Chavin

= = =Chavín=

Who are the Chavin? Religion The Culture's Economy



Who are the Chavín?
The Chavíns are a culture located farther south than the common Mesoamercians. Located in present day Peru, the known description that the Mesoamercians encompass central Mexico and spread down through central America, does not fit the Chavín tribe. Why then are the called Mesoamercians? The answer to this question comes in their past. The beginning of the Chavín, and any Peruvian civilization, started when Indians from Asia traveled across the Bering Strait more than 15,000 years ago. Following the animal migrations, the Indians began to settle in areas from northern Canada to the southern parts of South America. Though historians do not know exactly when the first human moved to the Peruvian Andes (see map right), they believe that it was around 14,000 years ago. Another 10,000 years went by before any civilization was organized, dating around 2,000 B.C. The Chavín culture is said not to have started until 1,000 B.C., but artifacts from 2,000 B.C. have been found, showing evidence that their civilization could have been established earlier. Once established, the Chavíns became one of the most influential cultures in all of Peru’s history. Through their growth, architecture, and learning, Chavín influences spread in Mesoamerica, having such a large impact on cultures like the Olmec, that they are called Mesoamercians despite location.

The Mesoamercians where split into time periods; the Preclassic (spanning from 2,000 B.C. to 250 A.D.), Classic (250 to 900 A.D.), and the Postclassic (900 to 1,521 A.D.). Furthermore, these periods were split into smaller eras, such as the Early Horizon (1,000-200 B.C.), which was the complete period for the Chavín civilization. These cultural periods are divided according to a variety of factors. These factors range from the beginning or end of a severe drought to times when farming was moving to or from the mountains, corresponding to drought or other natural phenomenon. Another marker for the changing of a time period was the end of a predominant culture and the rising of another.

The Chavín was not the only civilization in Peru during the Early Horizon. Other tribes like the Cupisique and Paracus also were settled in the Peru, though they were centralized more in the lowlands closer to the Pacific coast. Having neighboring civilizations, and an equally powerful culture (the Olmecs) in Central America, was a vital aspect of Chavín influence. One goal of the Chavín that was rarely seen in the earlier tribes, and for that matter in modern societies, was how they tried to unite the cultures. Even though they lived mostly in the mountains, they still made the connections with other tribes inorder to come together as a culture, not living in individual civilizations. Many historians believe that this was the very reason that the Chavín culture prospered. They coexisted with many different tribes, and in the process were able to spread their traditions and ways of life. Proof of this is in Olmec art, which portrays similar techniques and imagery that the Chavíns used.



Religion
One of the main parts of the Chavín civilization that shaped their culture was their religion. Their beliefs, ceremonies, and temples, like the Chavín de Huantar, from which the tribe was named, all made the Chavín who they were and what they would be known for later.

The Chavín were polytheistic, believing mainly in feline gods. Their ceremonies consisted of music played on shells with holes drilled in them to play as horns. They also performed most rituals after ingesting hallucinogenic snuff in order to have "shamanistic transformation" (www.mnsu.edu). They used the hallucinogens to see their gods, believing that the drugs would bring them closer. You can see the effects of the drugs in their artwork. Looking at the nose of the talon head on the right, you will see mucus coming out of the nostrils, a normal addition to art work because of this side effect of the drugs. As historians have learned more about this civilization they have found evidence in temples that cannibalism was a practiced ritual. Though not every animal was a god for them, they said that many were spiritual. For example, most of their art displayed caiman (alligators), monkeys, and llamas, which they believed to be spiritual animals. They also connected closely with a "jaguar-man god" (Hooker) that the Olmecs also believed in, proving how these cultures influenced each other.

Best known in Chavín religion is the "Chavín Cult" This was a religious movement who's origination is unknown, but spread through out peru by means of people traveling and trading across the country. Just like the Chavín religion, the cult was based on "conceptualization of nature spirits, and an all-powerful feline god" (www.peru-explorer.com). The cult in Chavín culture suggests a hierarchy in the people, and in the government. Which has been backed up with artifacts found in resent digs. >> The Culture's Economy 

The most famous artifact left from this great civilization is Chavín de Huantar, a temple that includes every aspect of their culture, from art and religion to economy and government. The temple, built around 900 BC, is 250 km north of Lima, Peru. Its structure and art represent the idea of a monument for a people, not an individual king or rulers, that shows just how advanced the Chavín became as a society. Chavín de Huantar was built in two sections, the Old Temple which was built between 900 and 500 BC, and the New Temple which was constructed from 500 to 200 BC. Around 300 B.C., the culture began to declining power for unknown reasons. At this time construction of the temple ended, leaving the New Temple unfinished, as it would be for the rest of time. This temple has left behind art work that has taught historians about a mysterious tribe. On the right is the most famous carving from Chavín remains, the Ramimondi Stela, it shows how complex and intricate all their art was. Since they had no writing system the common people were illiterate. The small elite group of religious and governing officials were trained in the only resemblance to writing that they had, and this was in the art. These sacred designs have meanings and most likely stories that no longer can be understood.



The Culture's Economy
The Economy in the Chavín culture also was a large part of why their techniques and ideas spread. This tribe was very advanced for their time, making strides in technology that few would think possible for a culture who keep no known records or documentation.

Chavín had the beginnings of a set government with religious and governing leaders. Historians believe that Chavín was a transition between societies that had no real separation in class or had fixed rulers, to states which revolved heavily around the separation between upper and lower classes. Historians think that a ruler at the time would be incharge or organizing food production, coordinating living groups, planning any defense, and possibly serving as the religious leader. They oversaw the economy best known for their innovations in metallurgy and soldering. Through metallurgy (refining and making objects from metal) and soldering the Chavín were able to combine copper, gold, and silver together for use in their temple and pyramids, as well as there art and religious tools. The Chavín revolutionized clothing by using and dying camel hair, going as far as to begin tie-dying. In the arts, they worked on new techniques with textile and pottery that shows their "stylistic unity" (Rick) as a culture.

These new techniques were spread to the rest of the Mesoamerican world through a trade network that benefitted all cultures, bringing them closer together as a whole, just as the Chavín had worked towards.

Though Chavín did die out as a culture in 200 B.C., the name still lives. Today a small town in the northern Peruvian Andes is named Chavín. Just outside this town is a temple named Chavín de Huantar, the same temple made 3,000 years ago inorder to monument a civilization. Today the temple still stands, and so does the memory of the Chavín culture.

Resources
Rick, John. “Exploring Chavín de Huántar” Stanford University [|]11/29/06

“Chavín” Minnisota State University  11/30/06

Hooker, Richard. “Chavin” Washington University <[|http://www.wsu.edu/~dee/CIVAMRCA/CHAVIN.HTM]> 11/30/06

Rowe, John H. “Form and Meaning in Chavin Art” U.C. Berkeley  11/30/06

“Chavín” Wikipedia  11/30/06

“Cultural periods of Peru” Wikipedia  11/30/06

“Chavin cult” Peru Gateway Travel  11/30/06

"The Inca" Geocities  12/6/06

"Central and Southern Andes, 1000 B.C.–1 A.D." The Metropolitan Museum of Art  12/6/06

Pictures
Chavin Sculpture- 

Peruvian Andes base map- World Book 2004

Chavin Influence- 

Talon Head- 

Ramimondi Stela- 