essay
The early Nasca pilgrimage center of Cahuachi and the Nazca lines: anthropological and archaeological perspectives
lines of nazca • 183 • Published In 1990 • Pages: 207-244
By: Silverman, Helaine.
AbstractBrief abstract written by HRAF anthropologists who have done the subject indexing for the document
The author makes a case that the site of Cahuachi was a sacred place or a pilgrimage site, and that the geoglyphs or Nazca lines on the adjacent plain can be directly associated with it. Findings from excavations at Cahuachi are presented first, most pertaining to the middle Nazca phases (circa AD 1-600). The site contains only minor domestic remains and there are large open areas between the multiple mounds that are modifications of existing hill. Expectations for what a pilgrimage site ought to look like, archaeologically, are developed through study of the modern pilgrimage destination of Yauca del Rosario in the Ica Valley, consisting of little more than a church and plaza. Prior to the annual festival people come to sweep the plaza clean. The day before the festival the area fills up with pilgrims, and there is a market that continues the day of the festival. Afterward the area empties out again. The site is not cleaned immediately, and refuse is blown about by the winds; three months later the festival area is largely devoid of surface refuse. This is compared to the pattern of material remains at Cahuachi, along with comparisons to the coastal pilgrimage site of Pachacamac near Lima that reached its peak in subsequent pre-Columbian periods, and to early historical accounts of Andean pilgrimages.
- SubjectsDocument-level OCM identifiers given by the anthropology subject indexers at HRAF
- Experimental data
- Comparative evidence
- Miscellaneous facilities
- Visual arts
- Social relationships and groups
- Lineages
- Sacred objects and places
- Ritual
- Organized ceremonial
- traditionCulture name from the Outline of World Cultures (OWC)
- Nazca
- HRAF PubDateThe date HRAF published the document
- 2015
- RegionThe area the document pertains to
- South America
- Sub RegionThe more specific area the document pertains to, which is located within the Region
- Central Andes
- Document TypeMay include journal articles, essays, collections of essays, monographs, or chapters/parts of monographs
- essay
- Evaluation
- Creator TypeThe type of person writing the document, e.g. Ethnographer, Missionary, Archaeologist, Folklorist, Linguist, Indigenous Person, and so on.
- Archaeologist
- Document Rating A ranking done by HRAF anthropologists based on the strength of the source material on a scale of 1 to 5, as follows: 1 - poor; 2 - fair; 3 - good, useful data, but not uniformly excellent; 4 - excellent secondary data; 5 - excellent primary data.
- 4: Excellent Secondary Data
- 5: Excellent Primary Data
- AnalystThe HRAF anthropologist who subject indexed the document and prepared other materials for the eHRAF culture/tradition collection
- Sarah Berry; 2013
- Field DateThe date the researcher conducted the fieldwork or archival research that produced the document
- 1985, 1988
- Coverage DateThe date or dates that the information in the document pertains to
- 2000-1250 BP (AD 1-750)
- Coverage PlaceLocation of the research culture or tradition (often a smaller unit such as a band, community, or archaeological site)
- Cahuachi and the "Pampa" (Nazca Lines), El Ingenio and Nazca districts, Nazca, Ica, Peru
- NotesAdditional notes
- Helaine Silverman
- For bibliographical references see document 12:Aveni (1990, References cited…)
- LCCNLibrary of Congress Control Number
- 89084667
- LCSHLibrary of Congress Subject Headings
- Nazca culture
- Social structure--Peru--History
- Nazca Lines Site (Peru)