Geoglyphs of Peru. Nazca Plateau

Do you know what Nazca is? This is an ancient Indian civilization. It got its name from the river, in the valley of which you can still admire numerous cultural monuments. The heyday of this civilization was observed in the first millennium BC. Later, the name Nazca was given to a small Indian village in southern Peru, located behind the mountain ranges. In order to get to it from the capital of the state, Lima, it was necessary to travel many kilometers through a dusty, rocky and sandy wasteland.

Today, the city of Nazca is connected by a four-lane highway. Moreover, that part of it that passes through bare hills and desert is paved with wild stones. A small and quiet village in the past, today it is a small but very neat town. It has its own museum and a small park, various shops and even two banks. There are hotels of various classes in the town that accept tourists who go to this area in order to get acquainted with the world-famous Pampa de Nazca.

Geography

What attracts tourists from all over the world to a small town in southern Peru? Travelers come here to look at the amazing and mysterious Nazca Plateau. This is a plain located on some hill. It, like all plateaus, is characterized by a flat and sometimes wavy topography. In places it is slightly dissected. Distinct ledges separate the plateau from other plains.

Where is Nazca? This plateau is located in the south of Peru. It is separated from the capital of the country, Lima, by 450 km, which must be overcome in a south-easterly direction. on the map it is located almost in the coastal zone of the Pacific Ocean. From the plateau to its endless waters - no more than eighty kilometers.

Nazca coordinates will help you find this area on the map faster. They are 14° 41′ 18″ south latitude and 75° 7′ 22″ west longitude.

The Nazca Plateau has an elongated shape from north to south. Its length is 50 km. But the width of the area from the western to the eastern borders ranges from five to seven kilometers.

Natural conditions

Nazca's coordinates are such that the area is located in a dry climate zone. Due to this, it is sparsely populated. Winter here lasts from June to September. This is surprising for us, but in the Southern Hemisphere it does not coincide with that which is typical for the zone located north of the equator.

As for the air temperature, it is almost stable in this area. In the winter months, its value does not fall below sixteen degrees. In summer, the thermometer almost always stays at +25.

The Nazca Plateau, as mentioned above, is located in close proximity to the waters of the Pacific Ocean. However, despite this, rain is very rare here. There are no winds on the plateau, since it is protected from air masses by mountain ranges. There are also no rivers or streams in this desert. You can only see their dry riverbeds here.

Nazca Lines

However, it is not its location that attracts many tourists to this region. The Nazca Plateau attracts with mysterious patterns and lines located directly on the earth's surface. Scientists call them geoglyphs. This concept means a geometric figure made in the earth's soil, the length of which is at least four meters.

Nazca geoglyphs are grooves made of a mixture of sand and pebbles dug into the soil. They are not deep (15-30 cm), but long (up to 10 km), having different widths (from 150 to 200 m). Geoglyphs, or, as they are also called, Nazca lines, are made in a very bizarre form. Here you can see the outlines of birds, spiders and animals, as well as geometric shapes. There are about 13 thousand such lines on the plateau.

What is this? Secrets of history? Mysteries of the past? There is no clear answer to these questions. Some scientists believe that the Nazca drawings were applied to the earth's surface by skillful human hands. However, it is still not possible to confirm such an assumption. There is another, rather stable opinion, according to which the stripes and lines were applied not by people, but by representatives of alien intelligence. This is the greatest secret of the Nazca Desert, over which dozens of scientists are struggling. However, despite this, the mystery of the Peruvian plateau remains unsolved for the modern world.

History of discovery

The Nazca Desert (Peru) is famous for the huge paintings located on the plateau. These drawings, created by unknown creators, belong to the greatest achievements of world culture and are an undoubted monument of art throughout our planet.

The giant ground-based paintings were first noticed by pilots in 1927. But the Nazca geoglyphs became known to the scientific community only twenty years later. It was then that the American historian Paul Kosok published a series of photographs of amazing and mysterious drawings that were made from the air.

Creation technology

Nazca paintings are created by removing debris, brown stones and volcanic pebbles covered with a thin coating of black color from a light subsoil consisting of a mixture of calcite, clay and sand. That is why the contours of giant figures are clearly visible from a helicopter or airplane.

From the air, all lines against the background of the soil look lighter, although from the ground or from low mountains such patterns merge with the ground and cannot be distinguished.

Lines and geometric shapes

All the images that can be observed in the Nazca Desert have a different shape. Some of them are stripes or lines, the width of which ranges from fifteen centimeters to ten meters or more. Such soil depressions are quite long. They can stretch from one to three or even more kilometers. The stripes can also smoothly expand along their length.

Some Nazca lines are elongated or truncated triangles. This is the most common view on the plateau. Moreover, their sizes are very diverse and range from one to three kilometers. Such triangles are often called trapezoids. Some Nazca paintings are large areas that are rectangular or irregular in shape.
On the plateau you can also see quadrangles familiar to us from geometry, such as trapezoids (with two parallel sides). There are about seven hundred such creations with clear forms in the desert.

Many lines and platforms have some depth of the arcuate profile up to thirty centimeters or more. Moreover, all these grooves have clear boundaries that resemble a border.

Features of the Nazca Lines

The Peruvian desert geoglyphs are widely known for their straightforwardness. The imagination of travelers is literally amazed by the lines stretching for many kilometers along the plateau, easily overcoming all the features of the relief. In addition, Nazca figures have peculiar centers, usually located on hills. At these points, different types of lines converge and diverge. Often, depressions in the ground are connected to each other, combining in various combinations. It happens that figures and lines overlap each other.

