Moche Mortuary Pottery and Culture Change

In this article, I investigate the Northern and Southern Moche archaeological cultures by evaluating the data gathered and theories developed since their first identification 25 years ago. I suggest that what was previously considered the Southern Moche tradition was the dominant one throughout most of the North Coast, with regional variations, prior to about AD 650. After that date, the “Classic Moche” tradition ended in both regions and was succeeded by distinct Northern and Southern ceramic and mortuary traditions and, inferentially, reorganized social, political, and religious systems as well. The relations between regional mortuary and other traditions and fineware styles are considered in light of pan-regional dynamics including the ascendancy of the Wari Empire.