History of the Nazca Lines

It is common knowledge that geoglyphs are of two types, positive or negative, involving either construction (placing of material such as stones, gravel, earth mounds and so forth into a certain formation), or involving the removal of materials in order to uncover a distinctive type of soil (comparable to removing crops in order to create crop circles). According to their creation, the Nazca Lines belong to the second category (negative geoglyphs) , as they were made by displacing the layer of red-coloured stones (due to the ferrous oxide content) encountered all over the area and unveiling the soil, which is a particular shade of white and thus generates a notable contrast with the rest of the area. The resulting trenches had little depth yet stood (and still stand) out due to the colour of the soil. The arid desert offered propitious conditions for these designs to be laid out, as well as a guarantee that they would not be modified by the elements as climatic conditions remained constant. Certain tool relics encountered prove that simplistic wooden tools were used in order to remove the pebbles.

Many speculations have been emitted by anthropologists, scholars, archaeologists etc. studying the area, with regards to the purpose of these meticulously planned designs. Most have attributed religious significance to them and perceived them as a form of invocation of ancient deities, meant to ensure prosperity through natural conditions. Another hypothesis, although deemed far-fetched by some, consists of associating the geoglyphs with astronomical maps, due to some similarities between some of them and certain constellations. Other even more unearthly theories suggest extra-terrestrial involvement or very advanced technologies developed by the Nazca people, which included the ability to be airborne, as seen by some as a mandatory condition to attain such well-structured geoglyphs. However, the tool remains found prove otherwise, namely a much more earthly and realistic approach.