Archaeologists Discover Mysterious Stone Circle Built Before Great Pyramids [View all]
Published Feb 28, 2024 at 3:55 PM EST
Updated Mar 01, 2024 at 3:29 PM EST
The monument is located in northern Peru's Cajamarca Valley at the Callacpuma archaeological site, which lies around 10,000 feet above sea level near the summit of a peak in the Andes. Stretching for more than 5,000 miles along the western edge of South America, the Andes range is the longest in the world.
Using radiocarbon dating techniques, researchers determined that initial construction of the circular plaza took place around 4,750 years ago, corresponding to the "Late Precaremic" period of Andean archaeology.
By Aristos Georgiou
Science and Health Reporter
Archaeologists have discovered a mysterious stone circle in the Andes Mountains that they say was constructed before the great pyramids of Egypt.
The circular stone plaza, which measures around 60 feet in diameter, consists of two concentric walls made from unshaped stones set vertically in the ground, according to a study reporting the find in the journal Science Advances.
The monument is located in northern Peru's Cajamarca Valley at the Callacpuma archaeological site, which lies around 10,000 feet above sea level near the summit of a peak in the Andes. Stretching for more than 5,000 miles along the western edge of South America, the Andes range is the longest in the world.
Using radiocarbon dating techniques, researchers determined that initial construction of the circular plaza took place around 4,750 years ago, corresponding to the "Late Precaremic" period of Andean archaeology.
"This structure was built approximately 100 years before the great pyramids of Egypt and around the same time as Stonehenge," Jason Toohey, anthropological archaeologist with the University of Wyoming and lead author of the study, said in a press release.
The circular plaza is an example of monumental megalithic architecture, which refers to prehistoric structures built using large stones. According to the study, the find at Callacpuma represents one of the earliest examples of monumental, megalithic ceremonial architecture in the Americas.
"This plaza is significant because it is a very early example of public, monumental, and megalithic architecture. There are a few slightly earlier examples in the Andes—and many more recent—but this is the earliest and only example like this from the Cajamarca region of northern Peru," Toohey told Newsweek.
More:
https://www.newsweek.com/archaeologists-discover-mysterious-stone-circle-built-before-great-pyramids-1874439?piano_t=1
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