Considered one of the most important archaeological complexes located on the north coast of Peru, because in this place there are cultural remains that start from the pre-ceramic period (3000 BC) to pre-Inca stages, being the Moche period (0 - 700 dc) the one that has left the most traces. This complex is located in the valley of the Chicama River, in the district of Magdalena de Cao, Province of Ascope, department of La Libertad, 60 km (1 hour, 10 minutes by car), north of the city of Trujillo. open to the public since May 12, 2006.
The name is due to the fact that the site is close to a huaca traditionally attended by traditional healers from the north and south coast of Peru, who held important ceremonies in the place.
This great archaeological complex called the Bujo, is basically composed of three main sectors:
Huaca Prieta
Which is located at the southern end of the complex, and would correspond to the pre-ceramic period, so it has an age of 2500 BC, this name is due to the mass of considerable proportions of ash and decomposed waste, which They give a very dark coloration to the ground, archaeologists infer that these remains are cultural remains of sedentary farmers, who built semi underground rooms made of stone and mud, also practiced a rudimentary textile art and used pyrography, also made textiles with zoomorphic designs and anthropomorphs, but with total ignorance of ceramics and the cultivation of corn.
Huaca Cao Viejo
Located at the north end of the complex, and it is a truncated pyramid, built with adobe, which belongs to the Moche culture (between the 3rd and 7th centuries AD), in the place you can find buildings superimposed, which were built successively over five centuries, always following the ceremonial characteristic of Peruvian coastal cultures, one of these characteristics was to bury the old structure to make way for a new structure, this pyramid came to reach the 30 m in height and having a quadrangular base of approximately 120 m on the side, however you can access the top of this pyramid through a long ramp located on one of the sides of the pyramid, in front of the building stands what would be a ceremonial walled plaza and on one side of it is a long platform.
It should be noted that one of the platforms of this pyramid was where one of the most important findings of the Moche culture was made, the tomb is about the mummified remains of what would be a woman who later was called "The lady of Cao ", which is possibly a moche ruler or a powerful character, which would suggest that women could also have important roles in pre-Inca cultures, at the time of the finding was found 18 gold, silver necklaces, lapis lazuli, quartz and turquoise, 30 ornaments on the nose made of gold and silver, wooden scepters lined with copper between other loose metal plates that covered the shroud of natural cotton.
Another of the important findings in this huaca was the one of unpublished images in the Moche iconography as the "degollador" that is in one of the most outstanding polychrome friezes and in high relief, this image also found in the huaca de la Luna, It is intrinsically associated with the fertilization rites of the earth.
Huaca Cortada
Together with the huaca of Cao Viejo form the archaeological complex known as "Huacas Minor", this huaca is located about 500 meters northwest of the Huaca Cao Viejo, and similar to this, it also has a pyramidal shape but with a size smaller than the previous huaca, its base has a rectangular shape of 103 m long and 98 meters wide, and has a height of just 22 meters, however the entire sector where the pyramid is located and several other remains they compose a total area of 10,000 square meters, just as Cao Viejo has a shape similar to the moche constructions, its name is due to the fact that in the center of structure in the south direction, a strip of 45 m long by 5 can be observed wide, which seems cut, this strip may have been made by the huaqueros in their eagerness to find pre-Inca treasures.
Archaeologists took advantage of this excavation to study the construction sequence of the structure, identifying walls with decorative friezes, which have fish designs, it was also found that they used the colors yellow, red, white, gray and black using a technique similar to that found in Cao Viejo.
Finally, it is good to consider that this archaeological complex is considered as Monumental Patrimony of the Nation; the entrance ticket to the complex does not include the Guided service, however, the visitors
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