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= The Role of Art in Structuring Moche Society  =  Moche elite utilized art to develop and sustain hierarchal social stratification within their society. The distinctive iconography found sculpted on pyramid walls and painted on vessels legitimized the authority of an elite group of individuals and reinforced their religious and political ideologies. Today we study Moche art as an iconographic narrative of many life customs and beliefs of this ancient society. The correspondence between Moche art and actual events has been confirmed with physical evidence. Huaca de la Luna Monumental architecture is in itself an art form and has long been utilized across the globe by elite classes to establish leadership and legitimacy. Located at the foot of Cerro Blanco, there is large urban area centered between two large man-made pyramids or huacas. Both pyramids are large; it is estimated that there are more than 130 million adobe bricks in Huaca del Sol alone (Fiedel 1992:331). Structures of this size take time and labor to build and suggest the existence of ruling class with both power over a labor force and the ability to garner sufficient funding. Huaca de la Luna is considered to be more closely associated with large ceremonies and rituals, while Huaca de Sol appears to be more of an administrative center (Bawden 1996:136). The amount of goods found seems to decrease as we get farther away from Huaca de la Luna and closer to Huaca de Sol, indicating that individuals with a higher status lived closest to Huaca de la Luna while those of the lower classes lived closer to Huaca del Sol. 

Huaca de la Luna was purposely constructed and decorated by the elite to intimidate captive warriors and citizens of lower status. The pyramid contains large platforms, plazas, and many smaller chambers. The walls of the pyramid are covered with polychrome murals and friezes “depicting warfare, ritual decapitation, complex geometric designs, fearsome portraits of Moche deities.... and terrestrial and sea creatures....” (Popson, 2002). As sacrificial rituals took place atop the pyramid, it seems likely that these friezes were intentionally designed to intimidate captives as they were led up to the top. The friezes found on the Huaca de La Luna vary by level and begin with an elaborate procession theme depicting warriors leading prisoners up towards the ramp and finish with images of dismemberment and decapitation. Sacrifices took place inside small chambers atop the pyramid whose walls were also decorated with graphic scenes of death and torture (Jackson 2008:29)  The graphic iconography found on Huaca de la Luna was not solely for the prisoner's benefits. In addition to intimidating captives, the iconography of Huaca de la Luna was also meant to impress the middle and lower classes living and interacting in the plaza below. “The most intense and lavish mural cycles... seem to have been directed from the highest temple elites across the social hierarchy toward middle-level participants and those members of the public...” (Jackson 2008:30). Although the art found on the inner walls was only viewable to ceremonial leaders and captives, that found on the outer walls was visible to anyone standing in the plaza below.  The Sacrifice Ceremony A popular theme depicted in Moche art is the “Sacrifice Ceremony.” In this image, the “Warrior Priest,” an individual dressed in a helmet, crest, nose ring and back flap, receives a cup, presumably of blood, from a birdlike figure or “Bird Priest.” Behind the Bird Priest, Priestesses stand by and attendants are shown cutting the throats of captive warriors and collecting the blood in bowls. The warriors' shields and helmets are located behind them (Wilson 1999:397). We find this image in various mediums, carved into pyramid walls and painted onto pottery. Earlier scholars chose to believe that these gruesome acts of torture depicted were not reflective of true events, however recent research has determined otherwise. We now know that sacrifices similar to those shown in the artwork did occur as the accuracy of Moche art is confirmed archaeologically through physical evidence. Plaza 3 at Huaca de la Luna contains several sacrificial areas. Both Plaza 3a and 3b contain individuals with distinctive cut marks to the arms, ribs, legs while cut marks on cervical vertebrate suggest that their throats were cut. Archaeologist John Verano interprets cut marks located on “muscle attachment sites” and locations with little flesh to mean that these victims had been both “tortured and flayed” in ways similar to those depicted on Moche Vessels” (Sutter 2005). The majority of victims were young males and many showed evidence of healed wounds, suggesting long-term participation in warfare. Plaza 3b contains multiple layers of remains and the individuals had been defleshed suggesting that the bones were used as a trophies, an act also reiterated in Moche art (Popson 2002).  The Moche elite used art for their own gain by associating themselves with the supernatural deities. Not only were the ceremonies detailed in Moche art based on actual events, the individuals depicted in them were associated with living individuals as well. The discovery of the Warrior Priest tomb confirmed that there was a strong relationship between the characters depicted in art and living individuals. Depictions of the Warrior Priest are found in many mediums throughout the Moche culture. Located in Sipan, the tomb held a male body wearing the traditional dress depicted throughout Moche art. Evidence that he was from the highest class comes from the quantity and high quality of various accessories found with him as well as the number of bodies buried with him (Gardner 2008:384-385). Among the accessories included were the club, shield, and nose ring. Based on the strong correlation between the body found and the figure we find depicted throughout Moche art, it is assumed that this person led ritual ceremonies including sacrifices while portraying this mythical figure, thus “[enhancing] his personal status while demonstrating the power of Moche ideology to the subject population...” (Bawden 1996: 242). More than any other evidence, this find reveals the extent to which Moche elite utilized art to support their own agendas. By playing the role of a feared mythical being, they literally brought art (and the religious ideology behind it) to life.