The location of the trapezoids also turns out to be interesting. Their bases, as a rule, are turned towards the river valleys and are located below the narrow part.

It is also surprising that:

• the edges of all lines have the highest accuracy, the spread of which is within only five centimeters over a length of several kilometers;
• the visibility of the contours is maintained even when the figures are superimposed on each other;
• there is a strict limitation on the width of the figures for significant strip lengths;
• the visibility of the stripes is maintained even when the soil characteristics change;
• there is a similarity in the configuration and arrangement of ray-shaped figures with optical schemes;
• the geometry of the figures is preserved even with complex terrain;
• there are lines of an astronomical nature, indicating the cardinal directions or the days of the equinoxes.

Various drawings

A unique decoration of large-scale areas of the Nazca plateau are zigzags and whip-shaped figures. Among the 13,000 lines, 800 sites and hundreds of different spirals in the amazing and mysterious Peruvian desert, you can see meaningful drawings. These are three dozen figures of animals and birds, including:

• a lizard 200 meters long, crossed by a ribbon of an American highway, whose builders did not notice the drawing;
• a bird with a snake neck stretching 300 m;
• hundred-meter condor;
• eighty meter spider.

In addition to these images, you can see fish and birds, a monkey and a flower, something similar to a tree, as well as a thirty-meter figure of a man, made not at all on a plateau, but as if carved out on one of the steep slopes of the mountain.

From the ground, all these drawings are nothing more than individual strokes and stripes. You can admire the giant images only by rising into the air. These greatest secrets of history, the riddles of the past, have not yet found their explanation from scientists. How was an ancient civilization without aircraft able to create such complex designs, and what were their purposes?

Features of Nazca drawings

Contour images of birds and animals have different sizes, ranging from 45 to 300 m. The width of the contour line of the drawings is from 15 cm to 3 m. All semantic images that can be seen on the Nazca plateau are concentrated along its edge, located above the river valley Ingenio.

Among the features of these drawings are:

• execution of one continuous line that does not intersect or close anywhere;
• the beginning and end of the soil excavation are located on the site;
• the “output” and “input” of the contours are two parallel lines;
• there is an ideal pairing of curved patterns and straight lines, which, as scientists have established, are made according to the strict laws of mathematics, which explains their harmony and beauty;
• mechanical execution (except for the image of a monkey), which deprives the figures of animals of any emotional coloring;
• the presence of asymmetry, which is explained by the imperfection of the work to enlarge the sketches;
• the presence of secant lines parallel to one of the contour segments, which is explained by the complex execution of the internal space of the figure.

Assumptions and versions

Who is the author of the amazing creations located in the Nazca desert? For now, scientists can only build their own versions and put forward various hypotheses. Thus, there are many supporters of the assumption of the extraterrestrial origin of geoglyphs. They suggest that the wide lines served as runways for extraterrestrial civilization. However, this hypothesis has many opponents who put forward their own very powerful argument - the nature of the drawings. Yes, they are impressive and far from earthly in size, but their plot suggests that they were made by people, and not by aliens.

However, even in this case, many unresolved mysteries remain. How were masters unknown to us able to create such gigantic images that are only visible from the air? Why did they do this? What techniques were used to maintain the proportions of the giant models?

Hypotheses about the origin of paintings on the Nazca plateau are varied, and some of them are simply fantastic. However, among the existing versions there are some that are worthy of special attention.

So, according to some scientists, the entire system of Nazca lines is a huge calendar. Paul Kosok was one of the first to put forward this assumption. This American scientist was the first to discover the mysterious accumulation of various shapes and lines. His whole life after that was devoted to solving the mystery of the Peruvian desert. One day Kosok noticed that the setting sun had set directly at the intersection of the horizon with one of the straight lines. He also discovered a stripe indicating a winter confrontation. There is also Kosok’s assumption that certain drawings correspond to certain cosmic bodies. This hypothesis has existed for a long time. Moreover, it was supported by many famous scientists from all over the world. However, it was later proven that the percentage of coincidence of Nazca drawings with certain planets is extremely small to consider this system a calendar.

There is another very plausible version. According to it, the Nazca lines indicate the location of an extensive system of underground water channels. This hypothesis can be confirmed by the fact that the location of ancient wells coincides with strips dug in the ground. But it is possible that this is just a coincidence.

Or maybe the purpose of the Nazca lines is of a cult nature? Excavations by archaeologists have discovered ancient human burials and altars in the places where the drawings were made. However, all ritual objects were always erected in such a way that they could evoke certain emotions and influence a person. Drawings, viewed only from above, do not evoke any feelings in those on the ground.

Be that as it may, whoever created these amazing figures had the ability to somehow move through the air and was remarkably oriented in space. Maybe ancient people knew how to build hot air balloons and fly on them?

All existing hypotheses have not yet brought humanity closer to solving the mystery of the Nazca Desert. Maybe soon scientists will answer the question about the origin of these amazing lines? Or maybe this mystery will remain unsolved...

Lines and images on the Nazca plateau were found in 1920. American scientist P. Kosok, flying over desert, noticed mysterious drawings from the cockpit of the plane. Today, more than 100 “drawn” gigantic geometric figures, perfectly straight lines, plants and animals have been discovered on the plateau.

The lines most interested scientists who studied the plateau. They were perfectly smooth, located absolutely chaotically from each other and “did not pay attention” to the landscape of the area - they passed through valleys and hills, leaving an invariably even trail behind them.

