1,400-year-old temple ruins the size of a city block unearthed in Bolivia
Archaeologists in Bolivia discovered the ruins of a temple built by a civilization little known up to 1400 years ago.
The temple, called palasta after the native name of the region, comes from the civilization of Tiwanaku, a predecessor of the Inca empire. The company of Tiwanaku disappeared about 1,000 years ago and we know little about civilization, but these ruins of the temple highlight the way it could have operated at its peak. The discovery analysis was published on June 24 in the journal Antiquity.
“It’s a bit shocking how much we know” on Tiwanaku, Steven WERNKEAn archaeologist and historic anthropologist from the Andean region of South America at Vanderbilt University which was not involved in the study, said in Live Science. “This observation is quite important.”
Who were the Tiwanaku?
Tiwanaku civilization, based just south of Titicaca Lake In the Andes, was extremely powerful to its peak. “He had a highly organized societal structure, leaving remains of architectural monuments such as pyramids, terraced temples and monoliths”, ” José CaprilesAn anthropological archaeologist in Penn State and the main author of the study, said in a statement.
The company collapsed around 1,000 after JC, leaving only ruins when the Incas entered the region about 400 years later.
Tiwanaku are logistically difficult to study, even in relation to similar civilizations in the region, as Wari. Not only are the resources for archaeological research limited in Bolivia, but many Tiwanaku sites are very high and in the remote areas of the Andes. “It is objectively difficult to document some of these sites,” said Wernke.
In relation: 31 Ancient temples around the world, from Göbekli Tepe to Parthenon
Despite these obstacles, scientists have gleaned limited information on Tiwanaku, such as the location of its capital and some ramifications of neighboring colonies. But understanding the social, economic and political structures of society has proven more delicate.
The biggest debate among experts is how Tiwanaku’s state has been organized, Wernke said. Some models pose a ruling class of Tiwanaku heritage which Supervised Provations of the capitalwhile others present society as A more equitable alliance of various peoples through civilization.
The new Palaspata Temple
After noticing a plot of non-mapped land, the researchers made unrelated flights above the region to get better photos. They then used photogrammetry, a technique that combines many digital photos to create a virtual 3D model, to build a detailed rendering of the structure. Their analysis revealed that the alignment of the Stones revealed a platform temple in terraces with parts on four sides arranged around an interior courtyard, according to the press release.
The ruins measure approximately 410 by 475 feet (125 per 145 meters) – at the size of a city block – and their structure seems designed for the performance of rituals around the solar equinoxSaid Capriles. Radiocarbon dating Samples of charcoal on the site showed that it was most intensively occupied from around 630 to 950 AD, the researchers revealed.
The Palaspata Temple complex, about 130 miles (210 kilometers) south of the previously established Tiwanaku archaeological site was located strategically. It was built in a place that linked three various commercial routes – joining the Highlands to the north, an arid plateau to the west, and valleys in the east – so the researchers think that the temple was, in part, intended to connect people from all over society, according to the press release.
Keru cup fragments, used to drink a traditional corn beer called “shisha” during celebrations, were found in ruins. These cups suggest that the temple was perhaps a central center for trade, said Capriles, because the drink requires ingredients from the relatively distant cochabamba valleys in the center of Bolivia.
“This site makes us rethink the long -distance links from Tiwanaku to Cochabamba and further south” Erik MarshAn anthropologist at the National University of Cuyo in Argentina who was not involved in the study, told Live Science in an email.
The temple also probably had a religious meaning, said Capriles. “Most economic and political transactions had to be publicized by the divinity, because it would be a common language which would facilitate that various individuals in cooperation.”
Palaspata supports the model of a coordinated and centralized societal structure in Tiwanaku because of its strategic location, Wernke said.
“He presents a new attractive and exciting piece of puzzle on Tiwanaku and early imperialism in the Andes,” he said. “This is certainly not the last piece we will hear about.”
