Narihualá

Narihualá is a stepped adobe platform rising above the flat Piura valley, the principal centre of the Tallán, the people who occupied this part of the far north coast and who were incorporated first by the Chimú and then by the Inca. The Tallán are recorded in Spanish accounts as having had women as rulers in some communities, called capullanas, which drew comment from the chroniclers. The mound is heavily eroded and its outline is softened, but its size is clear, and a small museum in the village holds ceramics and material from the site along with displays on Tallán culture and the later history of Catacaos. The village of Catacaos next door is the reason many people come to this corner: it is the pottery, filigree silver and straw-weaving centre of Piura, with a market and picanterías serving northern food.

What you actually see

• The platform - a stepped adobe mound above the flat Piura valley.
• The Tallán - the north coast people whose capital this was.
• The capullanas - the women rulers recorded by Spanish chroniclers in this region.
• The museum - ceramics and interpretation in the village beside the site.

When to go

Year-round; extremely hot from December to April, and rain in El Niño years can be severe. One hour, combined with Catacaos.

Honest expectations

Badly eroded - the mound reads as a hill rather than a pyramid. Very hot with no shade. The museum is small and hours can be irregular. Most of the interest for visitors is in Catacaos next door.

Nearby

Catacaos and its craft market are close; Piura is north.