Nazca Plateau is located near the cities of Palpa and Nazca, 60 km long. This area is not irrigated by rain for years. Perhaps this is an ideal area for arranging burials, since it can ensure the incorruptibility of the remains. When P. Kusok studied the lines and drawings from the ground, he noted that they were made using incredibly simple technology. To leave the design, it was only necessary to move the turf and stones, placing them in a row. Considering that the drawings were huge, they would have taken years to complete. But in such an area they could retain their original appearance for thousands of years.

The subjects of images are divided into 2 groups: figures and lines. There are two types of lines: they are either paired, like tram rails, or they form certain figures. After studying the plateau, scientists came to the conclusion that the images were first drawn, and then lines were drawn on top of them. The accuracy of the lines is surprising - they are so straight that they could be used instead of a level. This is surprising, and none of the scientists could explain how, without modern aviation equipment and technology, it was possible to maintain the effect of straight lines over such vast distances.

As soon as these drawings were discovered on the Nazca plateau, the question immediately arose about their purpose and the authorship of the images. Many different theories have been put forward - from alien civilizations to systems for controlling the Earth's population. More and more new researchers are trying to unravel the mystery of the plateau, and almost everyone comes up with their own version of the purpose of the lines. Today, none of the theories has an advantage over others, since in the solution secrets of the Nazca plateau humanity is not one step closer. Modern scientists also have different views on the age of these drawings: some researchers believe that the lines were drawn in 200 BC, others - 1700 BC.

Theories of the purpose of Nazca paintings

One of the first to appear was the astronomical theory. It was suggested by the discoverer of the plateau - P. Kusok. During sunset, he noticed that it was setting exactly at the intersection of one of the lines on the horizon. Further observations convinced the scientist that his guess was correct: he calculated the line of the winter solstice on the plateau. Piece noted that the lines point in the direction of certain space objects (constellations and stars) on important days for astronomy (full moons, etc.).

To confirm P. Kusok's theory, it was necessary to identify all the images on the Nazca plateau with celestial bodies. Such a task required complete dedication, enormous effort and time from researchers. Therefore, P. Kusok enlisted the help of a familiar Spanish translator, who accompanied him on trips to South America. Her name was Maria Reiche. Together they drew up a map and topological plans of the plateau - this took more than 7 years of joint work.

Researchers first received government support only in 1947, when officials from the Ministry of Aviation Peru A service helicopter was allocated for the needs of scientists. From that moment on, Maria was able to take photographs of the plateau from a flying height.

The first time Maria flew, tied herself with ropes, hanging from the side, took pictures, and held the camera in her hands the entire flight. After the first flights, she turned to an engineer she knew, and he designed something like a suspension for the board. In 1956, all the photographs were collected, and on their basis a detailed diagram was drawn up drawings on the Nazca plateau.

In ancient times, the Sun and Moon served as a calendar for people. Their position on the horizon determined the arrival of spring and autumn, the amount of rain, and the timing of the harvesting work. Scientists believe that these lines are a calendar that uses the Moon and the Sun instead of hands like a clock. When studying the drawings on the plateau, scientists were surprised to find that the Nazca drawings repeated the star map and displayed entire constellations on a large scale. But the most important question regarding Nazca Lines remained unanswered until today: who painted these images, and how? After all, ancient people, if you believe official history, did not have the opportunity to fly over the desert and correct the work of builders.

The theory of paleocontact and the Nazca plateau

Another most common version is the paleocontact or alien theory. This is what most researchers and scientists around the world support. For the first time, the theory that planet Earth was previously visited by alien civilizations was first put forward by Erich von Däniken. In his work, Däniken indicated that he was confident that these images were in fact runways for interplanetary travel. He claims that drawings of such sizes were intended only for those who could see them in flight, that is, using aircraft. Däniken suggested that this airport was built for the "Gods" who are spoken of in all the local legends.

There is an interesting ancient legend that is passed down from generation to generation by the entire local population. It talks about how a “golden ship” from distant galaxies arrived on our planet. The crew of the ship was controlled by the woman Oryana, who later became the mother of the human race. When she gave birth to 70 children to earthly people, the ship left Earth and all the aliens went to their home galaxy.

Documentary films by Erich von Däniken and can be viewed on our website.

The local legend describes in detail how the “youths of the sun” easily traveled through space on their “golden ships”. Another interesting fact is that the result of an analysis of the muscle tissue of Inca mummies showed that the composition of the blood of ancient remains and modern local residents is radically different from each other. The mummies were found to have a blood type of a surprisingly rare combination. This blood type was encountered by scientists only 2 or 3 times during the entire research period.

Developing the study, scientists noticed that near the main widest lines there were smaller ones that were not related to the main one. These lines did not continue the main drawing in any way and were connected exactly near the end of the contour. They formed a mega-system, which is similar to a kind of electrical circuit in which everything is done with one wire - the patterns do not intersect (there is no short circuit) and are not interrupted (as if the circuit were broken).

Looking at the huge drawings on the surface of the Earth, photographs of which were taken from the air, the question arises: could people have done this? The most mysterious place on the planet is considered the Nazca Plateau, which surprised scientists 100 years ago with its mysterious drawings. Until now, scientists have put forward various theories about the appearance of these drawings, but none of them gave an exact answer about the origin of these masterpieces.

Let's follow the scientists' research a little and try to find some explanation for these drawings.

The Nazca plateau or pampa, as it is called, is located 450 km from the capital of Peru - Lima. Its length is 60 km and 500 sq. meters is covered with various mysterious lines that make up mysterious drawings. The drawings present in this area are images of geometric shapes, animals, insects and people of amazing appearance. The drawings can only be seen from the air, as they are huge images.

