Paracas Culture

The peak of the Paracas civilization was 4000 years ago.

Paracas is located 200 km south of Lima, Pisco, in the desert eco-Pacific region, one of the driest in the world.

Julio C. Tello Paracas cemeteries discovered in 1925, finding in them 429 funerary bundles that contained important people mummified, wrapped in blankets and surrounded by fine ceramics, gold crowns, hunting tools, animal skins and food.
Paracas worldview on the nature was based on mythological beliefs, which were rules of social order. Therefore it can be seen in the Mantos Calendars, how they were defined life cycles of flora and fauna, as well as crafts and customs of this society.

The iconography of the beds shows the relationship of this culture and natural environment ... animals had a role influenced the lives of humans: warning changes of season, sowing, harvesting, and migration.

The Paracas considered deities for many species of wildlife living in its territory, it accounted for its textile art figures of kestrels, zarcilllos, hawks, hummingbirds, as well as cats, whales, deer, camels, dogs and reptiles.

Fish such as dogfish and skate were also reflected in the Paracas textiles because they were part of the diet of resident Paracas.

Paracas fishermen tasks used in their nets and netting, textile, resilient and of different sizes, woven cotton and hemp fibers.

The development of textile art that characterizes this culture, it also included fabrics made of camel hair dyed with natural dyes from plants such as ragwort, antanco, indigo, Mullaca, achieving up to 120 shades of colors.

In Paracas mantles deities are seen carrying food plants such as Canna, yams, beans, jíquima, Lucuma, corn, lima beans, jack beans, and cassava yacon.
It also represents the San Pedro cactus, which was used by the shaman in religious magical activities. Today modern medicine has discovered psycho-active properties and anti-convulsant in this plant.

These textiles can also find anthropomorphic deities, embroidered and painted, together with arrows, clubs, rods and Antares, which were made of reed fibers and hollow reed, reed, willow, and wood and chonta huarango.

Currently, part of the original territory of the Paracas, is from 1975, a National Book protected by the state that occupies 335.000 ha, from there accounts for 30% to the mainland and islands and 70% in marine waters.

Paracas is also a Regional Reserve for Migratory Birds in the RAMSAR Convention for the conservation of wetlands of international importance.

This reserve is located between latitudes 13 º 47 'and 14 º 17' LS and 76 º 30 'and 76 º 00' L.W. with a straight distance of 72 km and a maximum width of 53 km straight line

Source: Museum of Anthropology, Archaeology, and History of Peru