Alto Ramírez Cerro Tatara Geoglyphs (Tatara Hillside Panels)
Cerro Tatara Figures · Lluta Tatara Hillside
Formative (400 BCE–650 CE)·Alto Ramírez·🇨🇱 Arica y Parinacota, Lluta Valley north scarp, Cerro Tatara (km 55), Chile
About
About Alto Ramírez Cerro Tatara Geoglyphs (Tatara Hillside Panels)
Steep 18° north-facing hillside on Cerro Tatara promontory at km 55, commanding 6 km Lluta floodplain view. Fifteen figures: 20-m frontal anthropomorphs with feathered headdress, 12-m feline, and 60-m terrace stairway ‘procession’ of contiguous rhomboids. Figures exploit shadow at 10:00–14:00 solar angle; dark varnish (Munsell 2.5YR 2/2) vs pale granitic grus (7.5YR 7/2). AP-1 apacheta at stair foot with Spondylus fragments indicates highland–coast exchange offerings.
Why it mattersKey geoglyph illustrating Alto Ramírez hydraulic/geoglyph/kite/kurgan tradition in Arica y Parinacota, Lluta Valley north scarp, Cerro Tatara (km 55).
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Feathered headdress affinity to Paracas?
Theories
- 01Visibility-driven ritual theater for valley travelers
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c.400 BCE–650 CE
- Period
- Formative (400 BCE–650 CE)
- Culture
- Alto Ramírez
- Purpose
- Hillside panels visible from Lluta floodplain
- Excavation
- Partially excavated
c.400 BCE–650 CE
Initial construction
2020
Drone/UAV high-resolution mapping and heritage inventory
On the ground
Structures & features
18.3900° S · 69.9200° W · 980 m · 3 mapped features
Tatara Anthropomorph (20 m)
geoglyph20-m frontal anthropomorph with headdress
18.3890° S · 69.9190° WTatara Feline (12 m)
geoglyph12-m feline profile
18.3910° S · 69.9210° WTerrace Stairway (60 m)
earthwork60-m rhomboid stairway
18.3890° S · 69.9190° W