"Pachacámac" in Quechua means "Pacha" world, and "camac" to animate -- "The One who Animates the World." The site was considered one of the most important religious centers of the indigenous peoples of the central Andes and contains a number of pyramids.
Do you see the hill in the background of this photo?
THAT is the massive "Temple of the Sun" which faces the sea.
For thousands of years before the arrival of Pissarro, there was no getting lost in the Andes because ALL roads/footpaths eventually led to Pachacamac, which is located on the Pacific coast, just 40km south of Lima, Peru.
All the great leaders and holy men were brought here after death and prepared for the after life...using mummification processess similar to Egypt.
However if you did get lost, you could refer to a knotted map....called Quipu (pronounced Kee Poo).
Here are some of photos of Quipu in the museum....sorry about the glass glare.
I made a photo of one of the museum posters showing a handmade native trail crisscrossing the Andes. Wish I could I had already seen this for myself...
Have no fear...it is on the list!
I'll take the "Royal Road" (Quapaq Nan) to Pachacamac....you take the high road! And we will all get to Pachacamac in the morning....
Double click on this image to see how high the trails actually go...
Another museum sign worth photographing...
And this is a road into Pachacamac that is partially excavated...
And here he is...drum roll please....
The all great and powerful Pachacamac...the one who speaks like the Oracle of Delphi. He is a totem staff, carved of wood, who depicts a human figure with felines and serpent features.
Jennifer is standing next to the Pachacamac replica, who holds court on site.The people made no artistic images of Pachacamac because they believed he was invisible. Only the priests were allowed to commune with the Oracle directly. They would present questions and then transmit the answers back to the throngs of visitors who arrived in great number. I am sure there were offerings in exchange for answers!
Our wonderful host, Jennifer Valera, hired an Incan archealogical site guide for the afternoon. We were then allowed to drive, instead of walking up, around, and across 210 acres of massive temples, etc....
Shows both front and back of the Pachacamac staff.
Pardon this little bit of history:
Pacha Kamaq (Earth-Maker) was considered the creator god by the people who lived in this part of Peru before the Inca conquest. Later, the Inca considered him a lesser rival of Viracocha, their own creator god.
Double click to enlarge the museum poster...
The myths that survive of Pachacamac are sparse and confused....
Myth One: some say that he, Manco Cápac and Viracocha were the sole three sons of Inti, the sun god.
Myth Two: he made the first man and the first woman, but forgot to give them food — and when the man died and the woman prayed over Pachacamac's head to his father Inti to make her the mother of all the peoples of earth. Pachacamac was furious. One by one, as the children were born, he tried to kill them — only to be beaten and to be thrown into the sea by her hero-son Wichama, after which he gave up the struggle and contented himself by becoming the supreme god of fish.
Myth Three: "in the beginning there were no foods for the first man and the first woman, and the man died of starvation. The Sun then fertilized the woman and she produced an offspring. Pachacámac became jealous of his heir, and killed the offspring, scattering the remains. These became the essential ingredients of humanity: the "teeth of man" were maize, his "bones" were made of yuca.
Do you see any similarities in these stories? The Incan people were on the other side of the planet, far away from the Greek tales of Poseidon and the stories in the Old Testament. Yet...they are similar. Fascinating...
.....the "Poseidon" Pachacamac...
Welcome to Pachacamac!
Double click on the photo to see this enlarged map...
See the silly touristas in the taxi! Just a bit crowded....
Age has is priviledges....hehehe....
Notice that the guide is wearing long sleeves, a hat and big sunglasses.
Peru is the only place I have been where you can fry and freeze at the same time!
The first occupation of Pachacamac began around 200 AD. Complex architecture included stone walls that served as the base for the fantastic adobe structures.
As numerous conquering cultures continued to accept Pachacamac, the site grew to well over 210 acres...adding temple after temple.
When the Incas arrived last, between 1450-1532 AD they also adopted the pre-existing temples and further added the "Temple of the Sun," the "Acllahuasi" (chosen women's temple), the "Palace of Taurichumbi" and the "Seat of the Peregrinos."
Museum Model...photo of the site...
Road One...
Try to imagine how brilliant the colors were back then....
The "Temple of the Sun" long ago looked like a temple of gold that Coronado searched for in plains of Texas long ago.... Maybe he didn't use the right quipu?
Double click on the photo to enlarge for reading...
Here I am in the museum pretending to be leaning on the entrance of the Ramp Pyramid.
