Around 200 AD a local culture arose in the zone of Maranga. This so called Maranga or Lima Culture lived at the beginning in the area of the today’s districts Callao, La Punta, Bellavista and La Perla. Having adapted the agricultural and irrigation knowledge of the Chavín, these antique limeños brought great progress to the region.

They constructed the first channels from the Rimac to irrigate the dessert lands at the outskirts of Callao and the eastern parts of the valley. Even today parts of these channels still exist. This irrigations system was an outstanding achievement of engineering for that time. To maintain the channels and ensure an equal distribution of the water among the people an advanced social organization was required.

The ‘Marangas’ left behind many Huacas that were included and modified by later cultures. The main ones are the Huaca Maranga, the Huaca Tres Palos (both located in the Parque de las Leyendas), the Huaca Huallamarca in San Isidro and the Huaca Juliana / Pucllana in Miraflores. It is believed that these huacas were used by the expanding population of the Maranga as administrative centers for their different irrigation zones.

In Lima the culture built the first temples at the religious center of Pachacamac. By this time their influence was only local.