First registered Peruvian Hairles dog
in Peru was named
Chinese Anubis
medium size, male
born July 15th 1982
Dogs own Agustin Canepa.
Translated:
Mrs. Peggy Davis.
When
the Spaniards arrived at the Tahuantinsuyo they encountered
a different civilization. It was socially and politically
organized by the vision and concept of the Andean man,
without the influence of the advanced societies that were
developing on the old continent.
They
discovered a rich variety of fauna and flora. "Strange"
species, never been before by the European eye rapidly
captivated their interest and curiosity.
Many
of these species were taken to Spain as souvenirs of the
New World and among them some strange dogs without hair.
An
original and unpublished manuscript, kept in Madrid, contains
the observations of Francisco de Hernandez where he reports
that "... in New Galicia there is a breed of dogs
without hair, of smooth coloured skin, similar to the
lebrels, although they are taller and have a different
way of barking than the others, and of which prince Charles,
our lord, has one".
In
more recent times, the Peruvian writer Guillermo Gallardo
narrated "... when Philip the Beautiful of Spain
arrived, they presented him with some souvenirs brought
from the occidental lands recently discovered. On Wednesday
22 June of 1502 the son-in-law of the Catholic Kings stayed
in his lodgings, but they showed him two very new things.
One was a totally black dog with no hair at all that stretched
out his snout like a black woman. The other a green parrot
hardly bigger than a small monkey, talking of what is
credible".
These
statements collected and narrated by the first chroniclers
who arrived with the expeditionary hosts of Francisco
Pizarro, are the first news we have about the existence
of the Peruvian Hairless Dog. Nonetheless, its origin
is a story not yet told that takes us back more than two
thousand years, into the distance of time.
During
the formative period of the Andean societies, the regional
development predominated along the Peruvian coast and
the mountain areas. Once the influence of agriculture
started, theocratic feudal states emerged and extended
in time until after the beginning of the Christian era.
The union between man and dog initiated thousands of years
ago, also acquired importance for the former inhabitant
of the Andes. Probably one of the oldest demonstrations
of this is the discovery in the cove of Puémape
of San Pedro de Lloc, of dog’s burials sharing the
cemetery with the inhabitants of the time. These belong
to the Salinar Culture, whose remains show an antiquity
of approximately 300 years BC.
During
this period, the Chavín Culture (1200-400 BC) flourished.
Most archeologist considered it the oldest Andean society
and its center was located in Huantar, La Libertad. Archeologist
Marco Curatola finds certain relationship between Chavín's
icnographic representation of the Tello Obelisk and the
Achkay legend. He tells us that once upon a time when
famine was all over the territory, two children, a brother
and sister, arrived to Chavín de Huantar, where
Achkay and his daughter Oronkay feigned to be kind with
them. However, during the night they killed the boy and
fortunately the girl, who was alerted by a frog, escaped
with her brother's rests. Then she arrived to the Kullkush's
territory and the boy was turned into «kashmi»
(white dog) and became her companion in the flight to
the high plateau. Finally, they reached the sky. One version
says that he became «Ongoy» there (the Pleyades
constellation), and the other that he became «Achachi
Ururi» (Morning Star). On the other hand, the girl
became «Apachi Ururi» (Night Star). And since
that time, these stars are the travelers, shepherds and
farmer's guide.
The
dog's significance also had an effect in the artistic
expression of the Nazca Culture (100-700 AD). During the
second phase the ceramics was characterized for being
particularly naturalistic, very simple and refined, reddish
with plants, fruits and animals designs. Sculptural representations
of polychrome fruits and animals were also common, where
the hairless dog is represented with an admirable realism.
Besides, we must point out that dogs appear in the repertoire
of the petroglyphs of Pampa de Ingenio.This fact is related
to the existence of the Pampas de Nazca, famous for the
lines that form different zoomorphic figures, particularly,
the petroglyph that has been interpreted as a dog. It
is not strange since this animal was always considered
as servant of the mountain deities. Not far from Nazca
town, people still believe that dogs go with death spirits
to the mountain Coropuna.
The
Vicus Culture (500 BC-400 AD), who owe their name to the
hill situated on the grounds of the former Pabur Farm,
about 50 kms east of Piura, did not stay behind in this
sense and through their ceramics showed us the same characteristics
that the dog conserves to our days. Its ceramics expresses
an exceptional skill in sculptural or plastic art because
the modeled figures and other sectors of the receptacle
were painted with red designs and/or with the technique
called negative decoration. Anthropomorphic, phytomorphic
and zoomorphic sculptures are frequent. The image of ceramics
with a globular handle, where the top part is crowned
by the head of a hairless dog is shown for a better understanding.
More than 1000 years before the Tahuantinsuyu, a people
today called Mochica (100 BC-700 AD) reached its maximum
development in the coastal plain of Perú. In spite
they did not know anything about writing, the Mochicas
transmitted the representation of their activities and
environment through their art, expression means that amazingly
looks like real. Pottery is the most common and best known
artistic expression of the Mochica. More than 90% of the
survived rests are ceramics and almost all the scenes
represented in any other technique also appear under the
form of fired clay receptacle.
The
Moches were famous for portraying in their huacos the
different aspects of their society, the personality of
their master, their traditions and rites, human expressions
of their different states of mind, birds and others animals.
