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Pattern and Meaning in Prehistoric Peruvian Architecture: The Architecture of Social Control in the Chimu State

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Jerry D. Moore
Jerry D. Moore*
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, California State University-Dominguez Hills, 1000 East Victoria St., Carson, CA 90747
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Abstract

Archaeologists have studied buildings for decades, but a very narrow range of analytical approaches has been applied to prehistoric architecture. This paper presents a basic theory of architectural meaning, which has as its principal focus the role of access patterns within buildings as a medium of social control. On the north coast of Peru, Andeanists have held an implicit notion about the relation between access patterns and social control, but have lacked the analytical tools to explore this question further. A set of basic tools borrowed from graph theory and locational geography is presented, and discussed, and then applied to a specific set of Prehispanic constructions—the monumental compounds of Chan Chan, the capital of the Chimu state (A. D. 900-1470). The methods illuminate differences and similarities in the organization of access within the compounds, and they are used to test a hypothesis about the role of a specific architectural element—the U-shaped room—in controlling access within royal compounds at Chan Chan. The results have implications for understanding the nature of social control in the Chimu state and suggest the potential that new analytical methods may have for the study of prehistoric constructions.

Aunque hace años los arqueólogos han estudiado la arquitectura prehistórica, sin embargo hay escasez de métodos de análisis de patrones arquitectónicos. Usualmente los arqueólogos piensan en los edificios prehispánicos en una de tres maneras: como artefactos complicados que representan tradiciones culturales; como los escenarios pasivos de actividades prehistóricas, actividades identificadas con otros restos culturales; o como proyectos públicos que representan una inversión laboral y que implican una escala sociopolítica. Esas tácticas analíticas son útiles y han resultado en perspectivas profundas sobre la arquitectura prehistórica. Pero la arquitectura también refleja significado y una dimensión básica es el acceso: ¿Quién puede entrar y a dónde puede pasar? Los arqueólogos reconocen que el acceso es una dimensión importante, especialmente los que trabajan en el Perú.

Los arqueólogos están de acuerdo que el acceso espacial es una forma de control social y que los patrones de acceso pueden indicar la existencia de grupos distintos en las sociedades prehispánicas: los de adentro y los de afuera. Este tema es muy importante en el estudio del desarollo prehispánico en la costa del Perú, especialmente en el análisis de edificios públicos. Pero, por la falta de métodos analíticos, los arqueólogos solamente pueden distinguir entre dos extremos de acceso, “abierto” y “cerrado,” aunque están considerando edificios de varios tamaños y patrones arquitectónicos.

Sin embargo, existen métodos para analizar patrones de acceso, métodos utilizados para el análisis de los sistemas de redes. El estudio que se presenta a continuación aplica esos métodos al sitio de Chan Chan, sede del estado Chimú (900-1470 D. C.), ubicado en el valle Moche. En Chan Chan, los muros grandes de las ciudadelas reales, sus corredores tortuosos y sus entradas indirectas nos sugieren una preoccupación por el acceso espacial en la construcción de ciudadelas. Por eso, el tema del acceso ha sido muy importante en los estudios arqueológicos de la capital de Chimor. Una clase de arquitectura—la audiencia—ha sido interpretada como un nodo de control en el acceso a los depósitos en las ciudadelas de Chan Chan. Pero el análisis indica que las audiencias no están ubicadas en puntos claves en los patrones arquitectónicos y en realidad no controlan el acceso al almacenamiento. Los resultados indican que se necesita formular otras hipótesis sobre las audiencias y su papel político en el estado Chimú, y también demuestran el valor de métodos alternativos para el estudio de la arquitectura prehispánica.

Type
Articles
Information
Latin American Antiquity , Volume 3 , Issue 2 , June 1992 , pp. 95 - 113
Copyright
Copyright © Society for American Archaeology 1992

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