Huaca del Sol, Archaeological complex in Moche District, Peru.

Huaca del Sol is a stepped adobe pyramid about 43 meters high in the Moche Valley, 5 km south of Trujillo. It has five large terraces, the largest 80 meters long, on a base of 228 by 136 meters, and its surface is cut by deep erosion gullies.

The pyramids were built between the first and eighth centuries by the Moche culture, which used over 140 million adobe bricks, many of them marked by building teams. Spanish colonists redirected the Moche River in the 17th century to recover gold objects, which heavily damaged the larger pyramid.

The Huaca de la Luna, half a kilometre from the Huaca del Sol, keeps five-colour murals made from mineral pigments and reliefs of Ai Apaec, the decapitator god. Its facade shows mountain deities with condor-head belts, foxes with trophy heads, fishermen, a snake and crabs holding ceremonial knives, all linked to water and agricultural fertility.

The complex lies about five kilometers south of Trujillo, in the Moche district, on the left bank of the Moche valley. The Huaca de la Luna, half a kilometer from the Huaca del Sol, is the excavated sector with the painted patios and plazas; the Huaca del Sol has seen little archaeological work. Ground is desert sand and adobe dust, so wear closed shoes and sun protection.

Many of the adobe bricks still show visible symbols placed by different building groups to mark their work. These marks helped researchers better understand the building process and the organization of Moche society.