The spectacular Incan Temple of the Sun is located at the top of a rocky promontory and overlooks the Pacific ocean. It is constructed of four pyramid bodies truncated to superimpose one another. It acquires the form of a staggered pyramid with a trapezoidal appearance. The most important part of this temple corresponds to the superior terrace and diversity of compartments dedicated to the Cult of the Sun.
The main access is formed by a zigzag structure. Much of the original red and yellow paint can still be viewed on the walls.
"El Templo del Sol"....
Double click on the photo for reading englargement...
From the back side of the temple from where the paths upward start...
A little more history...please...
Manco Capac was the legendary founder of the Inca Dynasty in Peru and the Cuzco Dynasty at Cuzco. The legends and history surrounding this mythical figure are very jumbled.
One legend says Manco Cápac and his siblings, who emerged from the waters of Lake Titicaca, were sent to the earth by Inti, the sun god and that Inti gave Manco a golden staff called "tapac-yauri." The siblings were instructed to create a Temple of the Sun in the spot where the staff sank into the earth to honor Inti, their father. The Incan Emperors believed they were the lineal descendants of Inti, the sun god. Egypt anyone???
In another legend, Manco Capac was the son of Tici Virachocha, who created the universe, sun, moon and stars, time (by commanding the sun to move over the sky) and civilization itself.
Virachocha made mankind by breathing into stones, but his first creation were brainless giants that displeased him. So he destroyed them with a flood and made a new, better one from smaller stones. Una Pachakuti was the great flood sent by Virachocha to destroy the giants that built Tiwanaku, an ancient fortress city on the shores of Lake Titicaca.
Viracocha eventually disappeared across the Pacific Ocean (by walking on the water), and never returned. He wandered the earth disguised as a beggar, teaching his new creations the basics of civilization, as well as working numerous miracles. He wept when he saw the plight of the creatures he had created. It was thought that Viracocha would re-appear in times of trouble.
A Spanish priest, Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa, documented that Viracocha was described as "a man of medium height, white and dressed in a white robe like an alb secured round the waist, and that he carried a staff and a book in his hands." REALLY? REALLY?
Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa (1532 – 1592) was a Spanish explorer, author, historian, astronomer, and scientist. In 1572 he was commissioned by Francisco de Toledo, the fifth Viceroy of Peru, to write a history of the Incas. Toledo hoped such a history would justify Spanish colonisation by revealing the violent history of the Incas. Thus, Sarmiento collected oral accounts first hand from Inca informants and produced a history (commonly titled The History of the Incas) that chronicles their violent conquest of the region.
I am thinking that Toledo was more likely trying to justify the cruelty and theft of the Spaniards!
Do you thinkGamboa changed the legend just a bit...maybe?
BUT PLEASE REMEMBER this friar's account of history....because I have a hypothesis of my own for a later post...after my trip to Lake Titicaca...and Tiwanaku.
Miles of dirt roads like this crisscross the vastness of the Pachacamac archealogical dig...
The Incans worshipped Viracocha as god of the sun and storms. He wore the sun for a crown, thunderbolts in his hands, and tears descending from his eyes as rain.
We were not the only visitors to the temple that day...Peruvian Boy Scouts were there as well....absorbing the former culture.
Here are a few views of the surrounding scenery as we walked upwards toward the sun...
Up we go...and don't go too far the right!
See the ship in the Pacific far in the distance?
This view gives you an indication of the size of part of the dig site...
To the left of the trees is the Moon Temple. There is a defined road that leaves the Temple of the Sun. It's straight path leads to the Temple of the Moon....where the "virgin" women priestesses live....
Hmmm.....
There are not many places in Peru that are lush and green. This is a photo of the Lurin Valley, where the agriculture next to the sea flourishes. It is also one of the most seismically stable areas in Peru.
How did the "old ones" know to build their massive temples here? Pachacamac must have told them!
From the top of the pyramid facing west to the Pacific, you can see a series of islands that resemble a sea monster. OF COURSE you want to know about the legend of the rocks right?
Cavillace (pronounced Ka-va Ya Chey) was a virgin goddess who ate a fruit, which was actually the sperm of Coniraya, the moon god. When she gave birth to a son, she demanded that the father step forward. No one did, so she put the baby on the ground and it crawled towards Coniraya, who had disguised himself as poor and dirty. She was ashamed because of Coniraya's image and low stature among the gods. She grabbed the baby and ran to the coast of Peru, where she changed herself and her son into rocks.
Miss Jennifer is glad she is not the sacrifice of day...women were forbidden at the Temple of the Sun.
Most of the temple top has eroded away...however, the niches facing west still remain.
