Coordinates: 9°35′33.99″S 77°10′42.43″W / -9.592775, -77.1784528

Chavin (Archaeological Site)*
UNESCO World Heritage Site
The ruins of Chavín de Huántar
State Party	Peru
Type	Cultural
Criteria	iii
Reference	330
Region†	Latin America and the Caribbean
Inscription history
Inscription	1985  (9th Session)
* Name as inscribed on World Heritage List. † Region as classified by UNESCO.

Chavín de Huantar is an archaeological site containing ruins and artifacts originally constructed by the Chavin, a pre-Inca culture, around 900 B. The Chavín were an early Civilization that existed in present-day Peru. C. The site is located 250 kilometers north of Lima, Peru at an elevation of 3150 meters, between the Andean mountain ranges of the Cordillera Negra and the Cordillera Blanca. Lima is the Capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín rivers on a coast overlooking Peru (Perú Piruw Piruw officially the Republic of Peru ( reˈpuβlika del peˈɾu is a country in western South America. The Cordillera Negra (Black Range is part of the Cordillera Oriental, one of three Mountain ranges in the Andes Mountains of west central Peru The Cordillera Blanca ( Spanish for "White Range" is a Mountain range in the Ancash Region of Peru. Chavín de Huantar has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a site (such as a Forest, Mountain, Lake, Desert, Monument, Building, complex Some of the Chavín reliefs from this archaeological site are on display in the Museo de la Nación in Lima.

Chavin de Huantar was initially built around 900 B. C. While the fairly large population was based on an agricultural economy, the city's location at the head waters of the Marañón River, between the coast and the jungle, made it an ideal location for the dissemination and collection of both ideas and material goods. The Marañón River (Río Marañón rises about 160 km to the northeast of Lima, Peru, flows through a deeply-eroded Andean valley in a northwesterly direction

Findings at Chavin de Huantar indicate that social instability and upheaval began to occur between 500 and 300 B. C. , at the same time that the larger Chavin civilization began to decline. Large ceremonial sites were abandoned, some unfinished, and were replaced by villages and agricultural land. At Chavin de Huantar, no later than 500 B. C. , a small village replaced the Circular Plaza. The plaza was occupied by a succession of groups, and building stones and stone carvings were salvaged for use in house walls. Multiple occupation floors indicate the village was continuously occupied through the 1940’s.

The area of the Chavín and site of Chavín de Huantar

Site description

The site contains a number of major structures, including Temples A, B, and C, and areas and buildings designated as the Circular Plaza, the Old Temple and New Temple.

Circular Plaza appears to have been a sacred and ritually important open-air space within a ceremonial center. Prior to 800-700 B. C. , this location had a number of functions, including serving as an atrium for entering Temple A through the temple's north staircase. In modern Architecture, an atrium (plural atria is a large open space often several stories high and having a glazed roof and/or large windows often situated within an The plaza in the classic period, after 700 B. C. , is bounded on three sides by major Temples A, B, and C. The plaza is perfectly circular and is very close to 20 meters in diameter, with a floor consisted of pillow-shaped pavers of yellow diatomite. Diatomaceous earth (ˌdaɪətəˈmeɪʃəs ˈɝθ also known as DE, TSS, diatomite, diahydro, kieselguhr, kieselgur and It appears that a center line of black limestone blocks runs on its architectural east-west axis. Walls of the plaza were constructed of cut stone, principally granite, laid in courses of varying width. The two broadest courses were carved in arcs closest to the western staircase and in two pairs of terminal stones flanking the eastern staircase.

The Old Temple, constructed early in the site's history, was an inward-facing structure composed primarily of passageways built around a circular courtyard. The structure contained obelisks and stone monuments with relief carvings depicting jaguars, caymans, and various other anthropomorphic forms. The Lanzón Gallery, located at the very center, contained a sculpture of the Lanzón, which is assumed to be a supreme deity of Chavin de Huantar. The Lanzón is the colloquial name for the most important statue of the central deity of the ancient Chavín culture of the central highlands of Peru. The figure is anthropomorphic, with a feline head and human body. Mortars, pestles, conch-shell trumpets, and many other items have also been found. Many of these artifacts have an anthropomorphic design or decoration and are thought to be associated with Chavin rituals.

The New Temple, constructed between 500 and 200 B. C. , is also based on a gallery and plaza design and contained many relief sculptures. The Lanzon deity is also present, holding a Strombusshell in the right hand while the left hand holds a Spondylus shell. A conch (pronounced in the USA as "konk" or "konch" ˈkɒŋk or /ˈkɒntʃ/ is one of a number of different Species Spondylus is a Genus of Bivalve Mollusks the only genus in the family Spondylidae.

Great wall at Chavín de Huantar, with image of Lanzon Deity

Excavation of burial sites gave evidence of a small elite class with elaborate burial goods. Tombs contained precious metals, colorful textiles, and other valuables. A textile is a flexible material comprised of a network of natural or artificial Fibres often referred to as thread or Yarn. The majority of burials were more simple, with bodies interred in shallow pits with cotton clothing and a simple tool kit.

Local style in art and decoration included scrolls, simple curves, straight lines, and images of wild animals. Chavin sculpture is usually of white granite and black limestone. Granite (ˈɡrænɪt is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, Felsic, igneous rock. Limestone is a Sedimentary rock composed largely of the Mineral Calcite ( Calcium carbonate: CaCO3 Carved stone mortars and pestels, conch-shell trumpets, bone tubes and spatulas, and metal spatulas and spoons were found decorated in Chavin style as were various textiles including tapestries. Tapestry is a form of Textile art. It is woven by hand on a vertical Loom. Pottery was found in a wide variety of forms, including bottles and bowls, decorated with a wider range of distinctive elements. Pottery is the Ceramic ware made by potters It also refers to a group of materials that includes Earthenware, Stoneware

External links

• Exploring Chavín de Huántar
• Chavín de Huántar Digital Media Archive (creative commons-licensed photos, laser scans, panoramas), data from a Stanford University/CyArk research partnership (see Exploring Chavín de Huántar link above for additional contextual information)
• MNSU Chavin de Huantar