obscure
There was only one problem. In the late 1990s archaeologist Dr. Tom Dillehay revisited some of the more obscure Moche sites and found that the dates didn't match with the climate catastrophe explanation.
demise
Many of these settlements were built later than 650 AD. Clearly the weather hadn't been the cause of the Moche’s demise. Also, instead of constructing huacas, the Moche started building fortresses. They had been at war.
Noun
something that helps a person find something, understand something, or solve a mystery
clues
Searching the site for clues, Dillehays's team was unable to find any non-Moche military artifacts. It could only mean one thing. The Moche had been fighting amongst themselves.
Noun
the power or right to direct or control someone or something
authority
The Moche leadership - which at least in part claimed authority on the basis of being able to determine the weather - had lost its authority and control over its people.
Phrase
to attack someone or something in a sudden or unexpected way
turned on
Moche villages and/or clan groups turned on each other in a battle for scarce resources like food and land. This escalated to the point where the Moche replaced ritual battles and human sacrifices with civil war.
Noun
something that happened in the past or that comes from someone in the past
legacy
Gradually they destroyed their own civilization, but today, after 1,500 years, the Moche and their legacy are beginning to take their place in world history.
Noun
an organized community of a particular country, area, time, etc.
society
The Moche's story is an epic account of a society that thought it could control the world and what happened to it when it found it couldn't. It's a story of human achievement and natural disaster, human sacrifice and war.