The ancient, intricate geometric patterns stamped on the surface of a desert in Peru have long been thought of as messages to the gods, or as markers that tracked celestial objects. Now new details about these geoglyphs suggest they may have been made for "prayer walking".The Nasca lines are a collection of lines, giant trapezoids, and figures of humans, plants and animals in a desert 400 kilometres south of Lima, Peru. They were created between 400 BC and AD 650 by the removal of reddish oxidisedstones from the desert pavement to reveal the lighter sand beneath.Tomasz Gorka of Munich University in Germany analysed five geoglyph complexes near the city of Palpa, focusing on the large trapezoidal structures which are etched on the plains there.
He measured anomalies in the Earth's magnetic field caused by changes in soil density at various depths. The team walked the entire site, an area of about 60 hectares, using hand-held sensors.
"We found
other lines, in the interior of the trapezoid structures, which were
not visible from the air," says Gorka, who presented his findings at an
archaeological geophysics meeting in London last month. "The geoglyphs
visible today are the most recentstage of a prolonged construction
process during which the whole complex of drawings was constantly added
to, remodelled, obliterated or changed by use," adds Gorka.
Some of the lines produced
stronger magnetic anomalies than others, prompting Gorka and Karsten
Lambers of the University of Konstanz in Germany to suggest that the
soil beneath was compacted by people walking back and forth during
prayer rituals. "This activity was closely connected to the placing of
ceramic vessels along the lines," perhaps as offerings, says Lambers.
In an isolated valley, high in the Andes Mountains of Central Peru, dozens of
lines have been waiting thousands of years to be discovered. But what sets these
lines apart from many other anthropoligical etchings is that they can only be
truly appreciated from an airborne perspective ! Presumed to be left behind by
some Ancient Civilization (possibly Atlantis), many designs resemble our modern
landing strips, or depict various animals that correspond to major
Constellations ~ and on...Aerial photos show damage to Peru's Nazca Lines
Peru's ancient spiral-tailed monkey is losing its tail. Extensive high-resolution aerial photos of the famed Nazca Lines taken by Peru's air force showed destruction Thursday that conservationists have long feared. Tire tracks and disregard for the site are irreparably scarring the mysterious lines and animal figures that a pre-Columbian civilization etched into a 56-kilometre stretch of Peru's southern desert centuries ago. In the first comprehensiveaerial photos taken by Peru'...Archaeologist finds ancient Nasca iron ore mine
A purdue university archaeologist discovered an intact ancient iron ore mine in South America that shows how civilizations before the Inca Empire were mining this valuable ore. "Archaeologists know people in the Old and New worlds have mined minerals for thousands and thousands of years," said Kevin J. Vaughn, an assistant professor of anthropology who studies the Nasca civilization, which existed from A.D. 1 to A.D. 750. "Iron mining in the Old World, specifically in Africa, goes back 40,000 ye...Heavy rains alter Peru's famed Nazca Lines
A new giant picture on the Nazca Plateau in Peru, which is famous for giant patterns that can be seen from the air, has been discovered by a team of Japanese researchers. The image is 65 meters long, and appears to be an animal with horns. It is thought to have been drawn as a symbol of hopes for good crops, but there are no similar patterns elsewhere, and the type of the animal remains unclear.The discovery marks the first time since the 1980s that a picture other than a geometrical pattern has...Peru's Nazca lines under threat
A tiny, hand-painted sign mounted on a flimsy barbed wire fence warns visitors to Peru's Nazca lines: "No entry. Area off-limits." It's not much of a deterrent. The latest threat to the vast U.N. World Heritage site where the enigmatic shapes and lines, stylized figures of birds and animals were etched in the desert some 2,000 years ago, is a camp of around 30 shacks that appeared in August. The rudimentary straw-matting huts are pitched in the dry earth on the fringe of a prot...Nazca photographs deepen mystery
The Nazca Lines have been a source of mystery and dispute since their discovery in southern Peru nearly a century ago. So why should the latest find be any different? Japanese enthusiasts recently released new aerial photographs of figures etched in the ground of the Nazca region, adding a fresh dollop of wonder to the giant geometric patterns and animal drawings that scientists say the Nazca Indians created as many as 2,000 years ago. Peruvian officials expressed excitement about the announceme...Priests may have designed Nazca lines
High priests at an ancient religious compound in southern Peru may have designed the mysterious Nazca lines, a set of huge geometric patterns, animal figures and long lines etched in the desert, the area's top archaeologist said. Researchers say the Cahua-chi compound, built in 400 B.C., is just across the Nazca Valley from the lines, one of Peru's most popular tourist attractions and a U.N. World Heritage site. "It islogical to think that the Nazca people's religious beliefs or...The Greatest scratch pad on Earth
In the hot hazy
desert of southwest Peru, couched between the Andes Mountains and the Peruvian
coast, lies what many have called one of the most baffling enigmas of
archeology. Huge geometric patterns and spirals, animal figures including a
monkey, aspider and an 'owl man', and thousands of perfectly straight lines are
immaculately etched onto the desert's surface. . The last of them were drawn about
a thousand years ago. Known as the Nazca lines, the drawings h...Peruvian desert a perfect tableau for Nazcan 'Artists'
The Nazca lines
aren't the only geoglyphs in the world. The tradition of drawing figures on the
ground spans thepacific coastal desert areas from central California to
northern Chile. . The drawings at Nazca, however, are unique because they are so
large and so densely packed within a 500 square kilometre area in southwest
Peru. Straight lines that go on for hundreds of kilometres, only swerving out by
a few degrees, huge trapezoids and spirals, and animal figures, some o...
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Nazca line Theories
Aerial photos show damage to Peru's Nazca Lines
Archaeologist finds ancient Nasca iron ore mine
Heavy rains alter Peru's famed Nazca Lines
New Nazca line picture discovered
