The most prolific societies of this period are found in the north coast, where in the latter part of the period (from 1500 to 800 b.C.) the Cupisnique artistic and religious tradition will produce complex representations of the essential icon of Andean prehistory: the feline, a motif that will be used in the first modeled sculptures in monuments, and in modeled pottery.

While sedentism is now well established, populations will continue to grow, and there is an expansion of the agricultural capacity around settlements with more conspicuous irrigation devices on flat, desertic areas. Sea resources are still consumed even if new settlements show a stronger tendency to be located inland, from 6 to 12 miles from the shore. In many cases, however, the coastal sites are still settled and will grow according to the new architectural standards.