When examining the area, it was found that the drawings were dug into sandy soil to a depth of 10-30 cm, and the width of some lines could be up to 100 meters (!). The lines of the drawings can be several kilometers long, while literally not changing from the influence of the shape of the terrain. The lines rise and fall from the hills, but their continuity and perfect evenness are not broken. The question immediately arises: who is the creator of such a picture in the desert - peoples unknown to us or aliens from distant space? But scientists have not yet been able to find an answer to this question.

To date, scientists have been able to accurately determine the age of this “painting.” Scientists carefully examined the remains of plant and organic origin found in the places of the drawings and found that the drawings were created in a period of time starting from 350 BC. to 600 BC

But this fact is not an accurate proof of the date of appearance of the drawings, since these objects could have come here after the creation of the drawings. There is also another scientific theory that says that the drawings are the work of the Nazca Indians, who could have inhabited this region of Peru (even before the arrival of the Incas). After the disappearance of this people, not a single historical mention of them remained on Earth, except for burials. And therefore, scientists cannot say for sure about the involvement of this people in the drawings.

Let's look at historical sources that mention Nazca drawings. They were first mentioned by Spanish researchers in their manuscripts, which date back to the 15th – 17th centuries. In our time, these information sources have attracted the attention of modern scientists, but the most interesting discoveries became available during the creation of the first aircraft, since the lines of the drawings form a single whole and reveal their secret only from a bird's eye view.

The first scientist to discover the Nazca paintings themselves was the Peruvian archaeologist Mejia Xesspe, who saw part of them from an elephant in one of the mountains in 1927. They began to really explore Nazca in the 40s, when the first photographs of drawings taken from an airplane appeared. These studies were led by the American historian Paul Kosok. But in fact, in anticipation of the first photographs of the Nazca drawings, they were discovered by pilots who were searching for water sources in the desert. We were looking for water, but we found the most mysterious mystery of our planet.

Kosok at one time put forward one of the many theories that suggested that the drawings were nothing more than a huge astronomical calendar. For clarity, he cited similar drawings from the starry sky. It turned out that some lines show the direction of the constellations and indicate the point of sunrise and sunset. Kosok's theory was developed in the work of mathematician and astronomer Maria Reiche, who devoted more than 40 years to systematizing and studying the Nazca paintings. She managed to find out that the drawings in the Nazca desert were made by hand.

The first figures drawn were birds and animals, and then various lines were drawn on top of these drawings. The scientist also managed to find sketches, which were later realized in full size. Ancient “artists” used coordinate poles to more accurately navigate the terrain and draw up accurate drawings. These landmarks were located at some points of the figures. If the figures can only be observed from a high altitude, then the conclusion suggests itself that the people who put them on the surface of the earth could fly. Thus a new theory emerged that the creators of the Nazca paintings were an extraterrestrial civilization or created an airfield for aircraft.

It subsequently turned out that Nazca is not the only place that has such images. 10 km from the plateau (near the city of Palpa) there are similar drawings and lines, and at a distance of 1400 km near Mount Solitari there is a huge statue of a man surrounded by lines and drawings similar to the Nazca drawings. On the territory of the Western Cordillera, in the immediate vicinity of Nazca, there are two drawn labyrinths of a spiral shape, with different directions of turns. What’s most surprising is that a cosmic ray hits this area 1-5 times a year and illuminates this area for 20 minutes. There is even a claim from local residents that if you get caught in this beam, you can be cured of various diseases. Similar drawings were found in various countries of the world - Ohio (USA), England, Africa, Altai and the Southern Urals. They are all different, but one thing they have in common is that they are not intended for earthly viewing.

While conducting excavations in the Nazca territory, scientists found new mysteries for themselves. Drawings were found on the shards, which showed evidence that the inhabitants of this area knew about penguins. Scientists could not find another explanation for the found drawing of a penguin on one of the shards. Archaeologists also managed to find many underground passages and tunnels. Part of these structures is an irrigation system, and the other part belongs to the underground city. There are tombs and ruins of underground temples here.

One of the theories is the hypothesis of the origin of the Nazca paintings associated with the activities of alien civilizations. This hypothesis was first put forward by the Swiss writer Erich von Däniken. He claimed that aliens visited our planet in the Nazca region, but he is not sure that the drawings were their work. According to his theory, the drawings are intended to summon aliens who have left our planet. The triangles informed the alien pilots about the presence of crosswinds, and the rectangles informed the landing site.

Straight lines in the form of recesses could be filled with a flammable substance and serve as an indicator of the direction of the landing strips. This theory is fantastic and is not taken seriously in the scientific world, but even the writer managed to sow doubts in the scientific theories of the origin of the Nazca drawings. This is where the theory of energy flows arose, which testifies to the connection between humanity and alien intelligence. One example is a huge image of the “Paracas candelabra,” a design on a mountainside on the Peruvian Paracas Peninsula.

Scientists believe the candelabra is a source of information about our planet. The left side of the picture contains information about the earth's fauna, and the right side about the flora. The general image is made in the form of a human face. Where the top of the drawing is located, the ancient inhabitants of Nazca installed a pointer, which is a scale of civilization development. According to the same theory, there is an opinion that our civilization was created by aliens from the constellation Leo. Perhaps the composition of straight lines was created by aliens to mark the runway for their ships.

There is other evidence for this theory. Scientists from England were able to study the components of the muscle mass of Inca mummies. And the results were simply amazing. The blood of the Incas had no analogues with the blood groups of the inhabitants of the Earth of that historical period. This blood type is a very rare combination...