Here we point out the hairless dog with whom he coexisted
and kept as a faithful companion, and who deserved a place
within the family.
Dogs,
in general, appear in almost all the representations of
Mochica's activities in the Moche iconography, and it
usually appears next to the priest or warrior or the main
character. This fact, which until that time was only observed
in scenes painted in ceramic, was confirmed in 1987, when
archeologist Walter Alva discovered in the center of a
clay platform known as "Huaca Rajada", the tomb
of a Moche governor, warrior and priest who was called
"Señor de Sipán". The first finding
was a guardian with his feet amputated, symbolizing his
obligation to stay forever in this place. Then in a funeral
box was the Señor de Sipán who was surrounded
by eight servant's skeletons, two concubines and one dog.
Great part of the unearthed ceramics that represented
the hairless dog were found in the developing centers
of the Sicán Culture (900-1100 AD), called with
this name by the Archeological Project of Sicán.
Observing them, we can point out the knowledge that they
had of the canine species showing it in its different
attitudes and stages of development. This way we can observe
them while mating, in alert attitude or feeding. They
were represented as wind instruments like cornets and
whistles, to mention the most frequent. Some ceramics
show him carrying collars which can be interpreted as
a way of identification, allowing perhaps -without intending
to do so- a sort of selection, which combined to the genetic
strength enabled it to bridge centuries of oblivion to
these days.
The
decline of the Moche Culture gave way to the Chimu Culture
(1100-1470 AD), which comprised a period of transition
between the Wari (700-1200 AD) and Inca (1100-1470 AD)
hegemony. The largest amount of ceramics belongs to this
culture. Like the Moches they portrayed the different
stages of life, breastfeeding a reduced number of their
young, as is the case today, resting placidly, and many
other moments. Accepted in the homes, they would retribute
with their service, alerting its dwellers of the incursion
of neighbors seeking to conquer land and also exterminating
rodents and bugs that threatened the harvest.
Other
regional states in pre-Inca times molded the hairless
dog into their artworks. The Chancay Culture (1200-1470
AD) with its beautiful recipients in their black on white
style depicted the life cycle of the hairless dog. Perhaps
the two most characteristic ones are those showing the
coitus in a bispherical container, where the extremities
of the male are handles. The other shows the hairless
dog in a watchful attitude.
Once
the Tahuantinsuyu was established, the Incas carried out
its political and social organization, where the expansion
of the State was based on the reciprocity redistribution
system, and in a lesser scale, on the exchange existent
particularly in the Coast. In several cases, territorial
annexations were carried out in a pacific way, since it
was better to accept the offerings of reciprocity of the
Inca than a doubtful war with fearsome consequences for
the losing ethnic group. This was beneficial for a fast
Inca's expansion that obliged its governors to look for
new supply sources for rewarding local maters. However,
the enormous extension of the State had very fragile foundations
that gave rise to its collapse when Pizarro's army appeared.
In
the North they expanded until Loja and in the Southeast
until Tucumán and La Plata, in the current Ecuador
and Argentina. It was indispensable the repopulating of
these new territories with immigrants or «mitmaq»
from ethnic groups closely related to the Incas, so that
they could fulfil tasks in favor of the State. Therefore,
Chimu's artisans were moved to Cuzco so that they could
work in silver and goldsmith's art for the Inca and the
nobleness. Since they arrived with their belongings and
domestic animals, there was a broad spread of the hairless
dog in South America, known in Bolivia as Bolivian "ccala",
and in the North of Argentina as dog "pila".
In
ceramics, despite its affinity to some Mochicas and Chimu's
glasses, it showed more advanced techniques which is not
the case of the artistic level in this early stage, since
there was a high degree of stereotypation and a decrease
in quality and realism of the representations in this
stage. The Inca Culture contributed with new forms, but
neither the manufacturing technique nor the decorative
models, which became the Chimu-Inca style. We show some
ceramics representing the hairless dog corresponding to
this style.
When
Melchor Verdugo, grocer and member of the Peruvian hosts
arrived to the calm beaches of the afterwards baptized
province of Trujillo in 1534, a huge mass of hairless
dog surrounded him, barking until their jaws dislocated.
Next to him he had brought "Bobo", his greyhound.
Of horse-like rather than canine dimensions, "Bobo"
with just one bark scared the «viringos» and
with only one bite took at least a couple of heads. A
few years later the dammed greyhound would enter history
for eating the son of the chief of Cuismanco.
Undoubtedly,
the survival of the Peruvian Hairless Dog during the viceroyalty
and the rising republic is due to the coastal farm people.
They kept for themselves their old traditions and customs,
where it was used as an efficient remedy against rheumatism
and all sort of maladies, which are detailed in the essay
by Hermilio Valdizán, called "Popular Medicine"
published last century. It was not only accepted for its
curative qualities but also for its capacity to exterminate
rodents, which caused great prejudices during the crop.
Likewise, its distrust and suspicion nature shown to strangers
made it an extraordinary guardian. Nowadays, when it is
raised in the countryside, it develops its hunting instinct;
besides it is an excellent pet dog, qualities inherent
since ancient times. This is why talking of a living relic
is not that far from reality.
Today
its future depends on us, and the Peruvian Kennel Club
has the chief responsibility of defending and protecting
our unique race, recognized worldwide.
