Mystery Of The Thirteen Towers Of Chankillo – Oldest ‘Full-Service Observatory’ In The Western Hemisphere

A. Sutherland - AncientPages.com - The 'Thirteen Towers of Chankillo' run north to south along a low ridge and form an artificial toothed horizon that spanned - almost exactly - the annual rising and setting arcs of the Sun.

Additionally, there is a large monumental complex, also named Chankillo, located in the province of Casma, Ancash department, only 400 miles north of Lima, the capital of Peru.

The heavily fortified hilltop structure with massive walls, restricted gates, and parapets covers several square kilometers.

Most interesting, however, are the Chankillo towers that provide evidence of the earliest known solar observatory in the Americas. The site precedes by several centuries similar monuments by the Maya in Central America and by almost two millennia solar observatories of the Inca civilization in Peru.

The purpose of a 300-meter-long (984 ft) - slightly curved row of 'Thirteen Towers of Chankillo' in Peru, lying along a small hill nearby - had long proved elusive.

Archaeological evidence delivered by the Peruvian archaeologist Ivan Ghezzi of the National Institute of Culture, Peru and archaeoastronomist Clive Ruggles an archaeoastronomer at the University of Leicester, England, indicates that Chankillo's old buildings may be the earliest known astronomical observatory in the Americas and one of the oldest, though, odd-shaped structures related to ancient sun cult.

See also:

Cuicuilco Circular Pyramid: Ancient Astronomical Observatory And Place Of Power

Bezvodovka: Little Known Ancient Solar Observatory In Ukraine Reveals Its Secrets

Gigantic Neolithic Newgrange Monument: A Temple, Astronomical Observatory Or Ancient Tomb?

The cult may have played an important role in religious and political life long before the appearance of the famous Inca sun cult.

Ghezzi and Ruggles - who in their studies used the latest equipment to install a sophisticated compass-inclinometer in the vicinity of Chankillo - believe the civilization that occupied the middle valley of Casma was an ancient Sun cult and the observatory was used to mark special days in their solar calendar.

Situated between two observation platforms, the 13 towers are between 17 and 125 square meters (180 and 1,345 sq ft) in size and each has only two staircases leading to the top. The towers mark the positions of the rising and setting sun throughout the year and these are in line with the northernmost and the southernmost towers.

The religious significance of the sun has been many times confirmed by ancient sources in Incan and Mayan culture, but many of these records talk about solar calendars only in the context of the Europeans who observed their use in the 16th century.

The Chankillo's 13 Towers site definitely predates those written records by centuries, and it even predates similar Mayan structures found in Central America by about 500 years.

Sun worship dates much, much farther back than originally thought.

Written by – A. Sutherland AncientPages.com  Senior Staff Writer

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