From the Late Archaic to the Early Formative: The Research in Sechín Bajo, Casma Valley

Abstract

The most recent investigations at the site of Sechín Bajo in the Casma valley resulted in the discovery of a sequence of three buildings dating from the Late Archaic to the Early Formative Periods, evidencing phases that span more than 2000 years (3500-1500 BC). The First Building comprised a simple platform that underwent numerous extensions, each phase of which received a circular sunken plaza. It was subsequently backfilled and sealed with a clay floor before the Second Building was constructed above it, expressing a change, both in its function and the way it was used. The Third Building represents the most monumental phase, demonstrating a pronounced division between a public area and another zone to which access was unmistakably restricted. In its public areas, the building’s surface was extensively decorated with clay reliefs, exhibiting a complex iconography. The abandonment of the structure, between 1500 and 1300 BP, involved either the destruction or walling-up of the flights of steps that granted access to it. On an external wall of the Second Building, c. 130 graffiti were inscribed.