2/ Paracas
The first distinct people, or society that we can name were the Paracas people. Paracas means “raining sand” due to the strong winds that come in from offshore, and this society seemingly came from “no where” fully developed. The conventional wisdom, that of the Peruvian patriarch of archaeology, Julio Tello, believed they came from the highlands, specifically Chavin de Huantar near Huaraz, north of Lima. But these people had an elite class, bearing elongated skulls, which is a characteristic not found at Chavin.
It seems more likely that these were sea faring people who came from a mysterious source land, and established themselves at Paracas because of the sheltered bay that it has, as well as the abundance of food that could be found and raised. They arrived at least 3000 years ago, but only ongoing DNA analysis will establish the true time frame, and why they seem to have had red hair, which is not a characteristic of Native people of the Americas.
Very little has been researched about this amazing culture since the work of Peruvian archaeologist Julio Tello in 1928, and the Paracas History Museum places special emphasis on these amazing elongated skull people.
This male Paracas skull was acquired by us before it could be exported, illegally, out of the country. He belongs in Peru, and specifically in Paracas.
This mother and child are the same situation as the male shown above; rescued and kept by the Paracas History Museum before they could be illegally exported to a foreign collector. If you would like to assist us in helping to preserve Peruvian ancient cultures, please check out www.hiddenincatours.com. On the home page you will find a donate button that works with Paypal; 100% of all money goes directly to the acquisition of artifacts of the Paracas area.
