Latest news with #JoseCapriles
Yahoo
30-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Ruins of Ancient Temple Belonged to Mysterious Pre-Inca Civilization
Before the rise of the Incas, a civilization known as Tiwakanu ruled the Andes, and archaeologists have uncovered a massive temple left behind by this enigmatic society. Named Palaspata by local Indigenous farmers, the ruined temple is perched on a Bolivian hilltop 215 km (about 134 miles) southeast of the center of the Tiwanaku archaeological site. The team behind the discovery, led by Jose Capriles from Penn State University, suspects the newly described temple was an important strategic site for the Tiwanaku people, as it's located at the nexus of three main trade routes that connected the society to important ecosystem resources. There's debate around what brought this civilization's downfall, but we know it was a complex culture built on cosmological religion, politics, and an agropastoral economy that emerged around 110 CE. Related: "Their society collapsed sometime around 1000 CE and was a ruin by the time the Incas conquered the Andes in the 15th century," Capriles says. "Remnants of architectural monuments like pyramids, terraced temples, and monoliths [are mostly] distributed in sites around Lake Titicaca and, while we know Tiwanaku's control and influence extended much further, scholars debate how much actual control over distant places it had." With drone images and photogrammetry, the team built a detailed 3D rendering of the temple's structure and topography. "Because the features are very faint, we blended various satellite images together," Capriles says. What remains of the temple indicates a complex measuring 125 by 145 meters (410 by 475 feet), with 15 enclosed areas arranged around a central inner courtyard. This design is typical of Tiwanaku culture, which left behind many other temple ruins featuring sunken courts surrounded by rectangular rooms and stone-lined terrace platforms, mostly around the southern end of Lake Titicaca. "The modules range in size between 358 and 595 m2 [3,853–6,405 ft²] and could have contained additional rooms and divisions," Capriles and team report. "The main entrance of the temple faces west in alignment with the solar equinox. Currently, a local trail crosses the building, intersecting its western and northern walls." The temple is littered with fragments of its inhabitants' lives, including pieces of ceramic keru cups, flared bowls, jars, and incense burners. "[Objects] with Tiwanaku iconography are common, but some sherds of Yampara, Tupuraya, Mojocoya, and other decorative styles are also present and suggest interaction with the inter-Andean valleys," the team writes. They also found a few fragments of black-on-red Carangas pottery, pieces of camel bone, and some fragments of turquoise stone along with an Oliva peruviana seashell – evidence of connections to the Atacama Desert and the Pacific Ocean. Religion played an important role in the politics and economics of Tiwanaku society, and in the Andes, sites like this were often built not only for spiritual practice, but also as a means of expanding societies and exerting control over the surrounding resources. As one of the only terraced platform sites found beyond the lake basin, and one of the farthest from it, Palaspata would have connected Tiwanaku with the Central Altiplano and the inter-Andean valleys of Cochabamba. "Most economic and political transactions had to be mediated through divinity, because that would be a common language that would facilitate various individuals cooperating," says Capriles. "With more insight into the past of this ancient site, we get a window into how people managed cooperation, and how we can materially see evidence of political and economic control." This research was published in Antiquity. Does Using Artificial Intelligence Ruin Your Actual Intelligence? Scientists Investigated Burial Vault Sealed For 400 Years Found at End of Long-Forgotten Staircase Confirmed: New Mexico Footprints Rewrite Timeline of Humans in America
Yahoo
27-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Archaeologists Found a Lost Temple From a Civilization That Vanished 1,000 Years Ago
Here's what you'll learn when you read this story: The discovery of an ancient Tiwanaku temple in Bolivia is helping researchers paint a more complete picture of what the society once looked like. The Tiwanaku civilization was considered one of the continent's most powerful civilizations at its height. It mysteriously collapsed around 1000 A.D., and was in ruins by the 15th century. Researchers discovered ancient temple ruins in modern-day Bolivia that may help us to better understand the mysterious fall of the Tiwanaku civilization—once one of the most powerful in South America. The international team of researchers scoured the Andes and found a temple complex roughly 130 miles south of Tiwanaku's established historical site on the top of a hill. In a study published in Antiquity, the team wrote that the temple discovery could provide new details about the civilization, which was one of the first in the Andes and a powerful precursor to the Inca empire—until, that is, it mysteriously vanished about a thousand years ago. 'Their society collapsed sometime around 1000 A.D. and was a ruin by the time the Incas conquered the Andes in the 15th century,' Jose Capriles, Penn State associate professor of anthropology and the study's lead author, said in a statement. 'At its peak, it boasted a highly organized societal structure, leaving behind remnants of architectural monuments like pyramids, terraced temples, and monoliths, most of which are distributed in sites around Lake Titicaca and, while we know Tiwanaku's control and influence extended much further, scholars debate how much actual control over distant places it had.' Searching over 100 miles from what was considered the center of Tiwanaku land mades sense when looking at the history, Capriles said. During the height of the civilization, the unassuming hill location on which the complex was found connected three main trade routes: from the productive highlands to the northern, the arid western, and the agriculturally rich eastern Andean valleys. Capriles said that people moved, traded, and built monuments in places of significance all throughout the arid mountain landscape. Once the team found an unmapped quadrangular plot of land, they started searching more diligently. 'Because the features are very faint, we blended various satellite images together,' Capriles said. Using photogrammetry via unmanned aerial vehicle to create a 3D approximation, the researchers spot stone alignments that revealed an ancient temple 410 feet long by 475 feet wide (roughly the size of a city block). According to the study, the site included a large, modular building with an integrated, sunken courtyard. 'The complex represents a gateway node that effectively materialized the power and influence of the Tiwanaku state,' the authors wrote. The layout also aligns with solar equinox rituals. On the ground, the team found numerous fragments of keru cups, which were used for drinking the traditional chicha (maize beer) during feasts and celebrations. The maize was not local, and was cultivated in the Cochabamba valleys to the east—not the high-altitude temple location. The find showcases the site's importance as a central hub for trade. Capriles said that the temple likely also served a religious purpose, which would have been common for the day. 'Most economic and political transactions had to be mediated through divinity, because that would be a common language that would facilitate various individuals cooperating,' he said. Ventura Guaravo—the mayor of Caracollo, where the site is located—said in a statement that the archaeological findings offer a view of local heritage that has been overlooked. The city is working with state and national authorities to ensure preservation and protection of the complex. 'With more insight into the past of this ancient site, we get a window into how people managed cooperation, and how we can materially see evidence of political and economic control,' Capriles said. 'There's still so much to discover that we don't know about, and that could be hiding in plain sight.' You Might Also Like The Do's and Don'ts of Using Painter's Tape The Best Portable BBQ Grills for Cooking Anywhere Can a Smart Watch Prolong Your Life?
