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Ancient petroglyphs at the Valle del Encanto in Chile. Source: Vera & Jean-Christophe / CC BY-SA 2.0

The Alien Petroglyphs of Chile’s Valle del Encanto

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The Enchanted Valley, known as el Valle del Encanto in Spanish, is one of the most well-known rock art sites in Chile. Home to a varied set of petroglyphs, pictographs and so-called cup-marked stones, these archaeological remains have been attributed to the El Molle culture from 2,300 years ago. However, this author argues that these puzzling petroglyphs date back to a far earlier era and that they are actually part of a lithic library recording the visit of ancient aliens to planet Earth during prehistoric times.

Representations of Viracocha - with a large headdress – in Chile's Enchanted Valle. (Author provided)

Representations of Viracocha - with a large headdress – in Chile's Enchanted Valle. (Author provided)

The Pre-Colombian Rock Art of Valle del Encanto

The Enchanted Valley is located in a gorge of the Punitaqui estuary in the region of Coquimbo in northern Chile, just 26 kilometers (16 mi) west of the city of Ovalle. This ancient archaeological site is known for its varied rock art which established archaeologists have associated with the El Molle Cultural Complex which existed in the area from about the 3rd century BC to the 8th century AD.

Following the cosmological concepts of the Glacial Cosmogony theory, also known as the Welteislehre or World Ice Doctrine, I would argue that these remains are actually much older and date back as far as the last flood catastrophe around 12,900 years ago. This would make these remains contemporary to the Paleo-American population of dolichocephalic skulls, popularly known as elongated skulls.

The petroglyphic representations visible at the Enchanted Valley of northern Chile mostly depict anthropomorphic figures. Through analysis of aboriginal mythical-sacred traditions recorded in chronicles and ethno-historic sources, some of these figures have been identified as representing Viracocha, the supreme god of the Inca believed to have created all things. Viracocha was known as the “White God” by post-conquest Spanish chroniclers.

Other anthropomorphic representations found in the Enchanted Valley remain a mystery to archaeologists and historians alike. In fact, one of the most fascinating petroglyphs in the Valle del Encanto is a figure depicted with a prominent head and large eyes.

This figure bears a striking resemblance to various Araucanian cultic representations – a culture located essentially in the Region of La Araucanía, in southern Chile – in which the superciliary, or eyebrow, arch is demarcated. How could this similarity be explained in pre-Hispanic cultural groups separated by more than 1,120 kilometers (695 mi)?

When it comes to understanding the Enchanted Valley petroglyphs, several questions come to mind. Who created them? Who, or what, are they portraying? What was the role of this enigmatic figure? Why did pre-Hispanic craftsmen feel the need to represent this being?

a. Anthropomorphic petroglyph in the Valle del Encanto. b. Reverse of Araucanian culture carved cultic figure with a prominent head, large eyes and a small body. c. A Sumerian idol in terracotta with prominent head and large eyes. d. A characteristic representation of a Grey alien. (Author provided)

a. Anthropomorphic petroglyph in the Valle del Encanto. b. Reverse of Araucanian culture carved cultic figure with a prominent head, large eyes and a small body. c. A Sumerian idol in terracotta with prominent head and large eyes. d. A characteristic representation of a Grey alien. (Author provided)

Peculiar Pre-Hispanic Petroglyphs and Ancient Astronaut Theories

These peculiar pre-Hispanic representations are related to contemporary descriptions of extraterrestrials usually called “Greys.” These are archetypal humanoid beings described as having grey skin, large heads, tiny bodies, thin arms and legs, and large, oval eyes.

Paleo-SETI historiography, which focuses on the study of ancient astronauts (“paleo” referring to ancient times and “SETI” standing for the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence), has approached the study of the presence of extraterrestrials in ancient times through the study of myths, sources and archaeological remains.

This field has been spearheaded by Erich von Däniken, the Swiss author known for publishing a selection of books which in essence argue that ancient astronauts or extraterrestrials visited Earth and left their mark on human culture. The belief they espouse is that certain constructions and artifacts are evidence of highly developed technical knowledge, including the Moai of Rapa Nui (Easter Island) or the pyramids of ancient Egypt. Meanwhile, certain artwork, such as the petroglyphs of the Enchanted Valley, are deemed to be depictions of ancient astronauts or extraterrestrials.

