mate, corn and some fruits, with advanced irrigation systems. These activities were complemented by livestock or hunting. The vicus, connoisseurs of the alloys of silver, gold and copper, even used these metals in the elaboration of their farming instruments.

It is known that Vicús was an eminently patriarchal society, where the men were the only ones who could wear jewelry and elegant clothing, while the women of the nobility could only wear very simple suits. The main instrument of control and social exploitation, backed by fierce militarism, was a strong contingent of noble warriors that scoured the domain to enforce the sovereign's mandates.

Their culture developed in three major stages:

• Chavín Stage;
• Regional development stage
• Mochica stage of influence.