Empire of the Ancestors

Uncovering evidence that ancestor veneration was deeply rooted in Wari society, shaping Wari expansion, rituals, and statecraft

This volume examines the central role of ancestors in Andean society during the Wari Empire of the Middle Horizon period (600–1000 CE), centuries before the rise of the Inca. As one of the earliest expansionist states in the Americas, the Wari laid the foundations of statecraft later adopted by the Inca. Their imperial growth was shaped by environmental changes linked to the El Niño cycle, which brought drought to the Ayacucho heartland and drove the search for new farmland. Empire of the Ancestors shows that expansion also required honoring ancestors, who oversaw the life-sustaining flow of water from underground channels and glacial lakes.

Presenting archaeological evidence from throughout the Wari territory, including Huari, the capital, this volume reveals changes in how ancestors were treated and revered over time. Contributors explore many expressions of ancestor veneration at Wari sites: tombs designed with space for offerings, mummy bundles and body modifications, burial architecture integrated into ritual landscapes, and depictions of ancestors in ceramics and other media. Together, the evidence shows that ancestor veneration was not an Inca development but a long-standing Andean tradition inherited from the Wari.