Uncontacted contemporaries · 531 overlapping years

Khmer Empire Chimú Kingdom

For 531 years — from 900 CE to 1431 CE — both civilizations existed simultaneously. Neither this dataset nor the historical record shows any documented trade, war, or diplomatic contact between them.

802 CE 1470 CE

Khmer Empire

802 CE–1431 CE

Chimú Kingdom

900 CE–1470 CE

↑ Overlap begins, 900 CE

Khmer Empire

Southeast Asia

Centered on the temple-city of Angkor, this empire built what remains the largest religious monument on Earth.

Chimú Kingdom

Northern coastal Peru

A coastal Andean kingdom whose adobe capital, Chan Chan, was the largest city of its kind before falling to the Inca.

Traits both developed independently

With no documented contact, any shared trait below represents independent development rather than transmission from one to the other.

Monumental architecture Bronze metallurgy Irrigation agriculture Standing army Long-distance trade Urban planning

Khmer Empire only

Iron metallurgy
Astronomical record-keeping

Chimú Kingdom only

Seafaring