The Moche Culture

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Atrocities of mass graves have been a repetitive image portrayed for countries to position a strategy to enter into military action in today’s global culture. The Holocaust during World War II, the mass graves of Serbians in Yugoslavia in the 1990’s, and the mass executions and graves by the hand of ISIS in our current day bring to light the inhumanity of these actions. Discoveries of mass graves from the Moche civilization that existed in Peru between 200 BC and 600 AD has caused concern among archeologists. Regardless of the purpose of what brought about the mass graves, they all seem to have one thing in common—an intense religious belief. In the Moche culture, the ritualistic practice of warfare and sacrifice for the protection of …show more content…

Without a better understanding, one cannot look critically at the purpose behind the functions of the Moche society and actions of its nobility in regard to warfare and battle. Agriculture was a necessary means of sustaining a healthy society in all types of civilizations across the globe. Fishing and agriculture were the primary means for subsistence to the Moche. The Moche civilizations was w world plagued with droughts and El Nino” (Fagan, 1999, p.3). The need for consistent yields from the crops meant that the people could maintain their economic lifestyles and continue to flourish and survive. It is interesting that the irrigation systems that sustained …show more content…

Pyramids, similar to Egypt, were constructed and the warriors lived among these amazing structures separated from the working class down in the fields. Fagan, (1999) adds that although we do not know the names of the Moche rulers, we know they were people of “remarkable wealth and power” based on evidence from their burials. Also, Fagan contends there is no documentation of “military campaigns or diplomatic alliances that linked valley to valley” suggesting that the warriors did not aggressively conquer other cities, nor did they defend their land against aggressors. The dangers awaiting the warriors were most likely internal as they engaged in battles against each other, as their “lives revolved around warfare, ritual, and diplomacy, in an endless cycle of competition for prestige with their fellow leaders” (Fagan). The ritual was intense and dramatic. The blood was drained from their bodies and the warriors who did not engage in the battle drank from a cenermonial cup according to Donnan (2013). Pringle (1991) points out that the Aztecs explained to the Spanish that human blood was needed to give the sun the strength to rise from the underworld. It sounds horrific, but when a ritual is steeped in tradition, believers will act according to the doctrine, probably in hopes of honor in

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