Sunday Nov 8, 2020: Dr. Gabriel Prieto – University of Florida: The Mass Sacrifice of Children and Camelids during the 13th-15th centuries in the North Coast of Peru

Sunday Nov 8, 2020 at 3pm            The Dr.Esther Grushkin Memorial Lecture

Dr. Gabriel Prieto – University of Florida

The Mass Sacrifice of Children and Camelids during the 13th-15th centuries in the North Coast of Peru

(Click on the title above to watch the recorded Zoom Lecture!)

During the 13th to the 15th Centuries AD, the Chimu civilization of the present day Peruvian North Coast sacrificed hundreds of children and young camelids. The most compelling evidence is coming from the Huanchaco coastline, located a few miles from Chan Chan, the capital city of the Chimu. This presentation is focused on describing sacrificial contexts at three archaeological sites where hundreds of children were killed to appease the blood’s hunger of Chimu gods and goddesses. Why are most of the sacrificial grounds facing the ocean? Why is there a mix of humans and camelids? Why were some of the children dressed in fancy dresses and crowned with feathered turbans beautifully preserved in the arid deserts of the North Coast of Peru? These and many other questions are going to be discussed while trying to understand the anthropological meaning for these ancient bloody events.

All Lectures for the 2020-2021 season will be conducted via Zoom.  More specific instructions will be provided as we get closer to the lecture dates.