En el Valle de Chicama en el norte de Perú hay muchos sitios de arte rupestre. Más de 20 sitios han sido reportados en esta cuenca (Castillo Benites 2006). Sin embargo, hay sólo unos pocos sitios que tienen un gran número de paneles con petroglifos. La mayoría de los otros sitios de la cuenca de Chicama tienen sólo uno o algunos paneles de petroglifos y la mayoría de ellos son poco conocidos. Este artículo se trata de un sitio poco conocido en Chicama.
By Maarten van Hoek
Aiapaec probably was the supreme divinity of the Mochica pantheon, an ancient civilisation that emerged in the coastal strip of northern Peru. There are numerous often much differing depictions of full zoo-anthropomorphic figures and – especially – of isolated heads in the Huaca de la Luna near Trujillo that are said to represent Aiapaec. In view of the importance of Aiapaec in this part of Peru it is extraordinary that there are no unambiguous depictions of undeniable Moche origin of this personage in Andean rock art. This paper discusses that problem and describes seven petroglyphs that might symbolise Aiapaec.
By Maarten van Hoek
The paper by Daniel Castillo Benites from Peru and María Susana Barrau from Argentina (2016) offers an excellent overview regarding the rock art of the Virú drainage in northern Peru. Yet there are some flaws.
El trabajo de Daniel Castillo Benites (de Perú) y María Susana Barrau (de Argentina) (2016) ofrece una excelente visión general del arte rupestre en la cuenca del río Virú en el norte del Perú. Sin embargo, hay algunas fallas.
By Maarten van Hoek
Este trabajo investiga el arte rupestre en el Valle de Jequetepeque en el norte de Perú. Se centra en el sitio de Quebrada del Felino. El artículo actualiza la información que se publicó anteriormente y se centra en establecer la fecha de varias imágenes en el Quebrada del Felino.
This paper focuses on the rock art site of Quebrada del Felino in the Valley of the Jequetepeque in northern Peru. The paper updates the information that was published earlier and focuses on the dating issue of some images at Quebrada del Felino.
El tema principal de este artículo es la relación entre ciertos petroglifos en el Valle de Yarabamba, sur de Perú, y el volcán El Misti. Para explicar esta relación se discutirán dos tipos de petroglifos en el sitio de Alto de San Antonio en el Valle de Yarabamba.
The main subject of this article is the relationship between certain petroglyphs in the Yarabamba Valley, southern Peru, and the volcano Misti. In order to explain this relationship I will discuss two types of images that are found at the rock art site of Alto de San Antonio in the Yarabamba Valley.
Este artículo investiga cuatro iconos raros del sitio de arte rupestre de Ariquilda en el desierto de Atacama en el norte de Chile. Se trata de un grupo de figuras antropomórficas que muestran una actitud muy específica y tres otros motivos muy enigmáticos. He nombrado estos cuatro motivos: ‘Los Hombres Torcidos’, ‘Los Cueros’ y ‘Las Gafas junto con Las Figuras Triangulares’. De nuevo estos iconos confirman el estatus especial de Ariquilda en el arte rupestre andino (véanse también ‘The Avian Staff Bearer’ y ‘Icons That Travel’, ambos publicados en TRACCE).
Tintín es un sitio pequeño de arte rupestre en el valle del Río Sihuas en el sur de Perú. El sitio, también conocido como Cerro Blanco y Pisanay tiene algunas rocas con petroglifos. La Roca Principal es bastante grande y tiene un gran cantidad de imágenes. Un video muestra los petroglifos en detalle.
Tintín is a small rock site in the Sihuas River valley in southern Peru. The site, also known as Cerro Blanco and Pisanay has some rocks with petroglyphs. The Main Rock is quite large and has a lot of images. A video shows those petroglyphs in detail.
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This short paper, together with a YouTube video, describes and illustrates the rock art discovered in the valley of the Río Zaña in northern Peru. The petroglyphs were first described (in Spanish) by archaeologist Edgar Bracamonte in 2014. Because that is the only brief report that exists at the moment, I have written a brief paper in English, while the video (which is in Spanish) offers the illustrations as well as shots of the environment. The locals at Chumbenique know about ‘their’ rock art and I hope that they will encourage locals of their village and of the valley and of course every visitor to Chumbenique to respect and protect this sacred site.
By Maarten van Hoek
A menudo un sitio de arte rupestre tiene una característica muy específica que además es a menudo único en ese sitio. Este artículo presenta un elemento tan distintivo en el sitio rupestre de Chuquillanqui en la cuenca del Río Chicama en el norte de Perú.
