Peru in the Guano Age Being a Short Account of a Recent Visit to the Guano Deposits, with Some Reflections on the Money They Have Produced and the Uses to Which It Has Been Applied

"Peru in the Guano Age" by A. J. Duffield is a journey through a transformative period in Peru's history, specifically the era when guano, a powerful natural fertilizer, reshaped the nation's destiny. Duffield contrasts Peru's former "Golden Age" of Incan prosperity with the chaotic "Guano Age," exposing the shifts in governance, agriculture, and law that led to declined ethical standards and a changed social order. Duffield sets the stage to understand how resource riches drastically changed Peru's future, as he also offers a glimmer of hope that the country can learn from its past experiences as it moves forward.