But of course, the truth is born in a dispute. And that’s why those who reject all alien theories found it. In the early 80s, a group of students, taking wooden shovels with them, created an “elephant” that resembles the Nazca drawings. But their conviction did not have much influence, and in our time there are many supporters of alien participation in the creation of huge drawings.

Options for theories of the appearance of large drawings on Earth:
Animal drawings were created as a memory of the global flood.
Nazca drawings are one of the ancient zodiac calendars.
The drawn figures are created for ritual ceremonies of the water culture, and the lines represent the direction of the aqueducts.
The trajectory of the drawings was used for sprint races (though this is hard to believe).
Nazca lines and drawings are an encrypted message, a kind of code. It contains Pi, radian degrees (360°), decimal number system, etc.
The drawings were drawn by shamans under the influence of strong hallucinogens (admittedly, the theory is funny).

No matter how many different theories about the origin and purpose of the Nazca drawings are put forward, the mystery remains unrevealed. In addition, this mysterious plateau presents humanity with new mysteries. New researchers are constantly being sent to this area of ​​Peru. This area is accessible to both scientists and tourists, but will a person be able to open the curtain of mystery that hides the true purpose of the drawings from us?

The Nazca culture is considered the successor to the Paracas culture. Here, similar “designs” are used to make fabrics, household items and jewelry. Children, as was customary in Paracas, continued to have their skulls deformed by squeezing the forehead and back of the head. Some adults sometimes had their skulls trepanned, but not in such large numbers as their predecessors.

It is curious that society’s attitude towards these people (or rather, heads) has changed dramatically. Apparently, all the “trepanned” were specially registered. And when they died, their heads were separated from their bodies, and the headless body was placed in the burial with a small pumpkin attached to it! Dangerous (or especially valuable?), apparently, the heads were buried separately, in special caches.

This seemingly strange fact can serve as proof of L.P.’s hypothesis. Girmak about the attempts of ancient Americans to achieve an altered state of consciousness through neurosurgical intervention. People who underwent trepanation became “sorcerers” or clairvoyants and inevitably occupied a special position in society. It is quite obvious that Paracas had excellent surgeons and many clairvoyants. In Nazca, for some reason unknown to us, this tradition is gradually being lost. It may very well be that the new government decided to do away with witchcraft practices, for which purpose the heads of deceased (possibly killed) sorcerers began to be separated from their bodies. As is known, violation of the integrity of the body during burial, according to the beliefs of many peoples, predetermines the impossibility of the rebirth of the deceased...

However, we will not dwell on the description of this culture, but will move on to one of the biggest mysteries of archeology, history, anthropology and many other related ones. We'll talk about mysterious drawings of the Nazca plateau.

These drawings were discovered by chance, thanks to aviation, since they can only be seen from an airplane or from a high elevation. An American explorer was the first to see giant geometric shapes from an airplane in 1920. Paul Kosok. The scientist peered in amazement at this incredible kaleidoscope of trapezoids, triangles and spirals that dotted the plateau over a vast territory. In addition, there were images of over 100 known plants and animals, as well as a scattering of strange, unrelated straight lines.

These lines especially struck the scientist. They cut in all directions without any apparent order, they were absolutely straight and ran away beyond the horizon, completely ignoring the uneven terrain - through hills and valleys.

The 60 km long Nazca sandy plain is located 400 km south of the Peruvian capital Lima, between the cities of Nazca and Palpa. In these places, the earth does not see moisture for years. Drops of rare rain, falling on a hot rocky surface, immediately evaporate. This lifeless space is an ideal place for burials to ensure incorruption. Later, studying all the drawings on site, Paul Kosok saw that the technology for their execution was surprisingly simple. It was only necessary to move the stones and turf underneath, exposing the soft earth, and lay them in a row. Of course, this took many years. But the images created with great care could be preserved in this waterless, arid place for thousands of years!

The themes of the drawings, as already mentioned, can be divided into two categories: these are figures and lines, the latter either in pairs, like tram tracks, or forming geometric shapes. And since in many places the lines are drawn over the drawings, it is obvious that the drawings were made first. The lines are very straight, and it remains a mystery how the draftsmen managed to adhere to the plan so precisely and achieve the effect of straight lines at such large distances.

Since the discovery of the mysterious drawings, scientists have been haunted by questions about their creators and purpose. The theories put forward are varied and fantastic - from space aliens to a system for controlling the earth's population. Each new enthusiast for solving the mystery of Nazca adheres to one theory: astronomical, geometric, agricultural or irrigation, utilitarian-geographical (roads) and creative (art). Other hypotheses have been put forward, but so far none of them has a significant advantage. Even in determining the age of the desert paintings, researchers cannot come to a consensus: some believe that they were created around 200 BC. e., according to others - in 1700 BC. e.

Let's take a closer look at some of the theories regarding the Nazca paintings.

The very first one - astronomical, it came to the mind of the discoverer of the drawings, Paul Kosok. On June 21, 1939, the scientist took the first step towards solving the “mystery of Nazca.” At sunset, he saw how it was setting exactly at the intersection of one of the straight lines with the horizon. Observations in the following days convinced Kosok that his guess was correct: he found the line of the winter solstice (in the southern hemisphere, winter corresponds to our summer) solstice. In addition, Kosok noticed that the drawings and lines indicate the presence of certain cosmic bodies (stars and constellations) in the sky on astronomically significant days (full moons, etc.).

But to strengthen the hypothesis, it was necessary to identify all the figures of the Nazca desert with celestial phenomena. This daunting task required great effort, time and complete dedication. Paul Kosok was lucky. He found such an assistant in the person of a modest translator from Spanish, who accompanied him on trips to the countries of South America, a German by birth Maria Reiche. It was to her that the scientist entrusted the fate of his extraordinary discovery and never subsequently repented of it. It took seven years to compile the first rough maps and topological plans of the plateau.