There is speculation about what were housed in the niches....
Some say life sized golden idols stood facing west worshipping the sun, but others think that "Huacas", the mummified remains of great leaders and priests, were housed there to oversee the world.
They say the huacas were cared for and daily groomed by the priests. Altars of food and incense were placed before them to give them sustanence.... As you look on these niches, try to imagine the canopies of hand dyed alpaca cloth hanging over this patio and the painted frescoes.
I saw a sample of that amazing, modern handicraft in the Inkan Market in Lima. The rug I wanted appeared to wave and wiggle like snakes...due to the designed light distribution chosen in the hand dyed colors from the Incan weaver in a little village outside Cuzco.
Oh what would I give to go back in time....just for a moment.
A huaca was a sacred object such as a mountain or a mummy. The niches show up well in this photo I got from the net...
Peruvian Mummy...displayed in the museum. Note the red hair...
Had enough? Come on now....
TOO BAD....you have to see the Temple of the Moon before you leave!
Mamaconas were similar to modern day nuns, as they also lived in temple sanctuaries. They dedicated their lives to Inti, and served the Inca people and priests.
Young girls of the nobility or of exceptional beauty were trained for four years as acllas and then had the option of becoming mamaconas or marrying Inca nobles. They are comparable to the Roman Vestal Virgins.
Incan society did not value virginity as a virtue the way Western societies have done throughout history. Remember that road between the two temples I told you about earlier!
The Acllahuasi (house of the chosen women) is classic Incan architecture, featuring a zigzag entrance, surrounded by trapezoidal doorways, foundations of polished granite, and the living quarters of the Virgins (priestesses) of the Sun.
If you enlarge this photo, you will see the depressed areas that contained water that was channeled from the Andes. The road from the Temple of the Sun is at the bottom...
Here you can see the "wells" for drinking and bathing by the priestesses...all within view of the Temple of the Sun.
Mama Cocha was the wife of Virichocha, better known as the sea and fish goddess, protectress of sailors and fishermen. Mrs. Poseidon...
Her daughter, Mama Quilla (Moon Goddess) was both the wife and sister of Inti and mother of Manco Capac....the great ruler.
This large temple is behind the Visitors Center and Museum...but you can't see it as you stand in the driveway to buy a ticket. It is below the hill in a small valley...yet delicately positioned above the irrigation channels.
We could not tell where we were as I took this photo nor how close we were to the visitors center until we got back in the car and drove a short distance on a road behind the Moon Temple. The site was that well hidden...we were amazed at the ingeniousness of this construction...
Typical pets of the Acllahuasi...grazing near the water wells of the priestesses...
Lots of potential spinning wool....
Mama Ocllo was the sister and wife of Manco Capac. She was thought to have taught the Inca the art of spinning. Here is a photo of some ancient spindles found at Pachacamac...and used at the Temple of the Moon...
Two ancient spindles and a fishing netting needle...
Shortly after the Incan occupation of the site, the conqueror Francisco Pissarro came. He heard about Pachacamac while holding prisoner the last great Incan ruler, Atahualpa, at Cajamarca in 1532. He promptly sent an expedition to sack the center and seize all the silver and gold. The soldiers were told to destroy the idol and the long history of Oracular Pilgrimage. Thus, the great religious center met its demise on the heels of the Spanish conquest. Spanish priests recorded the oral chronology for posterity sake, but left much to our imagination.
All those that followed the Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire by Francisco Pissarro burned the records of the Incan culture. Only Incan pottery and architecture display the myths and legends, which survived amongst the native peoples.
Time to say goodbye to Pachacamac...we are all tired and ready to get off our feet!
This sign was across the highway from the museum site. There were many more acres of temples over there...hectares of them....
After this you must be asking yourself...."What is out there but a lot of undug dirt?"
If I had time, I would also be digging....looking for the giant golden disc...the representation of the Sun god himself....
It is the one thing Pissaro did not steal from the Incas...
This dig is right next to the visitors center.
From the valley...to the ocean...
God bless the Americas...my home sweet home....
Yes Hans, we are headed back to Lima now....
Noooo....we are not done for the day....
Will you please take us to the Inkan Markets!
Hans got a very nice tip that evening....
I doubt I will ever see him again...LOL!
Enjoy the symbolism below...
Important places to the Incan...
As numerous conquering cultures continued to accept Pachacamac, the site grew to well over 210 acres...adding temple after temple.
