Set in a green valley amid a perimeter of mountains, Nazca's altitude puts it just above any fog which may drift in from the sea. The sun blazes the year round by day and the nights are crisp. Overlooking the town is Cerro Blanco (2,078m), the highest sand dune in the world, which is popular for sandboarding and parapenting.
About 22 km north of Nazca, above the Ingenio valley on the Pampa de San José, along the Pan-American Highway, are the famous Nazca Lines. Cut into the stony desert are large numbers of lines, not only parallels and geometrical figures, but also designs such as a dog, an enormous monkey, birds (one with a wing span of over 100m), a spider and a tree. The lines, best seen from the air, are thought to have been etched on the Pampa Colorada sands by three different groups - the Paracas people 900-200 BC, the Nazcas 200 BC - AD 600 and the settlers from Ayacucho at about AD 630.
There exist quite a lot theories abound, but one seems most excepted: The ancient Nazcas flew in hot-air ballons, this is based on the fact that the lines are best seen from the air, and that there are pieces of ancient local pottery and tapestry showing balloonists, and local legends of flying men. This in part accords with the most recent research. The clues to the function of the lines are found in the highly advanced pottery and textiles of the ancient Nazcans, some of which show a flying being emitting discharge from its nose and mouth. This is believed to portray the flight of the shaman who consumes certain psycho-active drugs that convince him he can fly and so enter the real world of spirits in order to rid sick people of evil spirits.
In this way, the lines are not designed to be seen physically from above, but from the mind's eye of the flying shaman. This also explains the presence of creatures such as a monkey or killer whale which possess qualities needed by the shaman in his spirit journey. Of the geometric figures, the straight lines are a feature of ancient Peruvian ritual behaviour, much like ley lines in Europe. The represent invisible paths of perceive energy, while the trapezoids are thought to have been ritual spaces where offering were made to the gods.
Escorted Tours including Nazca and its Lines:
- Essence of Peru (Lima, Cuzco, Machu Picchu, Lake Titicaca, Arequipa, Colca Canyon, Nazca Lines and Paracas)
