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Chávin de Huántar

Chavin the Huantar is the name of one of the greatest civilizations of Peru.

On the road to Chavin de Huantar archaeological sites you must go through Huaraz, capital of Ancash, in a region offering interesting adventure tourism, ecology tourism and mountaineering circuits.

The Chavin de Huantar center is located in the high valley of Mosna (3,150 meters above sea level), halfway between the coast and the jungle, and separated from each of these by two high cordilleras; today, Chavin de Huantar is a town hidden in a small valley at 3,177 meters above sea level, at the eastern foot of the "White Cordillera". The town is partially built over the archaeological site, which cover some 40 hectares. The remains are of an important ceremonial center dating from the first millennium BC that remained famous until de 16th and 17th centuries. In the twenties, the eminent Peruvian archaeologist Julio C. Tello recognized their vital importance for the early history of Peru and the Americas, making them a keystone of his vision of the origin of early culture in Peru.

One important feature are the "Cabezas Clavas" (Nail-Heads). These were stone heads adorning the outer façade of the "Chavin de Huantar" complex. Currently only one of these remains as originally placed. Archaeologists have given them this strange name because their necks go through the walls in the manner of nails. These "Nail-Heads" are anthropomorphic but have feline attributes.

There is also the Estela Raymondi (Raymondi Stele) wich represents the God of the Walking Sticks (a prototype of later images such as that on the Sun Doorway of the Tiahuanaco culture, frequently identified as the god Viracocha). It could be the same divinity, although its original location and context are unknown; it was named after the Italian naturalist and geographer Antonio Raymondi, who took it to Lima to study and preserve it. It is carved on a rectangular slab of granite measuring 1.98 m high by 74 cm wide and 17cm thick.