When the Incas arrived last, between 1450-1532 AD they also adopted the pre-existing temples and further added the "Temple of the Sun," the "Acllahuasi" (chosen women's temple), the "Palace of Taurichumbi" and the "Seat of the Peregrinos."
Perfect construction....even in an unstable, surrounding, seismic area, it still stands strong.
Museum Model...photo of the site...
The primary architectural unit is the walled enclosure containing a stepped pyramid, storage structures and patios. The site is organized around two perpendicular avenues aligned with the cardinal directions, which cross one another at the center. See the two principal avenues/roads below...
Road Two...
Imagine the walls brilliantly painted red, yellow, black, and white...with frescos of serpents and fish and scorpions...
The entire funerary site was magnificent with colors and shapes. It was well maintained by the priests until Pissaro came...
The "Temple of the Sun" long ago looked like a temple of gold that Coronado searched for in plains of Texas long ago.... Maybe he didn't use the right quipu?
Hans, our driver, is taking a rest by one of the site signs describing the painted frescoes. You can double click on the photo to enlarge for reading....in Spanish and English.
The older Ramp Pyramid follows the model with its walled construction. See photos below...
It was a life size wall poster and I couldn't resist having a bit of fun...before going to see the real thing...
The glare is from the flash...not the ghost of Pachacamac!
The glare is from the flash...not the ghost of Pachacamac!
The day was getting longer by the minute, so we left the Ramp Pyramid and headed toward the big pyramid in the back ground...
ONWARDS to The Temple of the Sun...
The spectacular Incan Temple of the Sun is located at the top of a rocky promontory and overlooks the Pacific ocean. It is constructed of four pyramid bodies truncated to superimpose one another. It acquires the form of a staggered pyramid with a trapezoidal appearance. The most important part of this temple corresponds to the superior terrace and diversity of compartments dedicated to the Cult of the Sun.
The main access is formed by a zigzag structure. Much of the original red and yellow paint can still be viewed on the walls.
Double click on the photo for reading englargement...
Manco Capac was the legendary founder of the Inca Dynasty in Peru and the Cuzco Dynasty at Cuzco. The legends and history surrounding this mythical figure are very jumbled.
One legend says Manco Cápac and his siblings, who emerged from the waters of Lake Titicaca, were sent to the earth by Inti, the sun god and that Inti gave Manco a golden staff called "tapac-yauri." The siblings were instructed to create a Temple of the Sun in the spot where the staff sank into the earth to honor Inti, their father. The Incan Emperors believed they were the lineal descendants of Inti, the sun god. Egypt anyone???
In another legend, Manco Capac was the son of Tici Virachocha, who created the universe, sun, moon and stars, time (by commanding the sun to move over the sky) and civilization itself.
Viracocha eventually disappeared across the Pacific Ocean (by walking on the water), and never returned. He wandered the earth disguised as a beggar, teaching his new creations the basics of civilization, as well as working numerous miracles. He wept when he saw the plight of the creatures he had created. It was thought that Viracocha would re-appear in times of trouble.
A Spanish priest, Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa, documented that Viracocha was described as "a man of medium height, white and dressed in a white robe like an alb secured round the waist, and that he carried a staff and a book in his hands." REALLY? REALLY?
Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa (1532 – 1592) was a Spanish explorer, author, historian, astronomer, and scientist. In 1572 he was commissioned by Francisco de Toledo, the fifth Viceroy of Peru, to write a history of the Incas. Toledo hoped such a history would justify Spanish colonisation by revealing the violent history of the Incas. Thus, Sarmiento collected oral accounts first hand from Inca informants and produced a history (commonly titled The History of the Incas) that chronicles their violent conquest of the region.
I am thinking that Toledo was more likely trying to justify the cruelty and theft of the Spaniards!
Do you thinkGamboa changed the legend just a bit...maybe?
BUT PLEASE REMEMBER this friar's account of history....because I have a hypothesis of my own for a later post...after my trip to Lake Titicaca...and Tiwanaku.
Here are a few views of the surrounding scenery as we walked upwards toward the sun...
To the left of the trees is the Moon Temple. There is a defined road that leaves the Temple of the Sun. It's straight path leads to the Temple of the Moon....where the "virgin" women priestesses live....
Hmmm.....
How did the "old ones" know to build their massive temples here? Pachacamac must have told them!
From the top of the pyramid facing west to the Pacific, you can see a series of islands that resemble a sea monster. OF COURSE you want to know about the legend of the rocks right?
From the top!
Miss Jennifer is glad she is not the sacrifice of day...women were forbidden at the Temple of the Sun.
