ORCA GEOGLYPH REDISCOVERED AND RESTORED IN PERU:

Orca geoglyph, Palpa, Peru.

thehistoryblog.com

public domain. 

A wonderful geoglyph of what what has been identified as an orca has been found and restored in the Palpa region of southern Peru, near the famous Nazca Lines.

"Archaeologists rediscovered a giant geoglyph of a killer whale, etched into a desert hillside in the remote Palpa region of southern Peru, after it had been lost to science for more than 50 years. The 230-foot-long (70 meters) figure of an orca - considered a powerful, semi-mythical creature in ancient Peruvian lore - may be more than 2,000 years old, according to the researchers. They said it may be one of the oldest geoglyphs in the Palpa region, and older than those in the nearby Nazca region, which is famous for its vast collection of ancient ground markings - the Nazca Lines - that include animal figures, straight lines and geometrical shapes." (Metcalfe 2017)

However, in a strange and ironic twist, its discoverer first located it in Bonn, Germany, and then later relocated it on the ground in Peru. "Archaeologist Johny Isla, the head of Peru's Ministry of Culture in Ica province, which includes the Palpa and Nazca valleys, explained that he saw a single photograph of the orca pattern for the first time about four years ago. He'd seen it while researching studies of geoglyphs at the German Archaeological Institute in Bonn." (Metcalfe 2017)

Nazca pottery orca stirrup

jar, www.wikiwand.com

- public domain.

"The photograph appeared in an archaeological catalog of geoglyphs printed in the 1970s, which was based on research carried out in Palpa and Nazca by German archaeologists in the 1960s, Isla said. But the location and size of the orca geoglyph were not well-described in the catalog, Isla told Live Science in an email. As a result, he said, the glyph's whereabouts in the desert hills of the Palpa Valley, about 250 miles (400 kilometers) south of Lima, were by then unknown to local people or scientists." (Metcalfe 2017)

"After returning to Peru, Isla looked for the orca geoglyph on Google Earth and then on foot. "It was not easy to find it, because the [location and description] data were not correct, and I almost lost hope," he said. "However, I expanded the search area and finally found it a few months later," in January 2015." (Metcalfe 2017)

Nazca pottery orca stirrup

jar, Larco Museum, Lima,

Peru - public domain.

This orca is therianthropic, with a human arm under the lower jaw on the left side. This is a symbol that is common on Nazca pottery. It turns out that many Nazca representations of killer whales possess these humanoid arms, often clutching trophy heads. The number of its fins is also a discrepancy. An actual killer whale has one dorsal and two ventral fins, as well as a tail that ends in a horizontal triangular shape. The geoglyph has five fins showing, three dorsal and two ventral (and there should be a matching pair of ventral fins on the opposite side). Additionally, its tail is notched as if somewhat divided. What these differences might have represented mythologically to the people of that time we probably cannot know.

NOTE: Images in this posting were retrieved from the internet with a search for public domain photographs. If any of these images are not intended to be public domain, I apologize, and will happily provide the picture credits if the owner will contact me with them. For further information on these reports you should read the originals at the sites listed below.

REFERENCES:

Larco Museum, Lima, Peru.

Metcalfe, Tom

2017   2,000 Year Old Killer Whale Geoglyph Found in Peru Desert, November 28, 2017, https://www.livescience.com/61035-ancient-killer-whale-geoglyph-peru.html?utm_source=1s-newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20171128-1s.

thehistoryblog.com

www.wikiwand.com

COMMENTS ON A PREVIOUS POSTING:

On September 17, 2011, I posted a column that I entitled VANDALISM OF ROCK ART - THEFT (this link should go to that month, the particular posting is the second down). In this posting I used the example of the famous orca petroglyph at petroglyph beach, Wrangell, Alaska. I had found it not on the beach as I had been led to believe, but in a yard next to the beach. Of this I stated "I went over to the fire ring (yes, I was trespassing) and found that one of the boulders in the ring had exactly the Orca petroglyph that I had been searching for on it. In other words the home owner had stolen it. They probably did not think of it as theft, after all they live there. They may have thought of it as protecting the art. The fact is, however, they took the petroglyph rock away from its location on the public beach and placed it on their own private property. Maybe it is better protected now."

On February 12, 2012, I received the following comments in two emails from Anonymous. "The family living there are the Barlows. Leo H. Barlow and his wife Neilly and three children lived for many many years in the home up untill Leo died July 1st 2004. The orca petroglyph has always been there where you found it. Just for your information. The chidren would make rock rubbings of the petroglyphs and sell to the visitors untill they made that illegal. So don't say they stole it never again or else."

"Oh by the way there is no fire ring in the yard this rock is just inside the edge of the yard by it's self where it's been for more then 80 years.
Thank You,
Mark Maynard"

So Mark, I want to thank you for the jog to my memory. It is funny that I still see a ring of boulders in my mind when I think back, but I do agree that you are correct, as I recall it now with your prompting the Orca boulder is by itself in the yard. I may have not expressed my point clearly enough. Please note that I wrote that "they may have thought of it as protecting the art" and concluded with the idea that "maybe it is better protected now."  In looking back I think that the problem is my use of the word "stolen" I agree that is too harsh a term. If it had at some point been moved perhaps I should have used the term misappropriated or something of that ilk. The point that I was trying to make is that even if it had been moved in an attempt to protect it most of today's laws and regulations would treat that as theft. But 80 years ago, who knows?  Your information about how long it has been in the yard certainly does counter my assumptions which had been based upon information that the Orca petroglyph boulder was on Petroglyph Beach. So I would like to take this opportunity to apologize to the Barlow family. Thank you for the new perspective and the additional information.

VANDALISM OF ROCK ART - THEFT:

Orca petroglyph, Petroglyph Beach, Wrangell,

Alaska. Photo Peter Faris, 2001.

One form of vandalism of rock art that has many different facets that need to be considered is theft. First, many museums have examples of rock art in their collections that have been moved to the facility from its natural environment. This may have been done for many reasons. Often the rock has been moved to protect it from erosion or from theft or other vandalism. Other examples of rock art in museum collections were acquired before our modern sensibility to the feelings of indigenous peoples and our current attitude that these images belong where they were created. Many were collected just like any other artifact back in the 1800s. While we tend to overlook these heritage examples, I am afraid it still comes up once in a while. At least we now have considerably more sensibility to such occurrences.

More commonly are stories about people who have taken rocks with petroglyphs on them for their own personal reasons. If taken from public land this is theft and a federal crime.

One example I personally ran into in 2001 while on an Alaska cruise was the rock with the famous Orca (Killer Whale) petroglyph on Petroglyph Beach at Wrangell, Alaska. My wife and I searched the boulders for quite some time and could not find the image anywhere. We finally had to go to lunch but, after lunch, while she stayed on the ship I went back to search some more. Again I was unsuccessful and was actually turning to leave when I noticed that one of the houses with back yards adjoining the beach had a fire pit in the yard surrounded by boulders that matched the ones on the beach.

I went over to the fire ring (yes, I was trespassing) and found that one of the boulders in the ring had exactly the Orca petroglyph I had been searching for on it. In other words that home owner had stolen it. They probably did not think of it as theft, after all they live there. They may have thought of it as protecting the art. The fact is, however, they took the petroglyph rock away from its location on the public beach and placed it on their own private property. Maybe it is better protected now!