Stirrup Spout Vessels The relationship between art and social stratification was not limited to large public mediums. Moche society had a widely spread and highly successful specialized craft production that resulted in a number of portable pieces of art. Though we also find musical instruments, figurines, and textiles, the most notable items produced were pottery. Vessels were widely produced throughout the Moche area and shared similarities despite the large size and long time span of the empire. They also depicted the graphic ceremonial scenes including the Sacrificial Scene picturing the Warrior-Chief. We do find wide-necked but the majority are stirrup-spouted vessels consisting of double vases which came together to form a single spout. Many were designed to look like human heads, some of which are believed to resemble specific individuals (Donnan 2004:16-18). The shape of these vessels is important to note here. These vessels had little functional value as their shape made liquids were difficult to pour, however they were the most popular form of pottery (Donnan 2004:13). The idea that crafts were being produced exclusively for symbolic and ceremonial purposes indicates a high level of social stratification. These ceramics were not being made for everyday use by ordinary people. Instead they were being commissioned by the elite for personal and political reasons. This idea is supported by the fact that many ceramics were shaped and decorated to resemble specific people. The fact that people were spending their time producing non-functional real-life replicas of certain individuals reveals both a highly specialized society and the existence of high status individuals considered important enough to be commemorated in this way.

Moche elite utilized feasting to enhance their own social and economic status and chose pottery, one of the finest goods available, to do so. Feasting tended to accompany ceremonial events like funerary burials and provided an excellent opportunity for economic exchange and chances for social classes to mingle. “Ritual toasting, making libations to deities, and providing large quantities of food at a public gathering carried a range of social, political, and economic ramifications.... [and] opportunities for the satisfaction of clan obligations and reaffirmation of social identity” (Jackson 2008:46). By either hosting these events or supplying the food and alcohol, elites were able to show off their wealth, while appearing generous at the same time. Feasting was no doubt an economic activity and the idea of reciprocity would have applied to these situations. If you were the “host” at one ceremony, you would expect the favor to be returned to you the next time around. Middle classes benefited as well as the elites as they were given an opportunity to interact socially with higher classes.

Conclusion While Moche art provides vivid details about many aspects of Moche life, it should not be taken as a complete representation of the entire society. Moche art was designed and ultimately approved of by the elite class and served to support their own political and social gain. Artifacts and artwork found show a biased worldview. Ceramics were not used for everyday use by lower class individuals, nor do their many of their designs showcase ordinary events such as farming or cooking. “Moche art expresses the religious and supernatural aspects of their culture and nothing of everyday life is illustrated for its own sake” (Box 2003:391).

 References Cited Bawden, Garth. 1996. //The Moche. The peoples of America //. Cambridge, Mass: Blackwell.    Box, Ben, and Alan Murphy. 2003. //Peru handbook //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">. Footprint handbooks. Bath, England: Footprint Handbooks.

Donnan, Christopher B. 2004. //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">Moche portraits from ancient Peru //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">. Joe R. and Teresa Lozano Long series in Latin American and Latino art and culture. Austin: University of Texas Press.

Fiedel, Stuart J. 1992. //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">Prehistory of the Americas //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;"> <span style="display: block; text-align: left; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;"> Gardner, H., Kleiner, F. S., & Mamiya, C. J. 2008. //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">Gardner's art through the ages: The Western perspective //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">. Belmont, CA: Thomson/Wadsworth. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">Jackson, Margaret. A. 2008. //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">Moche art and visual culture in ancient Peru //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;"> <span style="display: block; text-align: left; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-family: Times-Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">Popson, C. P. 2002. Grim Rites of the Moche [Electronic version]. //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">Archaeology //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;"> 55(2). Retrieved April 9, 2009, from http://www.archaeology.org/0203/abstracts/moche.html. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;"> <span style="display: block; text-align: left; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-family: Times-Roman, serif;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">Sutter, R. C. and Cortez, R.J. 2005. The Nature of Moche Human Sacrifice: A Bio-Archaeological Perspective. //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">Current Anthropology //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;"> 46(4):521-549. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;"> Wilson, David J. 1999. //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">Indigenous South Americans of the past and present: an ecological perspective //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">. Boulder, Colo: Westview Press. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;"> Images Huaca de la Luna http://www.iia.msu.edu/images/photo%20huaca%20de%20la%20luna%20web.jpg

Huaca de la Luna Frieze http://z.about.com/d/archaeology/1/7/J/s/el_brujo.jpg

Moche Sacrifice Scene http://anthropologynet.files.wordpress.com/2007/06/moche-sacrifice.jpg

Lord of Sipan/Warrior Tomb http://z.about.com/d/archaeology/1/0/f/p/sipan_el_senor.jpg

Stirrup Spout Vessel http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/ho/06/sac/ho_64.228.21.htm