He is a fanged supreme being with an air of mystery. Once upon a time, the Moche civilization covered about 750 miles of the coast in Northern Peru. One day it vanished. (Okay, maybe it wasn’t a day — it might have been several years. No-one knows.) The Moche people left many amazing pieces of pottery and artifacts. Amongst them was the Crabman Ai Apaec.

His effigy is a bit battered, but in his former glory he must surely have had great significance. (And he has been discovered again after all these years, so who knows?)

He appears to be a God of Decapitation — several other depictions show him holding a knife in one claw and a severed head in the other. We are not sure if this is a morale-boost for Moche warriors going into battle or a dire warning not to play with crabs.

He likes wearing scary accessories, but seems to be somewhat remote. We suspect he is just shy and the fangs, jaguar heads and snakes are just to keep people from getting too close.

Meanwhile, it seems Ai Apaec is only a part-time crab. He has also been seen in spider and octopus form. What this all means is currently beyond our comprehension.

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Article last revised on July 29, 2018 by Rowan Allen.
Editors: Peter J. Allen, Chas Saunders

References: Coming soon.

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