Archaeologists in Peru unveil 3,500-year-old city that linked coast and Andes
Archaeologists reveal Peñico, a city that prospered 3,500 years ago, connecting the cultures of the Pacific coast with those of the Amazon.
Archaeologists unveiled a 3,500 year old city on Thursday in Peru, which probably served as a commercial hubs connecting the cultures of the Pacific Coast with those of the Andes and Amazon, prosperous at the same time as the first civilizations in the Middle East and in Asia.
Drone sequences published by the researchers show that the city center is marked by a circular structure on a terrace on a hillside, with remains of stone and mud buildings built at some 600 meters (1,970 feet) above the sea level.
The urban center, named Peñico, is located in the northern province of Barranca and was founded between 1,800 and 1,500 BC. It is close to the place where Carale civilization, the oldest of the Americas, developed 5,000 years ago.
Caral, made up of 32 monumental structures, is considered a contemporary of civilizations in Egypt, India, Summeria and China. However, unlike them, he developed in complete isolation, according to the researchers.
Ruth Shady, the archaeologist who conducted research in Peñico, said that the newly revealed city is the key because the experts think that it appeared after the Carale civilization was devastated by climate change.
The curator Rafael Gordillo Mendez reveals the painted surface of the pillar on the archaeological site of Panamarca. (Credit: Paisajes Arqueologicos de Panamarca – Lisa Trever / Handout via Reuters)
“They were located in a strategic location for trade, for exchanges with coastal, highlands and jungle companies,” said Shady.
The continuation of the Caral company
Archaeologist Marco Machacuay, researcher of the Ministry of Culture, said at a press conference that the importance of Peñico lies in the continuation of Caral.
After eight years of study, the researchers identified up to 18 structures in Penico, including ceremonial temples and residential complexes.
The walls of a Central Plaza are distinguished for their sculptural reliefs and their representations of the pututu, a trumpet of conch shell whose sound carries long distances.
In other buildings, researchers have found clay sculptures of human and animal figures, ceremonial objects and necklaces made from pearls and shells, they added.
Peru is a center of ancient cultures and which houses archaeological sites such as the Inca ruins of Machu Picchu in Cusco and the mysterious Nazca lines located in the region of the desert along the central coast of the country.
