Nazca

Located 140 Km South of Ica, in a beautiful green valley. Sunny days and cool nights, windy afternoons and very little rain are the main characteristics of this land.

The Nazca culture flourished here between the second and fifth centuries, using very advanced irrigation systems (including canals, aqueducts etc.)


Importan Sights and Museums

Museum Maria Reiche
Located about 20 Km North of Nazca. A very interesting collection of photographs of the Nazca Lines.

The Cemetery of Chauchilla
30 Km South of Nazca: Mummies, and human remains are scattered in the dessert, due to the grave robbers. This place is being restored.

Aqueducts of Cantayoc
Underground aqueducts and canals built by the Nazca culture, built with river rocks. They are still in use today.

Nazca Lines
Around 25 Km North of Nazca are the famous Nazca Lines. Etched on the Pampa sand by the Nazca people over a surface of more than 1,000 square Kilometers. The lines can be best appreciated from the air, and they constitute probably the greatest archaeological puzzles in the world. It is estimated that their construction started around 400 BC and it continued for the next one thousand years.

The geoglyphs characterize several species of birds, a fish, a spider, a monkey, plants through a labyrinth of straight lines, spirals, triangles etc.

Maria Reiche, a German Mathematician who arrived in Peru in 1930, dedicated her entire live to the study of the lines, concluding that they probably represent a giant astronomical calendar. Maria, The Lady of the Lines passed away in 1998 leaving the greatest contribution in the discovering of this magnificent mystery.


Protected Areas

Paracas National Reserve