The Nazca Lines have been heavily promoted to the public worldwide since Erik von Daniken referred to them in his book 50 years ago. What is not well known about them is the details of the Nazca culture that created them.
First, they constructed a large pyramid complex, mummified their dead, constructed a sophisticated, underground water supply system (Puquilos) and were related to, and near to the Paracas culture (elongated skulls). Like the Paracas people they inhabited the extremely dry, southern coast of Peru in the river valleys of the Rio Grande de Nazca drainage and the Ica Valley.
Having been heavily influenced by the preceding Paracas Culture, which was known for extremely complex textiles, the Nazca produced an array of crafts and technologies such as ceramics, textiles, and the famous geoglyphs.
The irrigation system was made up of underground channels, known as puquios, which tapped into the subsurface water. The channels were dug into the mountainside until they reached the water under the surface. They were lined with river rocks but did not use any mortar so that the water would pass into the channels.
The water was transported to irrigation canals in order to directly supply water for agricultural purposes, or the water was deposited into small reservoirs (kochas) for later use. Numerous access holes or ojos (eyes) were placed along the surface of the underground channels and operated much in the same way that modern manholes do for periodic maintanence.
The sacred pyramid site (Cahuachi).
The permanent population was quite small as it was apparently a pilgrimage center that grew greatly in population for major ceremonial events. These events probably involved the Nazca lines and the giant sand dune of Nazca. Support for the pilgrimage theory comes from archaeological evidence of sparse population at Cahuachi and from the Nazca lines themselves which show creatures such as orca and monkeys, which were not present in the Nazca region.
So here we have yet another ancient pyramid-building culture in a far flung corner of the world. One that had accomplished engineers and masterful agricultural planners that coul grow crops in the driest desert on earth. But we have yet to get to the greatest enigma. The people.
I was studing DNA back into the latter part of last century by way of ABO blood group studies. That was the hot new genetic technology then. When the results of the Nazca mummies were made public, historians were shocked. Those tested had A & B blood groups, which no native Peruvian tribe possesses.
This ansomaly so disturbed the academic status quo they ignored the results and hide them to this day, making no references to the fact that their genertics are different than the native peoples. But that is also obvious by the color of their hair. No natives have red hair. In fact, less than 2% of the global population carries this rare gene.
Who were the Nasca people, like the neighbors the Paracas people...we do not know and academia does not seem to care to find the truth out either.
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