After A D 1000 the major developments in Andean prehistory shifted back to the North Coast, the location of the great Chimu kingdom. At its greatest expansion it extended 600 miles from north to south. Other kingdoms of this period are less well known: the Cuismanu of the Central Coast, the Chuquis
mancu located farther south, and the Chincha of the South Coast. In the highlands we have the earliest evidence of the Inca as a regional culture at Cuzco. In the Southern Highlands there is a continuation of a local culture at Tiahuanaco. It is from this time period that we have our earliest historical evidence—legends transcribed from the Inca by the Spanish after the Conquest.
Termed 'City Builder" by Bennett and Bird (1964), this period is noted for the rise of local city-states in all of the Andean subregions. Major features expressed by all of these cultures are planned urban communities, a population increase, strong political organization, mass production of crafts with a decrease in artistic skill, and a concern for the manipulation of large amounts of labor through the authority vested in the government. Our review of this period will consider only the Chimu kingdom as an example.