Nazca Lines- The mystery of Geoglyphs
Situated in the Nazca Desert (southern Peru).
Made on the flat desert plateau between the Andes and the Pacific coast.
Stretch across about 1,000 sq. km (390 sq. miles).
Types of Figures
There are over 800 straight lines, 300 geometric shapes, and 70 animal/plant figures (geoglyphs),human forms. New ones are still being discovered, so the number keeps growing.
Some famous ones:
Animals: Monkey, Spider, Hummingbird, Condor, Whale, Dog.
Plants: Flowers, Trees.
Geometric Shapes: Spirals, trapezoids, arrows, zigzags.
Some figures are up to 1,200 feet (370 m) long, visible only from the air.
The fact that these enormous designs can only be fully appreciated from the sky is baffling, given the Nazca people had no known way of flying.
Their true purpose remains unknown—religion, astronomy, or something beyond?
Combined with their scale and precision, they remain one of archaeology’s great enigmas.
1994: UNESCO declared the Nazca Lines a World Heritage Site.
One day, while flying over the Nazca desert, the pilot, Captain Edwards, saw some figures carved in the desert. Captain Edwards, seeing the strange figure, thought that this was not the work of an ordinary man. He informed his colleagues about the land via radio, but no one had any idea or knowledge about it. How could the images of perfectly straight lines, circular shapes, and giant animals and birds have been created on the ground? The mystery grew as these images appeared. Even if you try to see these pictures standing on the ground, you cannot see them. These pictures can only be seen from the sky.
In 1927, a Peruvian military plane flying over the Peruvian desert first saw these mysterious lines. They reported the information to journalists and the Peruvian government. Then, in 1930, a German mathematician and archaeologist, Maria Reiche, and an American history professor, Paul Kosok, researched them. German mathematician Maria is also known as the "Lady of the Lines".
When they studied the structure of these figures and lines, they found that there were no ordinary figures. Some of the figures were of giant birds, spiders, monkeys and whale in the sea. There were so many pearl figures and paintings that they could completely cover a city. Some of the figures are geometric, such as the shape of an arrow, circular structures and triangles. Some of the figures are made of such straight lines that they extend for several kilometers. Like a runway for landing an airplane.
But there was still a question: how were such large figures made in perfectly straight lines? Because it was impossible to see these figures standing on the ground. And how have these carved lines not been erased even after thousands of years? It is said that 2,000 years ago, the Nazca civilization had advanced irrigation, astronomical knowledge, and mathematics. But they did not have the modern tools to carve figures on solid ground for several kilometers.
So how were these shapes made? Was there anyone who could see these shapes from the sky? When scientists compared these shapes with astronomical objects, they noticed a surprising thing. When scientists looked at a hummingbird shape, it matched the order of the stars in space. The figure of the monkey was also carved according to the order of the stars, which corresponded to the Ursa Major constellation. Some straight lines are such that they indicate the directions of the moon and sun on certain important days of the year. That is, these figures are not ordinary figures. They look like astronomical maps in a way. But how and where are they maps? The answer to this was found in 1976. In 1976, an archaeologist found some caves in the Nazca desert. Some ancient paintings were found on the walls of those caves. Those pictures created a different mystery. Some of the strange figures were human-like. Some had large heads and large mysterious eyes, resembling some kind of creature or alien. Some of the paintings showed mysterious saucers descending from the sky and some were human figures with large heads, but they didn't seem earthly. What does this show us? That the Nazca culture was in contact with aliens?
It's not just the sheer scale of this civilization's existence and the mystery associated with aliens that scares us, but the biggest mystery behind them is their sudden disappearance from Earth.
When scientists excavated this place in 1990, they found some remains of the bones of the Nazca people. But they found something different in the human skeleton. Some of the human skulls were unusually long, and their heads were different from the body. As if they were deliberately made that way. When these bones were tested for DNA, it was found that some of these bones were not human bones. Some of these bones had strange types of trauma wounds on them.
It is said that the decline of the Nazca culture may have occurred between 400 and 700 AD. It has also been suggested that this may have been due to a natural disaster. Because around AD 450, a huge earthquake occurred in this part of Peru. In addition, there was a drought for about 40 years in this region. Due to this, it gradually became difficult for the Nazca people to live and this culture may have ended. Or there is also a theory that these people went to another world with the aliens who came here. But this has not been proven yet.
In the 1980s, when UFO researchers analyzed the Nazca Lines in the desert, they found that the lines were as straight and level as a runway. A different energy was recorded in the systems at this location, which was affecting radio signals.
In 2000, when NASA satellites took thermal images of the Nazca Lines, they noticed some strange patterns. Electromagnetic anomalies were recorded around some of the images. According to scientists, there was an unknown energy source there. The people of Nazca have been saying for years that we and our ancestors saw flying saucers or flying lights in the sky. Similarly, in 1986, a private pilot saw a flying saucer in the sky during a plane flight.
Some scientists believe that one logical explanation is that the Nazca people removed oxidized dark stone from the surface of the desert, exposing the underlying layer. The reason these lines were created is because the region has no wind, a very dry environment, and a stable climate, which protected and preserved the area.
The size and length of these figures raises the question of how the Nazca people were able to draw figures several kilometers long and as large as a football field without being seen from the sky and in a straight line. The Nazca Lines were not just a creative design, they were also religiously significant. According to historians and scholars, some special figures were part of these rituals. Creatures like the humming bird, monkey, condor were considered sacred. Most of them were associated with water. The Nazca Desert was short of water, so the figures associated with water were given importance.
In the 1980s, archaeologists excavated evidence around the Nazca Lines. They found some metal remains, some grains, and sea shells, suggesting that these lines were carved to please some deity. They were probably for water and agricultural production. During this excavation, they found a city called Cahuachi, spread over 370 acres, buried underground. It was the main city found in the Nazca culture. Some temples, pottery used for religious purposes, and engraved pottery were found in it. Some severed human skulls were also found in this. It is believed that these people also practiced human sacrifice.
Scientists are still researching this, and are proposing different theories. It is still partly an unsolved puzzle.
The Spider -46 meters long.
The Humming bird -50 meters long.
The Tree -88 meters long.
The Astronaut -40 meters long.
The Macaw -25 meters long.
The Iguana -155 meters long.
The Labyrinth -72 meters long.
The Parrot -175 meters long.
The Condor -135 meters long.
The Lizard -180 meters long.
The Hands -50 meters long.
The Spiral -80 meters long.
The Fish - 54 meters long.
The Whale -52 meters long.
The Monkey -110 meters long.
The Heron -285 meters long.
The Dog -84 meters long.
The Flower -124 meters long.
The Bird -88 meters long.
How to visit:
From Lima(Peru's capital):
By Bus:
Several companies (Cruz del Sur, Oltursa, Peru Hop) run 7–9 hour buses from Lima to Nazca.
Comfortable overnight buses available.
By Car:
You can drive or hire a private taxi/van via the Pan-American Highway (~7 hrs).
By Flight:
No direct flights to Nazca, but you can fly Lima → Pisco (1 hr), then continue ~3 hrs by car/bus to Nazca.
Scenic Flight (Best Option)
Small planes take you over the lines for 30–40 minutes.
Cost: $80–$120 USD per person (plus ~$10 airport tax).
You’ll see all major figures (Monkey, Hummingbird, Spider, Astronaut, etc.).
Flights depart from Nazca Airport and also from Pisco Airport (closer to Lima).
Viewing Towers
Along the Pan-American Highway, there are observation towers (~20 m high).
Cheap option (~$5 entry), but you can only see a few figures (Tree, Hands, Lizard).
