Archaeology, Exploration, Travel/Tourism

Heavy rain damages Peru’s famed Nazca lines

Heavy rains have damaged Peru’s famed Nazca lines, a top tourist attraction and one of the world’s greatest archaeological mysteries, reported daily Peru21 on Tuesday.

Precipitation has left a layer of white desert clay and sand atop some of the fingers of a geoglyph known as “the hand.”

The damage is minor, “and is reversible,” said archaeologist Mario Olaechea, of Peru’s National Culture Institute.

“We are presently conducting a field evaluation,” said Olaechea. “We have observed minor damage, and believe that the geoglyph can be restored.”

The sand and clay should soon be carefully dusted away to restore the geoglyph.

Since their discovery by American scientist Paul Kosok in 1939, the Nazca lines on Peru’s rocky Pampa San José have mystified scholars and astounded tourists.

Originally considered to be the vestiges of irrigation lines beyond the lush Nazca valley, the hundreds of figures – ranging in complexity from simple lines to stylized marine animal figures and birds including a hummingbird, pelican and condor – are now a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the most popular tourist destinations in Peru.

However, as only the lizard, hands and the tree figures can be seen from the a viewing platform located adjacent to the Pan-American Highway, hundreds of planes fly over the lines from dawn to dusk every day.

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