Photo: Ministerio Cultura Peru
The Nazca Lines site in Peru is said to be between 500 and 2,000 years old. The drawings depict geometric designs (trapezoids, straight lines, rectangles, triangles, and swirls) or even animals, like spiders or monkeys.
In all, there are 800 straight lines, 300 geometric figures ((geoglyphs) and 70 animal and plant designs with some purpose no one really knows. And nobody really knows how they were made, or who made them.
Being unique in its nature, the government of Peru tries to protect this UNESCO World Heritage site as best they can, including by posting warning signs for drivers.
These signs were apparently ignored by a truck driver who plowed into the site on Saturday. According to International Business Times, citing Peru's ministry of culture, the truck damaged “an approximate area of 50 x 100 meters, affecting the surface of the pampa and part of three geoglyphs,” and leaving tire marks in its wake.
The 40-year old driver of the vehicle was arrested but then set free on Monday after the judge found that he did not do it on purpose. The man claims he did not know that the Lines were there. Unfortunately, Peruvian authorities did not explain what the driver was doing in an area with little roads in the first place.
As a result of the incident, the Peruvian authorities announced they would take additional measures to better protect the site. Those steps include night-time surveillance to “cover emergencies that might arise at night.”
According to officials, the size of the site makes it very difficult to protect, as valleys and streams allow easy access to the area.
The Nazca Lines have come under attack before, in both cases with intent. In 2014, Greenpeace thought of sending one of its messages right from Peru, where UN climate change talks were being held. The organization rolled about a banner saying “Time for Change. The Future is Renewable.”
Being unique in its nature, the government of Peru tries to protect this UNESCO World Heritage site as best they can, including by posting warning signs for drivers.
These signs were apparently ignored by a truck driver who plowed into the site on Saturday. According to International Business Times, citing Peru's ministry of culture, the truck damaged “an approximate area of 50 x 100 meters, affecting the surface of the pampa and part of three geoglyphs,” and leaving tire marks in its wake.
The 40-year old driver of the vehicle was arrested but then set free on Monday after the judge found that he did not do it on purpose. The man claims he did not know that the Lines were there. Unfortunately, Peruvian authorities did not explain what the driver was doing in an area with little roads in the first place.
As a result of the incident, the Peruvian authorities announced they would take additional measures to better protect the site. Those steps include night-time surveillance to “cover emergencies that might arise at night.”
According to officials, the size of the site makes it very difficult to protect, as valleys and streams allow easy access to the area.
The Nazca Lines have come under attack before, in both cases with intent. In 2014, Greenpeace thought of sending one of its messages right from Peru, where UN climate change talks were being held. The organization rolled about a banner saying “Time for Change. The Future is Renewable.”
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