Huaca Pucllana

Huaca Pucllana is a surprise in the middle of Miraflores: a huge stepped pyramid of adobe and clay surrounded by apartment blocks and offices. It was built by the Lima culture, which flourished on this part of the coast between about AD 200 and 700, and it served as a ceremonial centre whose main purpose was religious. The pyramid rises in seven staggered platforms to around 25 metres, and the whole complex stretches for more than 500 metres.

The construction technique is the main thing to notice. The builders set small adobe bricks upright, like books on a shelf, with mortar at the base and small gaps at the sides; the archaeologist Pedro Villar Córdova called this the bookshelf technique. The walls lean slightly and are trapezoidal in section, which helped them survive earthquakes. Excavations have shown that rituals here included banquets, the deliberate breaking of pottery and human sacrifice, often linked to the rebuilding of parts of the structure.

Later, during the Wari period around 800 to 900, the upper parts of the pyramid were partly destroyed and reused as a cemetery for the elite, and archaeologists have found funerary bundles and offerings. In 2010 the burial of a Lima slinger was reported. The small exhibition hall, opened in 1984, shows ceremonial jars, miniature offerings, ceramics decorated with sharks and Wari textiles, and the site also has life-size figures recreating daily life. Excavation is ongoing, so you may see archaeologists at work.

Entry is paid and visitors follow a guided circuit, with tours offered in Spanish, English, Japanese and French. The route crosses open, unshaded terraces, so a hat and sunscreen are useful on summer afternoons. Allow about an hour for the tour and the exhibition hall, and remember that excavation and conservation are still going on, so the areas open to visitors can change from one visit to the next. The official website domain listed on Wikipedia no longer belongs to the site, so check current opening times before you go.

Huaca Pucllana sits in the middle of Miraflores and makes a good introduction to Peru's pre-Inca past if you do not have time to travel out to Pachacamac. Combine it with a walk along the clifftop Malecón later in the day.