Left: Face of Viracocha with a large headdress in the Valle del Encanto. Center: Detail of an anthropomorphic figure with “antennas”. Right: Head-tiara. (Author provided)

Left: Face of Viracocha with a large headdress in the Valle del Encanto. Center: Detail of an anthropomorphic figure with “antennas”. Right: Head-tiara. (Author provided)

Do the Enchanted Valley Petroglyphs Depict Ancient Aliens?

For some, the pre-Hispanic iconography of Chile evidenced in the petroglyphs of the Enchanted Valley appear to corroborate the existence of the fabled ‘Grey aliens’. For others, the petroglyphic figures within the Chilean Valle del Encanto are representations of the god Viracocha - recognizable mainly by the irradiations and tiaras on their heads.

But, what is the reason for having engraved these figures in the lithic blocks of the Enchanted Valley of northern Chile? One hypothesis is that the authors of these ancient petroglyphs sought to capture a symbolic reminiscence that would preserve the knowledge of the aliens. The term alien comes from the Latin alienus, transliterated in turn from the Greek all-os, which means “generated on another earth,” that is of beings descended from the firmament.

Left: One of the main concentrations of cup-marked stones in the Valle del Encanto. These pre-Hispanic manifestations are “water mirrors” that would correspond to celestial / astral patterns. Right: Another set of cup-marked stones. (Author provided)

Left: One of the main concentrations of cup-marked stones in the Valle del Encanto. These pre-Hispanic manifestations are “water mirrors” that would correspond to celestial / astral patterns. Right: Another set of cup-marked stones. (Author provided)

This symbolic conception in the Valle del Encanto is also based on the presence of innumerable cup-marked stones. These cavities served as what have been called “water mirrors” or demarcation landmarks of constellations and stellar patterns, evidence of the cult of the stars. Later, with the passage of time, these lithic representations acquired a mythical-magical-religious nature for hunter-shamans, as well as for the late indigenous populations – also known as the brachycephalic groups.

Following this line of thinking, it is plausible to understand the captivating archaeological site at the Enchanted Valley as a lithic library where the knowledge of extraterrestrial intelligence in ancient history was recorded in stone using ideograms. Pre-Hispanic myths have also preserved this tradition.

This knowledge can also be described as memories of the future, a future that was experienced in the distant past. The petroglyphs of the Enchanted Valley have been left behind, existing as very distant echoes which bear witness to the passage of the ‘extraterrestrial’ gods in Chile in ancient history.

Top image: Ancient petroglyphs at the Valle del Encanto in Chile.            Source: Vera & Jean-Christophe / CC BY-SA 2.0

By Rafael Videla Eissmann

References

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Rengifo, R. 1919. El Secreto de la América Aborigen. I. Noticias y comentarios arqueologicos. Imprenta Universitaria. Santiago de CHile

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Rengifo, R. 1920. El Secreto de la América Aborigen III. Los chiles. Imprenta Universitaria. Santiago de Chile.

Rengifo, R. 1920. Arte gráfico y poético de los primitivos y los chiles. Impreso en los Talleres de la Empresa Zig-Zag. Santiago de Chile.

Rengifo, R. 1921. El Secreto de la América Aborigen IV. Extractos de Actas de la Sociedad Científica. Imprenta Universitaria. Santiago de Chile.

Rengifo, R. 1935. El papel del territorio de Chile en la evolución de la humanidad prehistorica. Imprenta Universitaria: Santiago de Chile.

 

Comments

IJ Brown's picture

Aliens… get a grip. Its called artistic licence… If you dont know what that is, go visit a musuem or an art gallery and imagine yourself in 3050 explaining what the painting meant. 

Rafael Videla Eissmann's picture

Rafael

 

Rafael Videla Eissmann is a historian from Chile (Santiago, 1979) who has written several books and articles about the Antarctic origins of mankind, the vestiges of the primal civilization of the Americas and its symbols, as well as other... Read More

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