Museo Arqueológico Rafael Larco Herrera

Description:

• Founded in 1926, this museum has the largest private collection of pre-Columbian art in the world. It concentrates on the Moche Dynasty, especially on its refined ceramics, with an estimated 45,000 pieces -- including incredibly fine textiles, jewelry, and stonework from several other ancient cultures -- all housed in an 18th-century colonial building. Rafael Larco Hoyle is considered the founder of Peruvian archaeology (he named the museum after his father); he wrote the seminal study Los Mochicas in 1938, although he succeeded in publishing only six chapters. (The rest has now been posthumously published.)

  The Moche (A.D. 200-700), who lived along the northern coast in the large area near present-day Trujillo and Cajamarca, are credited with achieving one of the greatest artistic expressions of ancient Peru. The collection might be overwhelming to visitors who know little about the Moche, but one soon learns that the pottery gives clues to all elements of their society: diseases, curing practices, architecture, transportation, dance, agriculture, music, and religion. The Moche are also celebrated in the modern world for their erotic ceramics. The Sala Erótica here is removed from the general collection, like the porn section in a video store. It's outdoors, downstairs, and across the garden. The Moche depicted sex in realistic, humorous, moralistic, religious, and -- above all -- explicit terms; the most common and even a few deviant practices are represented. If you're traveling with kids, expect giggles or questions about the ancient Peruvians' mighty phalluses. Plan on spending 2 hours to see it all.

  An attractive on-site restaurant, Café del Museo, a recent addition to the museum, is under the auspices of Peru's celebrity chef Gastón Acurio -- so you may want to plan for lunch or an early dinner during your visit.

• © Frommer's 2012

Awards:

Frommer's

•  Highly Recommended 2010