Mar 17, 2016 - Discover Hand of the Desert in Chile: A sculpture of a giant hand reaches for the stars in the middle of the Atacama desert.

The Nazca Lines are located in the desert plains of the Rio Grande de Nasca river basin, an archaeological site that spans more than 75,000 hectares and … Visit to see the otherworldly terrain, which include sights like the dune-filled Moon Valley (Valle de la Luna) and Laguna Baltinache, which has the same salt content as the Dead Sea.

Once you’ve had a caffeine fix, amble up Cerro Santa Lucia that offers great views over the city, before strolling through Parque Forestal to …

Hundreds of pictures were created in the desert between the … "The figures reflect the work and the gracefulness of the pre-Columbian Andean world — of local ancestors who, in their quest to tame the wilderness, to provide it with content and culture, painted the hillsides with huge figures, as if they wanted to compete with the infinite desert," Pimentel told EFE.Get breaking news alerts and special reports. What is seen in the skies is a reflection of what there is on Earth.Unlike the Greeks, though, ancient Atacama astrologists didn't see Orion, Gemini or Cancer. Your feedback will go directly to Science X editors.Thank you for taking your time to send in your valued opinion to Science X editors.

40, Issue. You can unsubscribe at any time and we'll never share your details to third parties. "According to Rumualda Galleguillos, one of around 15 indigenous people still raising llamas in the Atacama Desert like their ancestors, these pictures are a "testament" to forefathers who could neither read nor write.Around 90 precent of the engravings, painted mainly in red but also ochre yellow and white, depict llamas of various sizes, some pregnant, others suckling their young.But the remaining 10 percent depict the desert's diversity, such as foxes, snakes, ostriches, partridges and dogs.The few human figures that appear are tiny, as if those painting them "wanted to go unnoticed in front of the greatness of animals that were so important to their economy," said Berenguer.What the paintings also demonstrate is that 2,500 years ago, people were already studying the stars in an area that has more recently become the astronomy capital of the world with some of the most powerful telescopes ever built.A book written in conjunction with the Atacama observatory called "The Universe of our Grandparents," claims that the ancient inhabitants of this area studied the stars to help learn how to domesticate the inhospitable desert and survive its dangers.In this vision, the universe is made up of the skies and Earth as one whole, with the skies forming the horizon of life. Colonial art. By using our site, you acknowledge that you have read and understand our Most of these mysterious geoglyphs were created by the Nazca people, who lived in the area from 200 to 700 CE. Medical Xpress covers all medical research advances and health news Tech Xplore covers the latest engineering, electronics and technology advances Science X Network offers the most comprehensive sci-tech news coverage on the web

Briones-M L. 2006. Open air rock paintings in the world's driest desert pay testament to the importance of the llama to millennia-old cultures that traversed the inhospitable terrain. You can be assured our editors closely monitor every feedback sent and will take appropriate actions.

"There's evidence that this site was built here for specific reasons," said Berenguer.Taira is not the oldest example of rock art in this part of Chile, though.

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Artistically, the period began around the mid-17th century and was led at first by the Spanish Jesuits and by working artisans who lacked specialized artistic training. The period saw a mixing of European techniques with native cultural heritage.

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Consumption of animals beyond diet in the Atacama Desert, northern Chile (13,000–410BP): Comparing rock art motifs and archaeofaunal records.

"No one can understand the things done 18,000 years ago because the cultures that did them have disappeared," said Berenguer, curator at Santiago's Museum of Pre-Columbian Art. Chile's Atacama Desert is also host to a set of geoglyphs that are best seen from the air. The geoglyphs of the Atacama Desert were built using three essential methods, ‘extractive’, ‘additive’ and ‘mixed’. Most lines run straight across the landscape, but there are also figurative designs of animals and plants.

In the north is the Atacama Desert… To the north in the copper mining Antofagasta region lies Kalina, around 1,000-1,200 years older than Taira, and Milla.This style of art has been found also in the Puna de Atacama plateau in neighboring Argentina, but Taira "has few equals in terms of beauty and complexity," said Berenguer.One day, he hopes that Taira will be afforded UNESCO World Heritage Site status like the rock art in the Cave of Altamira in Spain or France's Lascaux caves. Gaze at the art in the Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino and the Museo de Bellas Artes, then grab a coffee in one of Lastarria’s best cafés. The geoglyphs of the north Chilean desert: an archaeological and artistic perspective. The fact that the Atacama Desert is one of the driest places on Earth helped preserve the drawings.The shapes may have functioned as signposts or route markers, because they're typically found far away from the sites of ancient settlements. Journal of Anthropological Archaeology, Vol. Atacama (Chile) (AFP) - Open air rock paintings in the world's driest desert pay testament to the importance of the llama to millennia-old cultures that traversed the inhospitable terrain.Conservationists working in Chile's Atacama Desert want UNESCO to recognize the Taira Valley drawings as a heritage site so they can develop sustainable tourism in the region.Taira is "a celebration of life," said archeologist Jose Bereguer, describing the site as "the most complex in South America" because of its astronomical importance as well as the significance to local shepherds.The rock art was a "shepherd's rite" needed to ask the "deities that governed the skies and the earth" to increase their llama flocks.First rediscovered by Swedish archeologist Stig Ryden in 1944, the Taira rock art is between 2,400 and 2,800 years old.It is made up of a gallery of 16 paintings more than 3,000 meters (9,842 feet) above sea level on the banks of the Loa River that traverses the desert.The jewel in the crown are the Alero Taira drawings some 30 meters from the Loa in a natural shelter, in which the importance of the llama becomes abundantly clear.Not just the principal source of wealth for desert dwellers over thousands of years, the llama has been used in ritual ceremonies throughout the Andes for just as long, such as in the "Wilancha," or sacrifice to "Pacha Mama," or Mother Earth.

These massive, ancient designs are one of archeology’s greatest mysteries.