CHAVN

earliest highly developed culture in pre-Columbian Peru, which flourished between about 900 and 200 BC. During this time Chavn artistic influence spread over the northern and central parts of what is now Peru. The name derives from the great ruin of Chavn de Huntar in the northern highlands, but it is not known whether this was the actual centre of origin of the culture and artistic style. Important regional manifestations are also found at Kotosh and Kuntur Wasi, in the highlands, and at sites in the Casma, Nepea, and Chicama valleys of the northern coast. One of the best-known coastal phases is the Cupisnique of the Chicama Valley. The central building at Chavn de Huntar is a massive temple complex constructed of dressed rectangular stone blocks, containing interior galleries and incorporating bas-relief carvings on pillars and lintels. The principal motifs of the Chavn style are human, feline, and crocodilian or serpentine figures; these are often combined in highly complex and fantastic images. Chavn culture undoubtedly had earlier prototypes in the preceding simpler societies of the Initial Period (c. 1800900 BC). During this period a sedentary agricultural way of life became fully established in Peru, with the development of such crafts as weaving, pottery making, and stone carving. The significance of Chavn is that for the first time many of the local or regional cultures of the area were unified by a common ideology or religion. The extent of political unification remains uncertain.