Only in 1947, with the assistance of the Peruvian Ministry of Aviation, Maria was able to use a helicopter. The first time she flew, hanging overboard: she was tied with ropes, and she was holding the camera in her hands. Then an engineer I knew designed a special suspension for her - it became relatively safe. She worked alone, and therefore things went slowly. Maria completed her first detailed diagram of images in the Nazca desert only in 1956.

“For ancient peoples, the positions of the Sun served as a calendar,” said Maria Reiche. “It was used to determine the arrival of spring and autumn, seasonal fluctuations in water regime, and, consequently, the timing of sowing and harvesting. That's why we found so many lines. It is difficult to talk about the exact meaning of animal images. I only know that some of them represent entire constellations. Most of all I want to penetrate into the way of thinking of the ancients who left us such unusual writings. And it is also extremely important to understand how people who did not know how to fly over the pampa (local name) could design and transfer to its surface a many times enlarged picture of the starry sky?..”

The hypothesis of the astronomical calendar was shared by most scientists around the world for decades, until the famous American astronomer began testing it Gerald Hawkins, author of the monograph “Unraveling the Mystery of Stonehenge.” With the help of a computer, Hawkins brilliantly proved that the famous Stonehenge - a mysterious structure on Salisbury Plain - is nothing more than an astronomical observatory.

Using the same technique, adjusted for the latitude of the Nazca Plateau, Hawkins was convinced that only less than 20% of the lines on the Nazca Plateau point to the Sun or. As for the stars, the accuracy of the directions generally does not exceed the random distribution of numbers. “The computer smashed the theory of the stellar-solar calendar to smithereens,” J. Hawkins was forced to admit. “With bitterness we abandoned the theory of the astronomical calendar.” However, Hawkins' research also yielded a positive result, since it was he who first noted the strange feature of the Nazca drawings: all of them were made one line without a break, which does not intersect anywhere.

The next version of the mysterious Nazca drawings is alien, it is now the most common. And it was first put forward Erich von Däniken(he also did research on the English Stonehenge). He is sure that these drawings served as runways for interplanetary alien spacecraft. His confidence in the cosmic purpose of the signs is based on the fact that the drawings have regular shapes and the lines are perfectly straight, and can only be detected from the air.

Why are these drawings in places where no one can see them from the ground? Or were they intended directly for gods unknown to us?

Those who watched the worldwide documentary “Memories of the Future” remember the landing of a sports plane on one of these runways. But since they are visible only from an airplane, a natural question arises: “Did the ancient inhabitants of the Cordillera - the Incas - know how to fly?” Here it is appropriate to recall the ancient Inca legend, which speaks of "golden ship", who arrived from distant stars: “They were commanded by a woman named Orjana. She was destined to become the foremother of the earthly race. Oryana gave birth to seventy earthly children, and then returned to the stars."

This legend talks about the ability of the “sons”, the Incas, to “fly over the earth in golden ships.” Perhaps there is some connection between these legends and reports of the English anthropological journal Maine, which, in particular, says: “Analysis of the muscle tissue of the surviving Inca mummies showed that in terms of blood composition they differ sharply from the local population. They were found blood type of the rarest combination. Nowadays, such a blood composition is known only from two or three people in the whole world.”

Developing further the discovery of J. Hawkins, who was the first to discover the continuity of lines in drawings, scientists drew attention to strange additional lines. Being completely alien to the main image, they were, however, connected to the beginning and end of the contour (groove), as if connecting the drawing to a certain Nazca megasystem. The conclusion suggests itself that the drawings resemble electrical circuits made by one conductor, which can neither be crossed (short circuit) nor interrupted (open circuit).

Paying attention to the connection lines, the scientists clearly saw parallel and serial connections of the patterns and suggested that the line-grooves of the Nazca Plateau were apparently filled in ancient times with some kind of phosphor. This substance was capable of glowing under the influence of electric current, similar to the inscriptions and drawings of modern gas-light advertising. Thus, in confirmation of the alien theory, the “runways” did their job, and the luminous patterns, visible from the air tens of kilometers away, did theirs.”

Another version that has an alien basis. The key to solving the mystery of the Nazca Desert may be a huge drawing painted on a 400-meter mountain slope on the Paracas Peninsula (Peru). The design is known as the "Candelabra of Paracas", or "Andean candelabra". Its branches point in the direction of the Nazca Desert. Like the Nazca Desert figures, the lines of this image are indentations that reach into the bedrock - red porphyry.

The age of the “Candelabra” dates back at least two thousand years, and the history of its origin is completely a mystery behind seven seals. According to the bold hypothesis of some Russian researchers, the “Candelabra of Paracas” is nothing more than a “passport of the Earth.” This picture contains all the information about our planet. The left part of the picture represents fauna, the right – flora. And the entire drawing represents a person’s face. Near the top of the mountain there is a mark shaped like a nail. This is a scale showing the “level of modern development of civilization” (there are six in total). If the “Candelabra” is speculatively rotated 180°, you get a crucifix. This is a kind of symbol - a warning that our planet may die from unreasonable human activity.

Further, the authors of this idea try to explain that this information was delivered to us by a certain supercivilization from the constellation. Referring to a large number of sculptural images of a lion on Earth and in all earthly religions in particular, the authors prove that modern earthly civilization is the work of aliens from the constellation Leo.

