Peru is a country in South America that’s home to a section of Amazon rainforest and Machu Picchu, an ancient Incan city high in the Andes mountains.
The region around Machu Picchu, including the Sacred Valley, Inca Trail and colonial city of Cusco, is rich in archaeological sites. On Peru’s arid Pacific coast is Lima, the capital, with a preserved colonial center.
The first inhabitants on the territory of modern Peru appeared in the X millennium BC. They lived in the river valleys of the coast. The ancient civilization of Norte Chico was discovered on the north-central coast of the country. It dates back to between 3000 and 1800 BC.
In the XII century in the valley of the Urubamba River, the Inca state arose. For five centuries, the Inca state of Tahuantinsuyu has become the largest empire of pre-Columbian America. In the north, the border ran along the Patiya River (Colombia), in the south, along the Maule River (Chile), in the east, the Inca’s power extended to parts of the territories of what is now Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina. One of the most famous Inca fortresses – Machu Picchu, is located in Peru.
In 1524 the conquistadors Francisco Pizarro, Diego de Almagro and the priest Hernando de Luque, who lived in Panama, began the conquest of Peru. In 1529 Pizarro was appointed governor of the newly discovered lands. In 1531, Pizarro with a detachment of 228 soldiers went on the third expedition. He took advantage of the internecine power struggle between the two Inca brothers, Atahualpa and Huascara, and in 1533 occupied the capital of Peru, Cuzco. Pizarro arranged a trial over Atahualpa, accusing him of rebellion against Huascar, and executed him. In 1535, Pizarro founded the city of Lima, which became the capital of Peru.
Sillustani pre-Incan cemetery in Peru
Paramonga is an archaeological site, the ruins of a city and a castle complex that belonged to the state of Chimor, located on the banks of the Fortaleza River, 190 km from the city of Lima, Peru.
SOUTH AMERICA, PERU. CLAY CITY CHAN CHAN.
Chan Chan is a pre-Colombian city and archaeological site near Trujillo on northern Peru’s desert coast. It was the seat of the ancient Chimú civilization before it fell to the Incas. The vast adobe complex has citadels, including the partially restored Tschudi Palace. It also encompasses temples, plazas and cemeteries.
Valley pyramids Tucume – the ancient religious center of the pre-Inca South American Indian tribes.
These pyramids are called “Huaca”, the largest of them – the Huaca Larga (“Long Pyramid”), the length of which is 700m. at 280m width. and a height of 30m.
The Huaca del Sol is an adobe brick temple built by the Moche civilization on the northern coast of what is now Peru.
The temple is one of several ruins found near the volcanic peak of Cerro Blanco, in the coastal desert near Trujillo at the Moche Valley.
Explore Peru in your Overland Vehicle – Landcruising Adventure