MUSEUM SPECIALIZED IN CHIRIBAYA CULTURE IS NEW TOURIST ATTRACTION OF AREQUIPA
The Chiribaya Archaeological Museum, which houses 270 pieces of the Chiribaya culture that flourished on Peru’s southern coast between 800 and 1350 AD, was inaugurated in Arequipa, with the aim of becoming a new tourist attraction for the city. The museum consists of nine rooms where you can see pieces as fishing and farming gear as well as interesting collection of ceramics, textiles and gold and silver work of more than thousand years old. José Jimenez Lazo, owner of the pieces, said that the archaeological legacy was inherited from his father, a doctor who lived since 1956 in the valley of Ilo (Moquegua), where he took an interest in the Chiribaya culture after receiving from the villagers some objects as a gift. "My father is not charged for the medical care to people and help pay their solidarity gave him pieces of their ancestors, which began to interest my father," he said. Evidence of this culture can be found in Arica to the south and as far north as the Tambo valley in Arequipa. Animal husbandry was important to them and research has shown that they bred a llama which produced a longer and finer wool than the best alpaca of today. Their textiles are of camelid wool, exquisitely styled and displaying advanced techniques. Their ceramic ware is unique, decorated in geometric patterns whose meaning has not yet been revealed. Agriculture was also very important to their economy. Maize, sweet potato, cassava, jiquima and molle were consumed in large quantities. Fruits included lucuma, guayaba and pacae.
