Archaeological nightmares are discoveries in archaeology that challenge our understanding of history. They include items whose true purpose is unclear. And, there are many examples, like a little building behind the great Hatshepsut’s mortuary temple in Egypt, which more closely resembles Inca buildings in South America than Egyptian ones.
Or, we can mention Stonehenge in Great Britain, a group of megalithic blocks stacked orderly, the function of which is still debated. Well, the Nazca Lines mystery in Peru is inside this group. Giants images (geoglyphs) of Peruvian native animals, plants, and even humans carved on earth and visible only by the air.
Well, the Machu Travel Peru experts will shed more light on the meaning of the mysterious Nazca lines and their relationship with the gods.
Join us to learn about the most acceptable theory about the purpose of the Nazca Lines
Overview
The pre-Inca Nazca culture created the lines between 200 B.C and 500 A.C in a Peruvian desert south of the current capital of Peru, Lima. This group of geoglyphs is extended over 170 square miles or 450 square kilometers and represents the forms of plants, animals, and humanoids. A Nazca Lines map shows more than 700 figures.
The Nazca people excavated the earth 15 inches deep by removing superficial iron oxide-coated pebbles and showing the clear subsoil sand. In this form, they created the lines that bordered each figure. Of course, the lines remain to this day because the desert where they are located receives only about 20 minutes of rain per year, without mentioning the absence of strong winds that can erase the lines.
The foreman climbed a mound several meters above ground level and directed the direction of excavation of each line to shape the figure. All this demonstrates a high knowledge of geography and climatological conditions that the ancient Nazca had over their territory.
Some theories
Among many Nazca lines theories, we can mention the one referring to Paul Kosok and his assistant Maria Reiche. They affirmed that the Nazca Lines had an astronomy observatory function. While the first one affirmed that the lines were the world’s largest astronomy book, the second one assured that these were a huge pre-Hispanic calendar.
By the way, Maria Reiche stayed on until her death to care for and maintain the Lines. She was famous in Peru because she refused to leave the place and stayed in her small mud house, taking care of the perpetuity of the lines.
Johan Reinhard and Anthony Aveni in 1985 stated that the geoglyphs had a ritual function for the Nazca. Being a people whose main activity was agriculture and being in a desertic place lacking rainfall, the religious rituals of their deities asking for rainfall must have been monumental. This theory is supported by the different ceramic remains and ceremonial objects that were found buried very close to the lines. The German Archaeological Institute and the Institute for Andean Archaeological Research gave some strength to this theory.
The Nazca Lines were messages for the gods
That is why we can affirm that the Nazca Lines were a kind of message for the gods, for the Nazca Deities. But, Who were these deities to whom the Nazcas made megalithic figures? Well, the German Max Uhle discovered them in 1900, and the Peruvian archaeologist Toribio Mejia Xesspe was the first to study them in 1927. Since that time, it has been studied and unveiled the religious system, the administrative structure, the main economic activity, the ceramics and vestiges of Nazca culture, but very little about its Lines.
The Nazcas were the resulting culture of a previous one called Paracas culture. The Paracas or Topará inhabited the same area before the Nazcas, and they were experts in fabrics and textiles. Therefore, it can be inferred that the Nazcas inherited from their ancestors the expertise in figures and designs, transferring them to monumental dimensions of Nazca Lines images. In addition, on images already made, other images with different designs are sketched.
The Nazca gods
Many years ago, there were many deities; among them, one stood out for its importance. He was a deity with human form, without bones, of agile gait, that created things with the power of his word. The Nazcas called him the god Kon, the advisor of everything. He had created men, as well as all the animals, plants, and landscapes of this planet, as well as fertile valleys for the Nazcas.
However, the humans gradually forgot about him and forgot to worship him. This caused the wrath of Kon to dry up the land and its valleys, the present configuration of the Nasca Lines desert. At that time, his brother Pachacamac, the son of the Sun, disagrees with his brother’s creation. In consequence, he confronts Kon, and after a tough battle, Pachacamac banishes him.
Pachacamac quickly destroyed everything his brother made and changed all the people in the Nasca area into local animals. These included monkeys, foxes, and hummingbirds, among others. After, the new god-regent was dedicated to creating a new race of humans with better characteristics and more aesthetic features.
Botto, the most feared god
However, there was a god that the Nazca feared the most, a god of fear and destruction called Botto. He had the form of a marine animal, with parts of a feline, bird, and fish. He was known to punish his believers in the form of natural disasters.
Therefore, we can infer that the Nazca Lines were really messages to the gods since their creators, in need of water for their lands and crops, created these figures in honor of their gods and to ask them for the liquid element. Furthermore, proof of this is the canals and aqueducts that were also found near the Lines. Of course, flying over the Nazca Lines will allow you to appreciate this fact in better form.
“I TRAVEL, THEREFORE I AM”
We hope this article has clarified your understanding of the Nazca Lines and their function. A purpose more ritual than astrological. And you know, if you want to know this beautiful Peruvian attraction, or know things to do in Nazca. The Experts and the travel agency of Machu Travel Peru will be ready for your questions and requirements if you want to visit one. Until another opportunity!
Peru has so much to offer it can be hard to know where to start. With many years of experience in the tourism sector, Machu Travel Peru is happy to help with anything regarding your trip to Bolivia and any tours around it. Make your Bolivia experience an unforgettable one!
