The ruins of Tihuanacu are a reminder of an enlightened civilization that disappeared even before the Inca upsurgence. The ancient city was located on the southern end of Lake Titicaca and dominated it, and the entire highland area around it, from about the third to the tenth century, when it mysteriously disappeared. Although there is no definite information, it was most likely due to climate change – a long period of drought is the archaologists' prime suspect.
Their success for seven centuries owed to their method of agriculture, known as flooded raised field, which allowed them to turn arid desert into fertile land. Anyone that's traveled in the highlands will have seen the difference between irrigated and non-irrigated land. The latter is sparsely covered with brown shrubs.
Tihuanacu is the name of the municipality where the ruins of the ancient capital city are located, and also the name given by archaeologists to the ancient civilization. The real name is unknown, as there is no recorded history. So, whatever is known is via Spanish chroniclers writing five or six centuries after their disappearance. They documented the indigenous myths, legends, and traditions passed on orally from generation to generation.
The large, stone monoliths, carved in the image of their ancestors, distinguish this civilization from all others in the Andes. The site museum has a significant collection of ancestral lithic statues. They are reminiscent of the ones found on Easter Island (Rapa Nui), and some archaeologists haven even speculated on a connection between the two. Incidentally, ancestral stone monuments were not the only things in common. Norwegian explorer and writer, Thor Heyerdahl, also identified the sweet potato as something else that had originated in South America and transported to Polynesia.
In fact, his purpose for undertaking the Kon-Tiki expedition, in 1947, was to prove that people from the coast of Peru could have populated Easter Island, by sailing on simple wood rafts. The mission was successful, but the theory remained just a theory, until 2011, when genetic evidence was produced, showing that Easter Island inhabitants have South American DNA! Remarkably, recent DNA studies conducted, at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, on skulls of Botocudo Indians in Brazil, indicate the presence of mitochondrial lineages typically considered Polynesian. Is this coincidence, or is transoceanic travel nothing new?
Interestingly, Kon-Tiki was another name for the Andean god Viracocha – the creator god. Images of Viracocha, similar to those found in Tihuanacu, have been found, in Peru, from civilizations going as far back as 5,000 years ago.
Surprisingly, two objects have been found in the vicinity of Tihuanacu that establish a link with the Middle East. One is the Monolito de Pokotia, a stone statue about two metres tall, found in the town of Pokotia, near Tihuanacu. The other is the Vasija de Barro, also known as Fuente Magna, a large ceramic bowl, about 70 cm in diameter, found not too distant from the Tihuanacu site. In addition to the typical Andean designs, both have inscriptions that are believed to be Sumerian, or proto-Sumerian. They are displayed in the Museo de Metales Preciosos, also known as the Gold Museum, in La Paz.
When I saw them, my jaw dropped! They were the most captivating pieces I had seen anywhere, including the Rosetta stone! And then, a thought entered my mind, "Did the Sumerians visit South America?" If travel on a balsa raft was possible from Peru to Polynesia, then it should also have been possible from the Middle East to South America. Man has been sailing the oceans for thousands of years, why should the Polynesians have been the only ones to possess that capability. Suddenly, the Kon-Tiki expedition took on much more meaning. I was so enraptured with the thought that Sumerians might have visited South America thousands of years ago that my wife had to drag me out of the museum!
When I returned home, I read up again on the adventures of Thor Heyerdahl and discovered that he had also set sail from Africa to the new world on a reed boat, and had landed successfully in Barbados, on July 12, 1970. His boat was named Ra, after the ancient Egyptian sun god. Both, Ra and Kon-Tiki must have been pleased with his accomplishments. Perhaps they even guided their namesakes safely across the oceans. The boats are now on display in the Oslo museum, in Norway.
When I read about this fantastic voyage, I couldn't contain myself with excitement. What had seemed impossible had once again shown to be possible. However, the early history of South America remains an enigma!
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