Child | The people of Peru, who had shielded themselves from this event for centuries, marked their disappearance

The Peruvian government has announced the allocation of 1,446 million soles (US$397.5 million) for preventive measures such as the cleaning and cleaning of rivers and streams due to heavy rains and floods and the National Study of the El Niño phenomenon (Enfen). The official agency in charge of monitoring the event warned There is a risk of “rainfall exceeding normal and economic losses and loss of life unless early precautionary measures are taken”.

The Peruvians of 2023 are not the first to encounter El Niño, whose sometimes devastating imprint can be seen in different chapters of Peru’s history.

Some are distantly related to the Mochica or Moche culture, which flourished on the northern coast of present-day Peru between the 2nd and 8th centuries, although recent studies extend its chronology to the 9th.

Today the region includes the departments of Dumbés, Beura, Lambeque and La Libertad. Very vulnerable Moses had to deal with the heavy rains and floods that El Niño often causes and with ingenuity and planning.

According to experts, this pre-Hispanic city reached a high level of civilization and social complexity for the time.

Although many of its elements are still shrouded in mystery, the work of archaeologists and other researchers has allowed us to recover their way of life from the mists of the past, thanks to discoveries made in the 1980s. The Site of Sipan, where the remains of Lord Sipan were discovered, is one of the most famous landmarks in the Mochica world.

Its economy is based on its agricultural development and the exploitation of the abundant resources of the Peruvian sea. They were able to create a system of irrigation canals that transformed desert areas into fertile fields.

As explained to the visitor at the Largo Museum in Lima, which displays part of the artifacts he left behind, the Mochica culture ” A powerful political factionRuled by high dignitaries and regional chiefs”, Sipan will be the lord.

“Its pyramidal constructions and its unsurpassed irrigation systems reveal the great skill of its brilliant architects, engineers and administrators” who were also great potters and sculptors”, which is evident in the many beautiful pieces on display here.

The Moche stood out for their construction of truncated pyramids, or huacas, which formed what archaeologist Regulo Franco described as “theocratic centers” in a conversation with BBC Mundo.

Their great social development allowed them to incorporate various human settlements within their area of ​​influence. Today, their political system is believed to be based on dominance spread across different valleys of northern Peru. In the words of Edgar Bragamonte, director of the National Museum of the Royal Tombs of Siban, “These nobles had their own social and political organization and their independent territorial administration, but they shared an ideology and religious thought. .”

The Moche believed in gods such as Abeke, which can be translated as something powerful, and in the power to create the meeting of opposite and complementary forces, such as men and women.

A well-known aspect of Mochica culture is the clay vessels and figurines in which they collected explicit sexual scenes and are interpreted as ritual objects that reveal that sensuality was an essential part of their early life.

As elucidated in some of the adobe constructions examined in the excavations, Mochica was very accustomed to devastating monsoons. The destructive effect of water.

The El Nino phenomenon was so familiar to them that the American anthropologist Garth Bowden went so far as to assert that they formed a familiar society. “Living in Crisis”

And they had to survive in the midst of frequent crises.

Bragamonte asserts that the settlement pattern already shows an organized community seeking to protect itself from the El Niño event. “They knew where to find themselves by looking for higher ground with a small flood. That’s why archeology shows us that the rains affected them more with roofs and walls collapsing than the great floods we see today”.

Mochica farmers knew how to ensure subsistence in small crop areas even when there was no rain., which is recognized among the remains found in the Chikama Valley. “They knew that it was the central part of the valleys and the areas near the valleys that were usually flooded, but there were areas at the edges that were very fertile because of the rain,” explains Bragamonte.

“They knew that crops like maize and beans would take up to three months, so they prepared the land and let the rain and nature take their course,” explains the expert.

Crop-destroying floods continue to be a major problem in northern Peru, and in towns like Zaña in the Lambayeque department, local officials are working to build replacement gardens to ensure food is available in areas safe from flooding. Crops.

Even Moses They laid the pipes and reservoirs to store and divert rainwater so that their fields and cities are protected. This contrasts with the current situation in most metropolitan areas where there are no adequate drainage systems.

Despite their foresight and wisdom, Moses was not immune to the destructive power of El Niño, and the event is believed to have played a major role in their destruction.

The Japanese Izumi Shimada was the first to consider it “A Climate Disaster” One that ended the thriving Mochica culture.

Later studies have introduced some nuances, and the end of the Mochica culture is believed to have occurred gradually, in which climate, while important, was not the only factor.

Bracamonte explains that between 550 and 650 Mochica experienced a global climatic disturbance, almost a hundred years of heavy rains that destroyed buildings, but also many changes in the political structure of Mochica and their administration. Territory.”

Prasadam was the practice of the rectors of the Mochica elite Human sacrifices Once it was discovered that it was not working, the crisis could be a reason for the gods to stop the rain.

Floods damaged hydraulic works and adversely affected fishing, which weakened the credibility of some rulers who declared themselves representatives of God and demanded human lives to appease their wrath.

As Largo explained to a visitor to the museum, “a productive crisis and politico-religious weakness made people search. New Ideology”.

In Bracamonte’s words, “An El Niño event does not immediately collapse society, but it is an engine of change.”

While El Nino usually comes with heavy rains on the northern coast, it causes drought in the mountains, which forces its people to move. Many made it in the valleys where the Mochica culture flourished.

“This was a time when the Mochica world was no longer politically organized and years of rain fragmented their territories, so the ideologies brought by the mountain dwellers could settle on the coast and create further cracks,” explains Bragamonte. .

Thus a new culture, that of the Huari Empire, spreading from the south, gradually imposed itself and pushed what was left of the Mochica world further and further north, until it finally disappeared. A new chapter in the fascinating history of pre-Hispanic Peru has begun.

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