Atacama Giant- History Mystery

If you are looking to travel to any country full of history, Chile is something you must not miss. It hides one of the most curious geoglyphs called the Atacama Giant.

If you plan to make a trip to Chile, the place is something you should visit. In this article, we have given you the details of the Atacama Giant and the history behind it.

What is the Atacama Giant?

Atacama giant is called Giant of Tarapacá or Geoglyph of Cerro Unita. It is a 119-meter-long figure that people draw on the northwest flank of Cerro Unita on the Earth's surface.

This anthropomorphic geoglyph represents the largest human in the world. It is famous as an archaeological monument and cultural heritage of Chile. However, it is not only the one which you can see there. Multiple other big geometrical figures can be found drawn on the western and southern slopes of the same hill.

It is available on Cerro Unitas in the Atacama Desert, Chile. Its 390ft makes it the largest prehistoric anthropomorphic figure in the world. The geoglyph showed a deity for the local inhabitants from AD 1000 to 1400.

In the last three decades, people found nearly 5,000 geoglyphs, and it is one of them. These are ancient artwork drawn into the landscape. In addition, there is a belief that the geoglyphs are the work of a few successive cultures that dwelt in South America, including the Tiwanaku and Inca.

Where is the Cerro Unita geoglyph?

Atacama Giant, one of the largest geoglyphs across the world, is in the commune of Huara, located in the Tarapacá region. In simple words, it is available in the middle of the Desert.

What do you know about the history of the geoglyph:

Inhabitants of the area made the figure between 900 and 1450 years AD. People believe that it represents a shaman or yatiri, and it indicates a man making predictions, invoking the spirits, and practicing healing in some religions.

It can correspond to the Andean deity Tunupa-Tarapacá, a person who made a journey from Lake to the Pacific Ocean. However, the history of the geoglyph remains an undiscovered mystery. Therefore, we have given you more details to let you know about what it is so that you will not miss it while visiting Chile.

Mystery of Geoglyphs and Atacama Giant:

It is the driest non-polar desert on Earth. This Desert can stretch almost 1,000 miles along the coast of Chile and Peru. In addition, it contains a lot of geoglyphs from date to about 800 CE, the latest to the 16th century. They are available alongside tracks and scattered over the Desert in hills, valleys, and plains. Old civilizations made it for llama caravans. While seeing the images, you can find them deeply linked to the nearby trade routes.

These geoglyphs come with geometric designs, including stepped rhombuses, concentric circles, and arrows. Besides, the figures that resemble people or gods might look like they perform various activities like hunting. If you see the figures closely, you can see animals also, including Llamas, lizards, and monkeys. According to scholars, animals might correspond to divine rites like amphibians used in water rituals. Recent flight and drone abilities have closely studied and taken better photography of such ancient creations.

Geoglyphs have three categories— additive, extractive, and the combination of both styles. Additive means that ancient people piled rocks and other materials on top of the ground to make the desired shape. Besides, an extractive or negative is the second type meaning that topsoil and other materials are used to scrape away and reveal colored subsoil. The combination of both styles is the third type of geoglyph.

You may find these old creations very ephemeral. However, it is the dry climate of the Desert that people can see the preservation of the ancient designs still now. But you can find geoglyphs like the Uffington Horse still survive in the UK and wetter climates.

People think it is a creation of a succession of cultures, including the Inca. But multiple pictures remain a mystery still now. A few have been intended as guiding information for the ancient llama caravans. On the other hand, other types are devoted to deities or used in religious practices.

It is famous for its size and hillside position on the hill Cerro Unitas. Rays that emanate from the figure's head can represent a headdress. However, these geoglyphs align with the moon and thus let you know the time looking quite practical. Besides, the ancients who crafted the hill figure between 1000 and 1400 CE might guess about the rainy season. It may seem to you if the hill figures are made to view from some distance. This theory suggests that the geoglyph might be placed strategically.

The bottom line:

Surrounded by many smaller geoglyphs, Atacama Giant is famous as one of the biggest geoglyphs. People use it to compute the movements of the moon also. The points on the top and side of the head can let you know which season it would be because it depends on the alignment with the moon. It helps you to determine when the rainy season will come in the Desert.

Frequently Asked Questions

• Q. Is the Desert man-made?

Chilean sculptor Mario Irarrázabal made the sculpture at an altitude of 1,100 meters above sea level. The exaggerated size helps to emphasize human vulnerability and helplessness.

• Q. When did it last rain in the Desert?

Although you can find a vast weather network station in the region, multiple stations didn't record any rain yet. According to the Geological studies, the Desert did not experience any rainfall between 1570 and 1971. You can chill in the Desert even during the day for its high altitude location.

• Q. Why is the Desert so famous?

With a 16,570 feet (5,050 meters) elevation, the Desert plateau has become the most attractive location worldwide. It even helps to spot the solar system's secrets. In addition, people can experience here about 330 cloud-free nights per year.