Nazca Lines

Giant drawings visible only from the sky

In the desert of Peru, 2,000 years ago, people drew giant pictures: a hummingbird, a monkey, a spider, an 'astronaut' — some bigger than a football pitch! They are so big they can only be seen from a plane — nobody knew about them until 1927. The drawings were made by moving the dark desert stones aside, and they have lasted 2,000 years because it never rains there. Why they were drawn is still a mystery.

The Nazca geoglyphs cover a 450 km² arid plateau in southern Peru (20 minutes of rain a year), made 500 BC – AD 500 by the Nazca culture. Over 800 straight lines (up to 48 km), 300 geometric figures and more than 70 biomorphs: a hummingbird (93 m), a monkey (110 m), a spider, a condor (136 m), the 'astronaut' (32 m, on a hillside). Technique: reddish iron-oxide stones ('desert varnish') were moved aside 10–15 cm deep to expose lighter ground; the absence of wind and moisture preserved them. 1927 — Toribio Mejía Xesspe (on foot), 1930s — pilots; Maria Reiche (1946–1998) studied and guarded them all her life, proposing an astronomical calendar (now disputed). Newer theories: ritual pathways for water and fertility, pilgrimage routes. UNESCO since 1994. In 2019–2023 AI helped find over 300 new small figures. Threats: road building, a Greenpeace stunt (2014), illegal mining.

Fun facts

• The Nazca Lines have survived 2,000 years because it rains there 20 minutes a year.
• The longest line is 48 km.
• In 2023 artificial intelligence found over 300 new drawings.