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The 5,000-year-old Pyramid City of Caral

The 5,000-year-old Pyramid City of Caral

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It is widely taught in the field of ancient history that Mesopotamia, Egypt, China, and India, gave rise to the first civilizations of mankind. However, few are aware that at the same time, and in some cases before some of these societies emerged, another great civilization had sprouted - the Norte Chico civilization of Supe, Peru – the first known civilization of the Americas. Their capital was the Sacred City of Caral – a 5,000-year-old metropolis complete with complex agricultural practices, rich culture, and monumental architecture, including six large pyramidal structures, stone and earthen platform mounds, temples, amphitheatre,  sunken circular plazas, and residential areas.

The Supe Valley, which lies 200 miles north of Lima on the Peruvian Pacific coast, was  surveyed in 1905 by the German archaeologist Max Uhle, who revealed the first archaeological discoveries in the area. However, it was not until several decades later that  full-scale excavations took place, revealing the tip of a very large iceberg. In the 1970s, archaeologists discovered that the hills originally identified as natural formations were actually stepped pyramids, and by the 1990s the full extent of the great city of Caral had emerged. But another great surprise was yet to come – in the year 2000, radiocarbon dating carried out on reed carrying bags found at the site revealed that Caral dated back to the Late Archaic period beginning around 3,000 BC.  Caral had now provided the most extensive evidence of an early complex society in the Americas.

The remains of the Sacred City of Caral, Peru

The remains of the Sacred City of Caral, Peru. Image source.

Caral is one of 18 settlements identified in the Supe valley, covering an area of around 65 hectares. It is situated on a dry desert terrace overlooking the lush valley of the Supe River. Exceptionally well-preserved, the site is impressive in terms of its design and the complexity of its architecture. The city’s plan and some of its features, including pyramidal structures and residences of the elite, show clear evidence of ceremonial functions, signifying a powerful religious ideology.

The centre of the Caral complex consists of a central public area with six large pyramids (platform mounds) arranged around a huge plaza. The largest of the mounds, located in a dominating position within the urban plan of Caral, is 60 feet high and measures 450 x 500 feet at the base, covering an area nearly the size of four football fields. From the top of the great pyramid, the rulers of Caral would have been able to monitor the entire city.  A 29-foot wide staircase opens into a series of small rooms, which include an atrium and a sacred altar. The altar room has a small hole in the floor, in which it appears that offerings were once burned.

Remains of the Great Pyramid of Caral

Remains of the Great Pyramid of Caral. Image source: Christopher Kleihege / UNESCO

The public architecture has stairs, rooms, courtyards, an amphitheatre, and three sunken plazas. Accommodation seems to have consisted of large rooms atop the pyramids for the elite, ground-level complexes for craftsmen, and small outlying dwellings for workers. In total, it is estimated that Caral was home to a population of about 3,000 people. Researchers believe the model of the city was used by many civilizations that came after the Norte Chico.

In 2001, the Sacred City of Caral in Supe was inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List.  UNESCO writes:

“The Sacred City of Caral-Supe reflects the rise of civilisation in the Americas. As a fully developed socio-political state, it is remarkable for its complexity and its impact on developing settlements throughout the Supe Valley and beyond… The design of both the architectural and spatial components of the city is masterful, and the monumental platform mounds and recessed circular courts are powerful and influential expressions of a consolidated state.”

Coming Next: Unique artifacts shed light on daily life in Caral

Featured image: The ancient city of Caral. Image source.

Part 2 - Unique artifacts shed light on daily life in 5,000-year-old city of Caral

References:

Exploring the oldest civilization in the Americas – Goshen College

Sacred City of Caral-Supe - UNESCO

Caral: the oldest town in the New World – Philip Coppens

Caral, the oldest city in America – Go2Peru

Caral: (Pyramid Complex) – Ancient-Wisdom

Watch documentary ‘The Lost Pyramids of Caral’.

By April Holloway

 

Comments

Nothing built of stone is dateable. So there is no point arguing about Pyramids.
It is indeed assumed that the Egyptians constructed those in Egypt, and there are indeed qualified individuals who then link pottery and food remains and bones and mummies etcetera with those constructions, but that is not proof of anything: it is not even evidence. The bins of rubbish you put out for the dustmen MAY indicate you live in the house they are in front of, but you did not build the house, which of course is full of your bits and bobs that temporarily are unrelated to it though spatially they may be.

So please stop arguing: nobody knows.

I find it interesting that we still teach that the first civilizations are from 5,000 years ago but the city found under the Atlantic, which has the world's tallest pyramids, may date 25,000 years. I think more research needs to be done on this site, it could change our entire idea of human history.

This was built by Vedic settlers, period.

The red & white Agni Temple gives it all away, not to mention the Egyptian symbol found on almost every Egyptian wall.

I think that if the date for the physical big fat ruined city is right, the hypothetical model for human migration after it must be wrong. Amusingly the actual "Smithsonian" website has articles 30000BC onwards but not 3000BC with regard to human migration. So I see your snark and raise it by a phnaar phnaar.

5000 years ago, the Peruvians were still walking from Siberia! :::snark::::

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April

April Holloway is a Co-Owner, Editor and Writer of Ancient Origins. For privacy reasons, she has previously written on Ancient Origins under the pen name April Holloway, but is now choosing to use her real name, Joanna Gillan.

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