The museum is located just a few meters from Huaca de la Luna. It was inaugurated in June 2010. Its original name was the “Huacas de Moche Site Museum,” but it was later renamed the Santiago Uceda Castillo Site Museum through Rectoral Resolution No. 1166-2018/UNT, in honor of its director, who passed away on January 14, 2018.
Its architectural design draws inspiration from the construction traditions of the Moche culture. The interior is organized into three thematic halls. Each display case also features explanatory labels in both Spanish and English.
First Hall
This hall is dedicated to presenting different aspects of the Moche world. The ceramic pieces have been carefully selected to illustrate the culture’s iconography, religious beliefs and daily activities.
There are 20 ceramic vessels decorated with snake motifs and stepped designs. Other ceramic pieces depict the wildlife of that period, deer hunting and sea lions.
Religious themes are also represented through various elements, including the sacred mountain, ritual races and combats, human sacrifices and sacrificed prisoners.
Second Hall
During nearly twenty years of archaeological research at Huaca de la Luna, archaeologists have discovered important tombs, some of which are presented in this hall.
The exhibition includes the tombs of the Priest-Warrior, the Shaman, the Lord of the Prisoners, the Blind Priest and the Woman Artisan Weaver, as well as a Moche reburial.
A special place in this hall is reserved for the ceramic piece that has become a symbol of Huaca de la Luna, popularly known as the “Warrior Duck.” This vessel depicts a duck with a spoon-shaped beak and a black body decorated with mother-of-pearl inlays. Its beak is cream-colored.
The exhibition also includes ceramic vessels that illustrate the importance of coca leaves in Moche ceremonies. Five ceramic pieces depict men chewing coca leaves.
The metalwork collection displays ornaments used in ceremonial clothing, including earrings and a large decorative ornament made of gilded copper that was worn on the back.
After the abandonment of Huaca de la Luna, the Chimú used the Ceremonial Plaza for funerary purposes. Archaeologists discovered two tombs from this period containing wooden scale models representing ceremonial plazas in Chan Chan, where rituals were performed in honor of the mummy of a king or ancestor. The mummy was placed inside a structure made of Spondylus shells.
Third Hall
This hall is dedicated to discoveries made in the urban area of the Moche city. Exhibits include ceramic musical instruments, small figurines, molds, and objects used in textile production.