Fodor's Expert Review Nazca Lines
No less astonishing than Machu Picchu or other Peruvian wonders, this UNESCO World Heritage Site was discovered (or rediscovered) in 1926 by Peruvian archaeologist Toribio Mejía Xesspe, who stumbled upon them on a walk amid the foothills. Almost invisible from ground level, the lines were made by removing the surface stones and piling them beside the lighter soil underneath. More than 300 geometrical and biomorphic figures, some measuring up to 300 meters (1,000 feet) across, are etched into the desert floor, including a hummingbird, a monkey, a spider, a pelican, a condor, a whale, and an "astronaut," so named because of his goldfish-bowl-shaped head. In 2020, a research team came across a faded feline outline on a hillside. The catlike geoglyph stretches for 37 meters (120 feet) and has been dated to between 200-100 BCE, meaning it's part of the Late Paracas period and older than any of the other geoglyphs found in the area. Theories abound as to the purpose of these symbols, from... READ MORE
No less astonishing than Machu Picchu or other Peruvian wonders, this UNESCO World Heritage Site was discovered (or rediscovered) in 1926 by Peruvian archaeologist Toribio Mejía Xesspe, who stumbled upon them on a walk amid the foothills. Almost invisible from ground level, the lines were made by removing the surface stones and piling them beside the lighter soil underneath. More than 300 geometrical and biomorphic figures, some measuring up to 300 meters (1,000 feet) across, are etched into the desert floor, including a hummingbird, a monkey, a spider, a pelican, a condor, a whale, and an "astronaut," so named because of his goldfish-bowl-shaped head. In 2020, a research team came across a faded feline outline on a hillside. The catlike geoglyph stretches for 37 meters (120 feet) and has been dated to between 200-100 BCE, meaning it's part of the Late Paracas period and older than any of the other geoglyphs found in the area. Theories abound as to the purpose of these symbols, from landing strip for aliens to astronomical rituals or travel markers. Since 2000, investigators have discovered hundreds of additional figures, leading many to speculate that science hasn't begun to fathom this most puzzling of Peru's ancient mysteries.
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