Era 01
3 historical milestones

Época Prehispánica y Cultura Tumpis

Navegantes Tumpis, balsas con guaras, comercio de mullu (Spondylus) y centro monumental Cabeza de Vaca.

1st Millennium BCE – 1532Tumbes

The Sacred Mullu (Spondylus) Imperial Industry

Inca state workshop in Cabeza de Vaca processing over 110,000 Spondylus shell pieces for royal and religious ceremonies across the Andes.

Historical significance

The largest planned state workshop for harvesting and carving ritual Spondylus (mullu) documented in the Andes.

#Spondylus#Andean Ritual#Sacred Trade#Malacology
Pre-Columbian EraTumbes

Tumpis Navigators and Ocean Balsa Rafts with Guaras

Oceanic balsa technology and hydrodynamic guara centerboards that allowed pre-Hispanic navigation to Mesoamerica without a rudder.

Historical significance

Pioneering nautical engineering of ocean rafts with daggerboards (guaras) enabling long-range steering to Central America.

#Ocean Navigation#Guaras#Maritime Trade#Pre-Columbian Engineering
15th – 16th CenturyTumbes

Cabeza de Vaca Monumental Archaeological Complex

Paramount Inca administrative and ceremonial capital in Tumbes featuring the 15-meter Huaca del Sol pyramid and an 8 km imperial road.

Historical significance

Northernmost imperial administrative and civic-religious capital on the coastal Qhapaq Ñan, featuring Sun Temple and acllahuasi.

#Archaeology#Qhapaq Ñan#Sun Temple#Tumpis Culture