| Virú Culture Cultura Gallinazo |
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| Culture | ||||
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| Capital | Virú | |||
| Religion | Polytheist | |||
| Government | Theocracy | |||
| Historical era | P-Columbian | |||
| - Established | 200 BCE | |||
| - Disestablished | 300 CE | |||
The Virú culture (alternately the Gallinazo culture) occupied the valleys of Chicama and Virú in La Libertad Region of Peru from 200 BCE to 300 CE. The center of their culture was "Castillo de Tomabal", on the left bank of the river Virú.
The Virú culture was conquered by the Moches from the Cuenca of the Chicama, about the 1st century CE. Two hundred years later they were driven from the banks of the Virú.
The Virú culture erected large adobe buildings, including at San Juan, Napo, Sarraque, and Tomabal. The Virú were the initiators of the huacos (portrait ceramics), a technique which years later would be perfected by the Moche.
They had a class-based society. As in all the cultures of these times, agriculture was the base of the economy. In the valleys of Chicama, Moche, and Virú, large irrigation projects extended the limits of agriculture. Principal crops cultivated were corn, beans, legumes, cassava, cotton, green pepper, Lúcuma, and other fruit trees. These crops were supplemented by trade in dried fish and seafood products, which were obtained from other coastal Andean peoples.
The culture had a rich history of art. They used a negative painting technique. Many pieces can be seen in the Larco Museum Collection in Lima, Peru.