The Sechín architectural complex is a rectangular construction that covers an area of ??approximately 50 hectares, and within it there are at least seven buildings, one of which is made of conical-shaped adobe bricks compared to the others built in stone. The adobe building, which is the oldest, is surrounded by a stone one and contains a sacred chamber in it at the same time, both buildings (the adobe and the stone one) occupy a total area of ??2,600 m2. Along with the above, we can also observe in the complex the presence of plazas, circular wells, platforms, paths, etc.
The Sechín archaeological complex is located in the district of Casma, in the province of the same name, in the Ancash region, specifically on the slopes of the hill called Laguna at 90 meters above sea level; and was discovered in 1937 by the Peruvian archaeologist Julio César Tello who initially called it the Temple of Cerro Sechín. Although the discovery did not come to light until that date, the archaeologist had already had indications of it since 1919 when the inhabitants of the area called the main facade of the complex “The Brave Indian”, because of the larger figure that is engraved on it and where Tello initially found 98 engraved monoliths. This Complex would have an approximate age of 1600 years before our era.
On the walls of the buildings of Sechín, we can see that they were painted in blue and pink colors, also that they have mural paintings of pumas along with bas-reliefs painted in various colors. In Sechín, the constant presence of engraved monoliths is significant and a subject of study. The engravings of these total about 300 and present, in their majority, warrior motifs with a meaning still to be clarified, although it is believed that they were related to myths believed or promoted by the inhabitants of the area. .
The stones used as monoliths were extracted from Cerro Laguna, using for this purpose sticks made from typical trees of the country's coast (carob and guarango). Later, once the stone was extracted, it was worked with the abrasion technique, which consisted of smoothing one of the faces of the extracted rock to then draw on it the desired motif using charcoal and then using another stone as a chisel to form the grooves of the engraving. Notable among the engravings found are the presence of "The warrior priests", those where ritual sacrifices are alluded to, and also others with marine motifs. Along with the Sechín engravings, the sculptures made of stone and clay in which human, marine and animal representations can be seen are also valuable.
Studies believe that Sechín was built for political and religious purposes: a palace and a temple, near which the population of this culture was located and they would have carried out agricultural activities.
To get to Sechín, the traveler must invest a ten-minute drive to the southeast of Casma. Admission to the site costs S/ 5.50 for adults; S/ 3.00 for national students and S/ 1.00 for Peruvian children. It is open to the public from 9 in the morning to 5 in the afternoon, and you can also access the site's museum called Max Uhle.
The discovery of the Sechín archaeological complex 82 years ago forced its discoverer and first researcher, the wise Julio C. Tello, to reconsider his theory that Chavín was the matrix culture of the Andean civilization in our country. Below, we will learn details of this ancient city whose discovery marked a milestone in Peruvian archaeology.
Also known as Cerro Sechín or Sechín de las Estelas, the archaeological site is located in the valley of the Ancash province of Casma, near the Sechín and Casma rivers, as well as ten kilometers from the coast.
According to archaeologist Lizardo Tavera, although the discovery of the Sechín site is considered to have occurred in 1937, there was previous contact by the “father of Peruvian archaeology” eighteen years earlier. Upon returning from his expedition to the Chavín de Huántar complex in the Ancash mountains, Julio C. Tello visited the Tabón estate in the Casma valley, whose owner kept a collection of pre-Hispanic pieces taken from cemeteries in the area. Some of them were donated to the Archaeology Museum of the Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, directed by Tello.
On June 28, 1937, Tello was heading toward the Marañón River basin to continue his research into the Chavín civilization, considered until then to be the cornerstone of Peruvian cultures. Passing through Casma again, he stopped at the Tabón estate and inquired about the pre-Columbian pieces found years before that had surprised him.
The new owner of the hacienda told him that he only had one rectangular stone of medium size (84 by 73 centimeters), which had an engraved image. It was a head in profile with a stylized face and disheveled hair. The stone piece surprised Tello and he decided to stay a while at the hacienda to investigate more about this vestige of what he considered to be more evidence of his theory about the importance and cultural influence of Chavín.
On the morning of July 1, Julio C. Tello explored the Sechín hill and discovered several archaeological remains. Aware of the existence of a nearby “huaca,” the Peruvian scholar went to the area called “Indio bravo,” due to the existence of a monolith that bears the figure of a kind of warrior whose face displays his teeth and wavy hair.
With the help of several workers, Tello excavated the area covered in earth and discovered the existence of several monoliths with figures similar to those of the “indio bravo” that were half buried. As he continued to remove the mound of earth, more stelae were revealed, forming a perimeter wall within which the existence of several adobe structures with walls in which colorful figures of mythological appearance stand out was revealed.
Studies subsequent to those reviewed by the father of Peruvian archaeology revealed that the construction of the Sechín complex predates the Chavín de Huántar temple, which shows the early existence of the civilization settled in the Casma valley.
Archaeologist Henning Bischof proposes a chronological sequence for the cultural evolution of Sechín, which goes from the year 3,400 BC to the year 1,000 BC. This includes the Late and Early Preceramic periods with the Sechín period (3,400 to 1,650 BC); the Moxeque period (1,650 to 1,400 BC) and the Haldas period (1,400 to 1,000 BC).
According to this proposal, the Sechín complex is located mainly in the Sechín Period; that is, during the Late Preceramic period, which is characterized by the emergence of complex societies, construction of large pyramids and absence of ceramics.
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