Late Horizon imperial landscapes in the Jequetepeque Valley, Peru.

This dissertation explores the nature of the Inka occupation in the Jequetepeque Valley, on the North Coast of Peru. Most archaeological and historical research has viewed the impact of the Inka conquest on the North Coast as relatively limited when compared with other parts of the Empire. However, a handful of recent studies have begun to question this view, and have found evidence for a more extensive occupation of the region. This dissertation builds on these studies by examining a series of sites in the northern portion of the Jequetepeque, where numerous sites built during the Late Horizon are located. While these sites do not contain many of the hallmarks of classic Inka architecture or material culture, an analysis of their locations and functions within the valley indicate that they likely helped to support the Inka occupation. The author argues that the Inkas deliberately downplayed their presence in the valley as a way to avoid radically altering existing social and political organizations in the valley. Instead of constructing large, intrusive settlements, the Inkas built smaller sites in areas that were located in areas that held special significance in a socially constituted landscape.