To the cosmic hypotheses, we can add the cheerful thought that perhaps star tourists simply left a trace of their visit to Earth in this way, like “Vasya was here.” It should be noted that similar interpretations of Nazca drawings are born in all corners of our planet every day, if not every minute. But even the craziest of them should not be dismissed without examining them in detail.

I would like to talk about another version that appeared relatively recently - this is an artificial system of underground water channels located in the depths of a mountain plateau. In the city of Nazca, with a population of 10 thousand people, the river of the same name flows. In its composition and “fragrance” it is not inferior to the sewer canals of large cities, but at the same time, the residents of Nazca do not lack fresh and clean water. It is taken from a system of wells, which are located exactly along the lines of mysterious drawings. And what is especially striking is that two of these underground canals pass directly under the bed of the Nazca River. And the general system of Nazca irrigation canals simply cannot but arouse admiration - it is so perfect and productive. It should be noted that the source of prosperity for the people who inhabited Nazca was precisely this, so this version has a real basis. But who, when and how could build such canals?

It is curious that the drawings were discovered from an airplane that flew over the plateau in search of water sources. And only after some time they found wells with water. Thus, the pilot coped with his task brilliantly, although he offered historians one of the most difficult puzzles of the 20th century - the Nazca drawings.

Time passes, and the Nazca drawings only become more mysterious. Not far from, in the mountains, similar images were discovered, which were previously unknown. And in this case, the drawings do not indicate the location of underground water channels.

And 1,400 km from the Nazca plateau, at the foot of Mount Solitary, a giant statue of a man was discovered. They called her the Atacama Giant. It reaches a height of 120 meters, and is surrounded by lines and signs similar to the Nazca drawings. There are more and more such mysterious finds every year, which confuses researchers and stimulates dreamers who put forward new versions of the purpose of the Nazca paintings.

Questions, questions... So far, no satisfactory answer has been found to any of them about these mysterious objects (http://www.inca.nm.ru/Nasca.htm).

New drawings in the Nazca desert

Andrey Zhukov, Candidate of Historical Sciences

Today almost everyone who is interested in the mysteries of the ancient history of mankind knows about the drawings of the Nazca desert. Scientists more than twenty years ago decided on the dating of this mysterious phenomenon, placing it around the middle of the 1st millennium AD. and attributing its creation to the local Indian culture of the same name - Nazca. But the paradox is that after 60 years of research into this ancient phenomenon, scientists are virtually no closer to solving this greatest mystery of human history, which is the Nazca images.

The Nazca Plateau, or as it is called in Peru, Pampa Nazca- This is a desert plateau, cut by numerous channels of long-dried rivers. It is located 450 km south of the capital of Peru, Lima. The total area covered with drawings stretches for more than 50 km from north to south and 5-7 km from west to east. Mysterious lines cover the surface of the desert with an area of ​​approximately 500 square meters. km. Scientists call such images made on the surface of the earth geoglyphs. The main mystery of Nazca is the lines and stripes themselves, of which there are about 13,000! In addition, about 700 geometric figures are also known on the plateau, primarily triangles and trapezoids, and about 100 spirals.

But there are very few well-known drawings of animals, birds, fish and insects here - just over thirty. All these images in Nazca are made, as it seems at first glance, in a fairly simple way; they are dug into the surface of the desert plateau. Those. and the patterns, and the lines, and the stripes are just grooves in the sand and pebble soil. Their depth varies from 10 to 30 cm. But the width of individual lines can reach 100 m, and in exceptional cases even 200 m. And the length of some lines reaches 8-10 km!

Today, there are more than thirty hypotheses trying to explain the origin of these geoglyphs, but none of them can give a clear answer to two main questions: how and why This giant “drawing board” was laid out.

Modern geodetic methods do not allow drawing a straight line up to 8 km long on rough terrain so that the deviation does not exceed 0.1%. And the ancient creators of the Nazca paintings, whoever they were, did this. Moreover, straight lines stretching for kilometers simply ignore the folds of the relief. They descend into ravines, rise to the tops of hills, and at the same time their geometric correctness and parallelism of the lateral boundaries are not disturbed at all.

Moreover, the Nazca Plateau is not the only area in Peru covered with mysterious images. Just ten kilometers from Nazca is the small town of Palpa, around which on a plateau called Palpa Pampa are thousands similar stripes, lines and patterns.

These geoglyphs on the Palpa plateau became known to the general public after the publications of Erich von Däniken only in the early 90s of the last century. The Palpa plateau itself is two times smaller in area than Nazca, but the variety of geoglyphs in Palpa is much greater. As in Nazca, on the Palpa plateau the vast majority of the images are stripes and lines. The stripes can bifurcate, change their direction at right angles, or turn into triangles. A strip 200 m wide was discovered in Palpa. According to some researchers, there are lines here that are much more extensive than in Nazca. The longest of them supposedly reaches 23 km! The logic of the ancient creators of this complex of images remains inaccessible to modern scientists.

Despite the abundance of hypotheses about the origin and purpose of the Nazca and Palpa geoglyphs, today scientists are no closer to solving this mysterious phenomenon. It is difficult to imagine that such a huge amount of work, comparable in scale only to the construction of the Great Wall of China, was carried out for one utilitarian purpose.

The study of the grandiose complex of images of Nazca Palpa is further complicated by the fact that there are still no detailed maps showing the entire picture of the geoglyphs of this area. Using aerial photography, the Americans made fairly detailed maps and diagrams of that part of the Nazca Plateau, which depicts well-known animal figures. But to this day there are no detailed plans for the entire Nazca complex, and even more so for the Palpa plateau. Tourist plane pilots say that almost every year they discover new, previously unknown geoglyphs on the plateau. But pilots are not researchers and are not engaged in recording newly discovered images. This is being done by scientists from small archaeological missions from other countries, who have intensified their work in recent years. And then some interesting results appeared...

