July
20
/ 2023
An open-air “sounding” dance floor in Peru has been discovered, designed to mimic a drum-like sound, perhaps for a thunder god when stomped upon! Built sometime between 1000 and 1400 AD, the site called Viejo Sangayaico is located 200 kilometers (124.2 mi) southeast of the Peruvian capital of Lima. It was also very much in use during Inca rule between 1400 and 1532, and possibly even during the early years of the Spanish conquest. Association with the Divine: Summoning the Thunder God through Dance “We know that in pre-Hispanic Andean rituals dance was a big part of the proceedings. I believe that this specially constructed platform was built to enhance the natural sounds associated with dance,” says Kevin Lane, an
