Burning down the brewery: Establishing and evacuating an ancient imperial colony at Cerro Baúl, Peru

TLDR

Before the Inca, the Wari and Tiwanaku empires controlled the central Andes (600–1000 CE) and colonized the Moquegua Valley sierra in southern Peru. The Wari incursion at Cerro Baúl involved large‑scale agrarian reclamation to support occupation of two hills and the adjacent high mesa. Monumental buildings on the mesa housed an embassy‑like delegation of nobles, and the enclave’s final evacuation featured elaborate ceremonies of brewing, feasting, vessel smashing, and building burning.

Abstract

Before the Inca reigned, two empires held sway over the central Andes from anno Domini 600 to 1000: the Wari empire to the north ruled much of Peru, and Tiwanaku to the south reigned in Bolivia. Face-to-face contact came when both colonized the Moquegua Valley sierra in southern Peru. The state-sponsored Wari incursion, described here, entailed large-scale agrarian reclamation to sustain the occupation of two hills and the adjacent high mesa of Cerro Baúl. Monumental buildings were erected atop the mesa to serve an embassy-like delegation of nobles and attendant personnel that endured for centuries. Final evacuation of the Baúl enclave was accompanied by elaborate ceremonies with brewing, drinking, feasting, vessel smashing, and building burning.