Chimu ( Quechua Chimu ) is a highly developed pre-Columbian culture in South America that existed from about 1250 to 1470 in the north of modern Peru in the region of Trujillo . The ancestor of the Chimu culture is the Mochik culture. In an era of greatest expansion, Chimu's influence spread to the borders of Ecuador in the north and to Lima in the south. The state of Chimu was called Chimor . Up to 60 thousand people lived in the capital Chan-Chan , and the city itself was the largest on the South American continent. The kingdom of Chimu was able to conquer neighboring Sikan culture and a number of other small cultures. In turn, Chimu was conquered by the Incas .
Crafts
Due to the large population, Chimu were forced to invent new technologies. Using slave labor, they exploited vast ore deposits within their holdings, and also mined gold in rivers. Tin was delivered from Bolivia , with the help of which bronze alloys were produced. In the manufacture of ceramics and gold products, chimu have achieved almost mass production. For the water supply of the population, canals were constructed through which mountain water was delivered to cities. Some of these canals were over 100 km long. Thanks to them, even arid and remote valleys could be used for agriculture and subsistence. Population growth entailed the development of certain orders. A hierarchy arose and individual social classes, including artisans, traders, managers and warriors.
For the production of ceramic objects, Chima developed a special technique. At the end of the ceramic firing, the furnace was hermetically sealed so that oxygen did not enter it. As a result, the iron contained in the clay dough was restored, which gave the surface of the products a deep black color. Unlike the Mochik culture, Chimu did not make drawings and patterns on ceramic dishes. More important than artistic processing was mass production. For the production of chimu fabrics, alpaca and vicunia wool were used. It could be easily painted and processed. Clothing was woven from wool for dignitaries, and carpets and even tents were also made.
Chima masterfully owned jewelry. Probably, at first they adopted some skills from Mochik, but independently developed this craft. They knew the techniques of casting and welding metals and were able to apply thin gilding to their surface. Chim also knew how to create various alloys . However, Chima lost their skills when most jewelers, after the Inca conquest, were relocated to Cuzco . Most of the products were smelted by the Spaniards during their conquest of the Inca Empire .
From air shots taken in 1932, a huge Chimu structure, the so-called Mayo Wall , was discovered. Its height was 3 m with a width of 4.5 m. It stretched from the Pacific coast to the slopes of the mountains in the depths of the mainland at a distance of 65 km. 50 fortifications were built into it, in which soldiers guarding the border served. The wall probably limited the first line of Chima expansion.
Religion
Despite the fact that the sun played a large role in the Chimu culture, the main deity was still the moon , because it was able to eclipse the sun. Therefore, solar eclipses were an occasion for large festivities. The ripening of the crops and the seasons were attributed to the chima to the lunar deity. The father of stones and rocks, which, according to the Chim belief, had magical powers, was the sun.
History
The state of culture of Chimu was Chimor . At its peak, the country's territory stretched along the Pacific coast for almost a thousand kilometers. According to legend, its founder and first king Naimlap arrived in the country with his fellow tribesmen in a flotilla of balsa rafts from somewhere in the north.
Under the last king of this dynasty, Fempeliek , natural disasters occurred in the country, causing famine and anarchy. Fempeliek was first overthrown by priests and nobles, and then drowned in the ocean.
A new dynasty of Chimu came to power. According to legend, the first representative of this dynasty, Takainamo , also arrived in the country on a flotilla of balsa rafts.
In 1470, the Incan was defeated by the ruler of Chimor named Mincancaman , the state itself was subjugated and annexed to the Inca empire by the commander Tupac Inca Yupanka . Nevertheless, the Incas did not begin to destroy Chimor, but made them their vassal , leaving the previous dynasty in power. The territory of Chimor was however reduced, and the Inca garrisons were placed on the remaining territory.
At the beginning of the 16th century, the remnants of the state of Chimore were captured and destroyed by the Spanish conquistadors .
Language
The Chimu language was called the Qingnam (Quingnam) and was a variant of the Mochika language (the Chimuan language family). In the vicinity of Trujillo, it remained until the XVIII century , and in the department of Lambayeke until the beginning of the XX century .
Ceramics and tissue culture Chimu
Chiang Chan City
See also
- Lima Culture
- Nazca Culture
- Chavin
- Culture Paracas
- Tiahuanaco
- Mochika
Literature
- Bashilov V.A. Ancient civilizations of Peru and Bolivia. - M .: Nauka , 1972.- 212 p.
- Sting Miloslav . Worshiping the Stars: In the wake of the disappeared Peruvian states. - M .: Progress, 1983 .-- 184 p. - 100,000 copies.
- Martin Guaman. Testament (1567). (inaccessible link) . www.bloknot.info (A. Skromnitsky) (December 1, 2009). - A document with numerous toponyms of the Chimu Valley. Date of treatment December 1, 2009. Archived December 17, 2010.
Links
- Media files related to Chimu on Wikimedia Commons
- Description of the Chimorsky state, the genealogy of the rulers and information about the Chimu language on the site Mesoamerica.Ru
- Chimu culture on the site of the Museum of Pre-Columbian Art
- Kuprienko S.A. Sources of the XVI-XVII centuries on the history of the Incas: chronicles, documents, letters / Ed. S.A. Kuprienko .. - K .: Vidavets Kuprіnko S.A., 2013 .-- 418 p. - ISBN 978-617-7085-03-3 .