Quick - where is Chan Chan located?If you guessed Peru, you are correct.
Chan Chan is the largest mud city of the Americas and the world's largest adobe city.
It was built by the Chimor civilization.
The adobe bricks were covered by cement which was then carved into intricate (yet stylized) shapes.
Unfortunately, Chan Chan is at risk of erosion (as one would guess of a city made of mud), so there is great effort underway to figure out how to preserve it.
It looks like a marvelous place to spend a day just wandering and looking.
Man, how long does it take for a mud building to dry? I'm guessing they didn't build a lot in the rainy season. Does Peru have a rainy season?
ReplyDeleteI imagine they have a rainy season. This is actually really pretty close to the ocean. I imagine they made the mudbricks first and assembled it from that. The walls are all faced and carved, though, which had to have taken quite a bit of time. I just thought it pretty amazing.
ReplyDeleteHuh. Who knew? Of course, my house is made of mud too, but only on the inside. sigh.
ReplyDeletePlus also, as Junie B. would say, I love your new background. Very your-blog appropriate!
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