Homosexuality in pre-Columbian Peru
homosexual behavior in pre-Columbian Peru
Some evidence for homosexual behavior in pre-Columbian Peru has survived since the Spanish conquest of Peru in the form of erotic ceramics (Spanish: huacos eróticos). Same-sex relationships are also described in accounts of Catholic Missionaries in the 16th century. Such pottery originated from several ancient civilizations of Peru, the most famous of these being the Moche, Recuay, and Chimu cultures. The ceramics often served a religious function as funeral offerings until they were exhumed from graves and destroyed by Spanish conquistadors. Aymara and Quechua speaking peoples in Peru today do not have a unified stance on same sex relationships. Their communities are influenced in varying degrees by the legacies of the Incan and Spanish empires, which legally condemned sexual relationships between men.
Pre-Columbian Era
In pre-Columbian times, different ethnic groups existed in Ancient Peru. Gender studies carried out for this period are scarce, and very little is known about pre-Columbian homosexual practices. Gender and sexuality in ancient Peru does not directly translate onto common understandings of gender and sexuality in the contemporary West. In some temples in the Andes and the coast there were what could be considered gender nonconforming, non-binary, or transgender people today.
The public source identifies “Homosexuality in pre-Columbian Peru” as homosexual behavior in pre-Columbian Peru. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Homosexuality, pre-Columbian and Peru.
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