The Moche were skilled in the arts of metalworking, shaping, beating and embossing sheets of gold and other metals with intricate designs. Gold rings, necklaces, nose pendants, gorgets (neck ornaments) and pins were used lavishly. So, too, were decorative and religious objects made from gold, copper and, more rarely, silver.
It is probable that gold and silver had a ritual significance: they were known to the later Inca as 'the sweat of the sun' and 'the tears of the moon'.
Metalworking reached a high level of artistry among the Moche. Delicate and elaborate castings of gold and copper were made, probably using the 'lost wax' technique. The intricacy of their work can be seen in the details of manufacture of this gold bead, one of ten worn in a necklace by the 'Old Lord of Sipan'.
Objects incorporating different metals were made, such as gold pieces with copper strips; and the technique of soldering was known.
The Moche also practised the sophisticated technique of electrochemical plating, by which metals could be bonded together. This involved boiling metal objects in chemicals in which gold or silver had been dissolved, and resulted in a fine layer of gold or silver being deposited on the surface of the object.
