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Canto Grande Geoglyphs
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A new
discovery near Lima opens the door to
re-evaluating the age of Peruvian
culture! Canto Grande,
situated in San Juan de Lurigancho, dates from approximately 2,500
BCE (BC), and if correct, would make these geoglyphs
and petroglyphs the oldest in Peru -
some 4,500 years old!
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SAN JUAN DE
LURIGANCHO PERU
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Canto Grande is
some 4,500 years old! By
comparison, the Palpa geoglyphs date
from between 600 BCE and 100 BCE, and
the Nazca line from between 300 BCE and
900 CE (AD). The site is being
studied and explored by archaeologist
Julio Abanto Llaque, director of the
Instituto Cultural Ruricancho. |
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Location of Canto Grande & Cerro
Canteria |
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The inventory of
specific locations in the project
area consists of 91 sites, that includes: 41
geoglyphs (including petroglyphs), and 4
ceremonial stone mounds. Plus,
also at the site have been detected:
plazas, ceremonial centers, small
altars, and numerous petroglyphs that
appear to be of the pre-ceramic period -
that was the principal initial period
for cultures in this region.
The Canto
Grande area has now formally been declared
an Archaeological Reserve by the
Peruvian Instituto Cultural Ruricancho,
that serves to help protect the
heritage, and to help educate the public
to better preserve this important
national treasure. |
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The
Geoglyphs of the Pampas of Canto Grande (2500
BCE/BC)
 Per
the archaeologist Lorenzo Rossellσ, the geoglyphs and
sites were constructed 2,500 years before
the birth of Christ, making the the
lines 2,000 years old than Nazca!
The geoglyph symbols and lines extend
from present day San Carlos to Jicamarca.
Per the investigators, they believe the
site to be oriented around astronomical
uses.
 Of course, for others the same
ideas and hypothesis as has been
proposed for the Nazca lines, namely a
relationship between the system of lines
and figures to a culture of water,
mountains, and fertility.
They consist of
ceremonial roads and pathways.
However, the investigators are quick to
point out that they don't rule out
astronomical uses as well.
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A
unique box/grid design geoglyph almost
4,500 years old! |
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Why So Many Photos? |
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The
goal of our website is to present multiple
views of each symbol for three reasons:
1) the lines are extremely difficult to
photograph due to lighting conditions and
the condition of the geoglyph itself,
2) to provide better context of
the symbol, showing some of its surrounding area,
and
3) because different views provide a
better understanding of the style of design
and perhaps a greater appreciation of the
genius of the constructors.
more science
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Notice
the relative size of this geoglyph
compared the three people in the lower
left |
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Nazca
style trapezoid geoglyphs |
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from La Republica |
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Canto Grande Area Map |
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The overall site map for Canto Grande, with Cerro
Canteria in the upper left. Much of the area is
now populated,
showing traces of geoglyphs in the urban area. A timeline (at right) showing the relative periods of Peruvian
cultures, including Canto Grande and Nazca (presented by
La Republica newspaper of Peru) - AC stands for Before
Christ (BC or BCE) - DC stands for After Christ (AD or
CE) |
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Size
of the cactus glyph and a sampling
of other petroglyphs from La
Republica de Peru |
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Cactus design petroglyph |
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Is
it a cactus, or as the drawing below
suggests:
a monsters face? |
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Dog, fox or jaguar / puma petroglyph |
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10
of the Petroglyph designs found |
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More Information About Petroglyphs |
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Snake and Door petroglyph |
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Snake and an eye petroglyph |
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The snake petroglyph |
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The eye petroglyph |
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Petroglyph from the Las Lomas site |
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Eyes petroglyph |
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Turtle petroglyph |
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another dog or fox petroglyph |
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Cerro Canteria Site Plan showing
ceremonial centers |
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The
Preceramic Temple of 15 January (3000
BCE), the size of the complex is approx.
15,000 square meters |
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Image
Quality |
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A note about
image quality: images of lines and
symbols taken by air or from satellite
images are adjusted to improve contrast and
visibility of the artifact (line or symbol).
The results vary from image to image.
We apologize for the quality of some of the
images, but it is due to the original source
images, and the difficulty of
photographing subject object.
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