There is speculation about what were housed in the niches....
Some say life sized golden idols stood facing west worshipping the sun, but others think that "Huacas", the mummified remains of great leaders and priests, were housed there to oversee the world.
They say the huacas were cared for and daily groomed by the priests. Altars of food and incense were placed before them to give them sustanence.... As you look on these niches, try to imagine the canopies of hand dyed alpaca cloth hanging over this patio and the painted frescoes.
I saw a sample of that amazing, modern handicraft in the Inkan Market in Lima. The rug I wanted appeared to wave and wiggle like snakes...due to the designed light distribution chosen in the hand dyed colors from the Incan weaver in a little village outside Cuzco.
It doesn't take long in this environment to look like this poor dog...
The Niches...they are just wide enough for me to stand in one.
Had enough? Come on now....
TOO BAD....you have to see the Temple of the Moon before you leave!
Young girls of the nobility or of exceptional beauty were trained for four years as acllas and then had the option of becoming mamaconas or marrying Inca nobles. They are comparable to the Roman Vestal Virgins.
Incan society did not value virginity as a virtue the way Western societies have done throughout history. Remember that road between the two temples I told you about earlier!
The Acllahuasi (house of the chosen women) is classic Incan architecture, featuring a zigzag entrance, surrounded by trapezoidal doorways, foundations of polished granite, and the living quarters of the Virgins (priestesses) of the Sun.
If you enlarge this photo, you will see the depressed areas that contained water that was channeled from the Andes. The road from the Temple of the Sun is at the bottom...
Mama Cocha was the wife of Virichocha, better known as the sea and fish goddess, protectress of sailors and fishermen. Mrs. Poseidon...
Her daughter, Mama Quilla (Moon Goddess) was both the wife and sister of Inti and mother of Manco Capac....the great ruler.
We could not tell where we were as I took this photo nor how close we were to the visitors center until we got back in the car and drove a short distance on a road behind the Moon Temple. The site was that well hidden...we were amazed at the ingeniousness of this construction...
I want to know who had to use this to plant the corn needed to survive at Pachacamac. Most likely it was the "slave priestesses" who were glorified at the Temple of the Moon...
These are the ceremonial masks found at the site...they don't look like happy campers!
"You want me to plant how many more rows of corn?"
Lots of potential spinning wool....
Mama Ocllo was the sister and wife of Manco Capac. She was thought to have taught the Inca the art of spinning. Here is a photo of some ancient spindles found at Pachacamac...and used at the Temple of the Moon...
Shortly after the Incan occupation of the site, the conqueror Francisco Pissarro came. He heard about Pachacamac while holding prisoner the last great Incan ruler, Atahualpa, at Cajamarca in 1532. He promptly sent an expedition to sack the center and seize all the silver and gold. The soldiers were told to destroy the idol and the long history of Oracular Pilgrimage. Thus, the great religious center met its demise on the heels of the Spanish conquest. Spanish priests recorded the oral chronology for posterity sake, but left much to our imagination.
All those that followed the Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire by Francisco Pissarro burned the records of the Incan culture. Only Incan pottery and architecture display the myths and legends, which survived amongst the native peoples.
Time to say goodbye to Pachacamac...we are all tired and ready to get off our feet!
This sign was across the highway from the museum site. There were many more acres of temples over there...hectares of them....
If I had time, I would also be digging....looking for the giant golden disc...the representation of the Sun god himself....
It is the one thing Pissaro did not steal from the Incas...
God bless the Americas...my home sweet home....
Paragliding over Pachacamac...it is one way to see everything!
Noooo....we are not done for the day....
Will you please take us to the Inkan Markets!
Hans got a very nice tip that evening....
I doubt I will ever see him again...LOL!
Enjoy the symbolism below...
Important places to the Incan...
- Uku Pacha ("the lower world") was the underworld (similar to Hell), located in the center of Earth. Supay was both the god of death and ruler of the Uca Pacha as well as a race of demons.
- Kay Pacha was the world in which we live.
- Hanan Pacha ("higher world") was the Heavenly underworld. Only righteous people could enter it (much like Heaven), crossing a bridge made of hair.
Incan symbols
- Chakana (or Inca Cross, Chakana) is the three-stepped cross equivalent symbolic of what is known in other mythologies as the Tree of Life, World Tree and so on. Through a central axis a shaman journeyed in trance to the lower plane or Underworld and the higher levels inhabited by the superior gods to enquire into the causes of misfortune on the Earth plane. The snake, puma, and condor are totemic representatives of the three levels.
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