Often a rock art site has a very specific feature that moreover is often unique to that site. This paper presents such a distinguishing element at the petroglyph site of Chuquillanqui in the Chicama drainage of northern Peru.
by Maarten van Hoek
Often we find pecked or scratched images on walls of rocks that are part of ancient structures, ranging from simple circular huts to intricate temple complexes. In many cases the rocks that are used have been smoothened before (or after) they were incorporated. In most instances it is clear that those images have been added after the smoothening and after the incorporation of the stones into the structure. Some of them may definitely be regarded as true rock art and not as architectural art, but a few images are ambiguous in this respect. This short paper discusses one such controversial image on a menacing monolith at Kuntur Wasi in northern Peru.
By Maarten van Hoek
The Desert Andes (the westernmost coastal strip of South America) is very rich in rock art sites. In rare cases specific images occur at selected sites, often separated by long streches of the desert. Two telling examples are the Avian Staff Bearer and the The Enigmatic Traveller (both published in TRACCE). This study examines another “travelling” icon: The Frontal Insignia-Tumi that is found from Tamentica in the south to – surprisingly – Toro Muerto in the north of the Study Area, a distance of no less than 630 km (as the crow flies).
By Maarten van Hoek
The essence of every rock art study must be the image. In most cases the image that we observe is not quite the same as manufactured and/or intended by prehistoric people. It is altered by weathering, erosion and all sorts of anthropic activities. Yet, the resulting image is the only source to use. The best thing to do is to photograph the image, but if one makes a drawing of the image, it should be as correct as possible. Yet, many rock art researchers produce and publish drawings that are not correct. Consequently, their interpretations will often be incorrect. This study discusses some examples of incorrect drawings and offers some recommendations.
by Maarten van Hoek
The Atacama Desert and the Andes in South America are crisscrossed by myriads of paths and tracks. Often those tracks are easily seen in Google Earth as broad bands. Also rock art images narrate of such travels. They mainly depict camelids guided by people. In rare instances however a specific kind of traveller has been depicted on the rocks. I have labelled it ‘The Enigmatic Traveller‘. In this study I describe the distribution of this icon, compare it with similar images and try to explain the meaning of the enigmatic position of the arms of this figure.
By Maarten van Hoek
Ariquilda-1
This paper investigates a well-known but rare icon from the rock art of the Atacama Desert. It concerns a group of anthropomorphic figures displaying a very specific bird-related element. For that reason Juan Chacama and Gustavo Espinosa speak of ‘hombres-falcónidas’, ‘raptor-men’, to describe this class of anthropomorphic figures. Remarkably, their interpretation seems to be generally ignored by several archaeologists and rock art investigators. This study presents a revaluation of the theory put forward by Juan Chacama and Gustavo Espinosa in 1997.
By Maarten van Hoek
Shay Canyon Bighorns
The Southwest of North America is known for its rich rock art in which the image of the Bighorn is one of the most important zoomorphic representations. This study investigates the many manifestations of the Bighorn in rock art. The focus is on idiosyncrasies and possible transformations of the image of this impressive animal. It proves that in this respect especially Site 3 on Potash Road near Moab, Utah, offers so many shape-shifted images that we can speak of the Potash Sheep Shifters.
by Maarten van Hoek
Very recently several petroglyphs at the rock art site of Guelta Oukas in the Anti Atlas Mountains of southern Morocco were severely damaged. However, the mutilation was limited to two panels with mainly depictions of cattle and – moreover – to specific body parts of those zoomorphic images. In this paper I argue that this is not just another case of unwanted vandalism. Instead, I propose that the mutilation at Guelta Oukas could represent an instance of ‘negative’ rock art, involving the desecration of the images.
by Maarten van Hoek
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Aït Ouazik
Aït Ouazik is a renowned and – fortunately – protected petroglyph site in the eastern part of the Anti Atlas Mountains, Morocco. The current paper focuses on continuous loop patterns in this area and explores their possible parallels in the rock art of NW Africa. Although the focus in this paper is on only a few specific petroglyph panels, Aït Ouazik has much more to offer. In order to give a more complete impression of the site and its petroglyphs, the paper is enriched by a YouTube video.
by Maarten van Hoek
Parque Diaguita
Two instances of special petroglyph manifestations in Namibia (Twyfelfontein Valley) and Peru (Virú Valley), having very limited visibility, will be discussed in this paper.
Dos casos de manifestaciones especiales de petroglifos en Namibia (Valle de Twyfelfontein) y Perú (Valle de Virú), que demuestran de tener una visibilidad muy limitada, serán discutidos en este documento.
by Maarten van Hoek
