Triangles, or what Johnson refers to as pointers, pointed to areas where the faults crossed the ridges or hilltops. Another explanation posited for the lines is that they were a precursor to the Inca ceque system. “. The Nazca Lines are a series of geometric shapes and zoomorphic figures etched into the sand of the Nazca desert south of Lima. Sacred places, called huacas, lay out on each of these ceques. The Nazca lines are an unmistakable symbol of Peru , a mystery with centuries of history that to this day remains unsolved.
There are some strong objections to this theory.
Johnson mapped the location of all the puquios and high yield wells in the Aja area of the Nazca Valley, and found everywhere there were faults, puquios, and wells, the sources of fresh water were clearly marked by geoglyphs. Also, little study has been done to discover which astronomical dates were important to the Nazcan’s to see if any of the events can be observed to correspond in some fashion to the lines. Further they discovered the various lines, and shapes appeared to have particular purposes.
Spread out across several hundred sq kilometers (about 3-4x the size of Manhattan island) of the arid Peruvian desert, these drawings have been remarkably preserved. They were created between 500 BCE and 500 CE by people making depressions or shallow incisions in the desert floor, removing pebbles and … Below the surface of the pampa lie subterranean aqueducts and wells.
Each one consisted of a natural hill or low mound topped by a rock cairn that may have served as an identifying marker. Aryan Invasion Theories - Myth, Fact or Theory, The Aryan Invasion: theories, counter-theories and historical significance, To Revert to the Theory of ‘Aryan Invasion’ (Part 1), The Horse and the Aryan Debate by Michel Danino, Beyond Decipherment: Message of the Indus Seals, Decoding the Ancient Script of the Indus Valley, Decipherment of Indus Valley Vedic Seals in Modern Science, Wood's Hole Researchers Conclude that Climate Change Led to Collapse of Ancient Indus Civilization, Linguistic Aspects of the Indo-European Urheimat Question, Sanskritization: A New Model of Language Development, Interesting articles about Cultural India, East Meets West: Oriental Seeds in Occidental Soil, Kumbha Mela - The world's most massive act of faith, Vastu Shastra - Sacred Architecture of India, Vedic Discoveries: Krsna and Balarama in Greece — Dionysus — Herakles, India's Self Denial - By Francois Gautier, Gulf of Cambay: Cradle of Ancient Civilization, Natural History of the Vedic Civilization, The Colonial Legacy - Myths and Popular Beliefs, Vedic Origins of the Zodiac - The Hymns of Dirghatamas in the Rig Veda, Endangered Historic Temple in India - Saved from Slow Destruction, Archaeologists to unravel origins of iron and steel in India, Newly Discovered Archaeological Sites In India Reveal Ancient Life, Tsunami Uncovers Ancient City in Mahabalipuram, India, Edakal cave yields one more Tamil-Brahmi inscription, Indian scientist set to change world history, Rare Ibex Seal of Indus Valley Era Unearthed in Pakistan, Scientific Verification of Vedic Knowledge: Archaeology Online, Discoveries in Archaeology from the Gulf of Cambay, The Harappan Civilization and Myth of Aryan "Invasion", British Rule Photo Gallery — Archaeology Online Dvaraka Underwater Excavations — Archaeology Online — Photo Gallery, Delphi cont.
The Nazca only predate the Inca by 2,000-500 years depending on the region, so it seems very possible that the Inca may have carried on certain traditions from their ancestors. They did further research by measuring and mapping 800 of the straight lines.
2. Do Not Sell My Personal Information, Your California Privacy Rights Much mystery surrounds these drawings, for their exact purpose and meaning remains unknown. Archaeologist’s, and other scientists project the ideas and values of the present upon the past. This allowed the people of the Nazca culture to observe solstices and equinoxes as well as predict things like solar eclipses. Who made them? Whether made by the landing gears of alien spacecrafts, a homage to the gods, a sacred pathway meant for worship, or more simply a means to mark the sources of precious water to for the Nazca, the lines, figures, and animals that are etched upon the barren Peruvian plain, continue to inspire us to inquire about the past, to wonder at what was accomplished before the advent of modern technology and living, and remind us that there are forces we will never be able to understand within this universe.
The Inca had a tradition of imbuing power to features in the landscape. It is still necessary to find a more holistic hypothesis. This story has been shared 171,898 times. Perhaps that was the point; they were intended for the eyes of the gods, as a sort of offering to them. After several failed attempts, the balloon was finally able to take flight, though only for a few minutes. Terms of Use One of the first people to study the lines was the American geologist Paul Kosok.
Johnson’s observations led them to postulate a new hypothesis to explain the purpose of the Nasca lines: that the geoglyphs were used to mark subterenean water sources, and geological faults that could tell the Nazca people where they could reliably find fresh water. In this theory, the images were intended to as offerings or possibly a form of communication with a sky-dwelling god or gods. Many of the drawings must also be viewed arially to see them in their entirety, and thus it was thought that it would have required an airborn observer to aid the artists in creating the precise figures and proportions we see today. The Nazca Lines are enormous geoglyphs, created with piled stones or carved into the dry desert ground.
This theory was also supported by the professor Hoimar von Ditfurth. Aerial view of the Hummingbird, one of the most well-preserved figures (93 meters long) at Nazca Lines. Researchers from Hokkaido University in Japan have released a paper in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports explaining how lots of the Nazca Line drawings were incorrectly classified and that some of them actually represent exotic birds. He concluded that the only way the Nazca people could have constructed these lines in the sand would have been to achieve flight. I believe the lines probably had a religious and magical purpose as well as a practical one. On the other hand, if migrating seabirds are not observed, water shortages are feared.”. A point to note, for either of these view points, is that the scientists did not take into consideration which constellations where visable in South America, and whether they were different from those in the Northern Hemisphere. Reiche was a steadfast critic of the Von Däniken theory, and worked to debunk it by emphasizing the connection between the geoglyph designs and other elements of Nazca culture, such as pottery. The Nazca’s most important resource was water and the seasonal and long term variation’s had a direct impact upon them. There will always be the naysayers, and the alien theorist’s, but it is fair to point out other possible means of these lines creation. OVER 140 new Nazca lines have been uncovered in the Peruvian desert, dating back around 2,100 years.
He eventually built a hot air balloon using local materials in order to test his theory.
The most notorious theory of how the Nazca lines were formed, we owe to Erich Von Daniken, who first proposed that these lines and figures were ancient landing sites for aliens. These Nazca Lines theories range from the mundane (built as part of an irrigation system) to the downright mind-blowing (landing sites for alien spacecraft).
Unfortunately,it seems no one theory can explain the presence of all the different lines. It is probably not necessary to linger on his theories, as it falls into the same category as those that like to propound any ancient wonder such as the pyramids of Egypt as being the work of beings from other planets or universes. Marie Reiche continued the study after his death, and devoted over half her life to the measuring and mapping of the lines. Many of the lines seem to be made for walking upon, being the width of a footpath, and made of one single continous line. Even their dating is only somewhat certain, as it was approximated by the pottery shards found within the sands.