The Mistery of the Nazca Lines

Nazca is roughly 272 mi (440 km) southeast of Lima and 353 mi (570 km) north of Arequipa.

Since discovery by American scientist Paul Kosok in 1939, the lines on the rocky Peruvian Pampa San Jose near the small desert town of Nazca have perplexed scholars. Originally thought to be the remains of irrigation lines beyond the verdant Nazca valley, it wasn’t until they were seen from the air that the lines were recognizable as figures.

The lines are a variety of geometrical figures, trapezoids, triangles and lines, plus marine, animal and bird figures of hummingbirds, a whale, a monkey,a spider,a bird likened to a pelican, another like a condor, and one called the astronaut. They range in size up to 1000 ft (300m) across and are about 2000 years old.

As you observe the lines, you can wonder about the various theories, including the idea that the ancient culture used them to indicate underground water sources, or the older one that the lines are caused by the physical movement of underground water. There are water channels, painstakingly built of rock walls and maintained over the centuries that carry water from the mountains to a farming oasis near the figures.

The lines aren’t the only things to see around Nazca. The museum in town has archaeological artifacts. Maria Reiche‘s house, in the nearby village of San Pedro, now also a museum, is filled with her personal belongings, her maps, photos, camera, and hand-drawn sketches. She is buried in the garden. The museum charges admission and is closed on Sunday.