A Preceramic to early Formative ceremonial tradition centered at the site of Kotosh near Huánuco in highland Peru, best known for the Temple of Crossed Hands — one of the oldest decorated temples in the Americas — and for the Mito architectural tradition of sunken hearths and double-niched walls found across multiple Andean sites.
The Kotosh Religious Tradition (Mito phase) gradually declined between 1000 and 550 BCE as Chavin de Huantar's influence expanded into the highlands, ending as a distinct ceremonial tradition around 550 BCE.
In-print, general-reader survey of ancient South America covering the Kotosh/Mito preceramic tradition.
Places Kotosh within the broader Andean Preceramic and Initial Period context.
Discusses the Kotosh Religious Tradition as a precursor to Chavín religious iconography and architecture.