Many centuries ago, on the territory of an exotic country in which mysterious pyramids and religious buildings were perfectly preserved, there was a highly developed...

From Masterweb

Many centuries ago, on the territory of an exotic country in which the main attractions of Peru - mysterious pyramids and religious buildings - were perfectly preserved, there was a highly developed Inca civilization. However, even before its appearance, the great Nazca Empire was founded, which appeared in the desert of the same name and existed until the 2nd century AD in the south of the country. The ancient Indians had a deep knowledge of irrigation and land reclamation.

Giant drawings

The people who disappeared from the face of the earth gained fame thanks to mysterious hieroglyphs that aroused the interest of scientists. Even opinions were expressed regarding the alien origin of figures and lines discovered quite accidentally in the 20th century. Nazca geoglyphs are huge drawings painted on the surface of the earth and not intended for public viewing. Thanks to the arid climate, they are perfectly preserved.

Bizarre and invisible from the ground, the signs are made in a single manner on a huge scale. At first glance, these patterns are barely distinguishable and represent an incomprehensible interweaving of all the lines scratched in the ground. The true form of the images can only be observed from above, when the chaos takes on meaning.

Craving for self-expression

People have always loved to draw and did it on rocks, cave walls, and then on paper. From the earliest period of human existence, they have had a craving for self-expression. The oldest images are considered to be petroglyphs (symbols on rocks) and geoglyphs (signs on the ground). The unusual patterns discovered in the desert are, according to scientists, an unparalleled historical monument, the inscriptions of which were written by giant hands. At the ends forming the drawings, wooden piles were found driven into the soil, which played the role of coordinate points when starting work.

The lifeless Nazca desert, which holds secrets

Surrounded by the Andes and sandy hills, the desert is located almost 500 km from the small city of Lima. The coordinates of the Nazca geoglyphs and the mysterious plateau on which they were discovered are 14°41"18.31"S 75°07"23.01"W. The uninhabited space of the earth, shrouded in secrecy, covers an area of ​​500 square kilometers. Rare drops of rain falling on the hot surface immediately evaporated.

The ancient Indians realized that the lifeless desert was an ideal place for burials, and they built tombs in dry layers that ensured incorruptibility. Archaeologists have discovered more than 200 thousand hollow ceramic vessels decorated with patterns and stylized designs. It is believed that the finds are doubles of small bowls that served as the so-called receptacle for the soul in the grave of the deceased.

Plateau covered with intricate patterns

The surface of the natural area, covered with an unusual “engraving”, slightly reminiscent of a tattoo, is surprising. The geoglyphs of the Nazca desert are not very deep, but gigantic in size, reaching tens and hundreds of meters. Mysterious lines intersect and overlap each other, combining into intricate patterns. One of the most mysterious places on our planet looks like a gigantic drawing board.

From the nearby foothills, it is not possible to see the giant images dug into the earth's firmament: they look like separate stripes or shapeless strokes. And you can only see them from above. Thus, a bird resembling a hummingbird is about 50 meters long, and a flying condor is more than 120 meters long.

Mysterious symbols

In total, about 13 thousand Nazca lines and geoglyphs, made in the soil, were found on the plateau. They are grooves of varying widths dug into the desert surface. Surprisingly, the lines do not change due to uneven terrain, remaining perfectly smooth and continuous. Among the images there are mysterious, but very authentically drawn birds and animals. There are also figures of people, but they are less expressive.

The mysterious symbols, which upon closer inspection turn out to be huge scratches on the surface of the desert, were discovered thanks to photographs taken from an airplane in 1930. From a bird's eye view, it is clear that the mysterious drawings were created by removing the upper crushed stone, darkened by time, from the light lower layer. The black coating is called “desert tan”, consisting of a compound of iron and manganese. The exposed light soil has this shade due to the large amount of lime, which quickly hardens in the fresh air. In addition, the preservation of the geoglyphs of the Nazca Plateau was facilitated by high temperatures and the absence of winds with precipitation.

Technique for making giant drawings

This is a rather interesting technique: first, the Indians made a sketch on the ground of the future work, and each straight line of the image was divided into segments. Then they were transferred to the desert surface using stakes in the form of furrows up to 50 centimeters deep. And if it was necessary to draw a curve, then it was divided into many short arcs. Each resulting drawing was outlined by a continuous line, and the creators of the unique creations included in the UNESCO World Heritage List never saw them in their entirety. Since 1946, scientists began to seriously study unusual masterpieces.

Another secret

It is curious that the Nazca geoglyphs in Peru were applied by hand in two stages: images of animals and birds appeared much earlier than the lines and stripes superimposed on complex figures. And it must be admitted that the early phase was more advanced, because the creation of zoomorphic images required very high skill than simply cutting straight lines in the ground.

The difference between very high-quality and not very skillfully executed images is quite large, which gave rise to rumors about the creation of symbols at different times (possibly by other cultures). In addition, scientists even remembered those whom our ancestors called their gods, although official science considers them fiction, denying the existence of an ancient developed civilization. Numerous artifacts indicate otherwise, and those who lived several thousand years before us possessed the highest technologies that surpass modern capabilities.

This discrepancy indicates a difference both in the capabilities of the “artists” and in the technique of execution. If we consider that any society develops from simple to complex, experiencing ups and downs, then the level of civilization always increases. However, in this case the scheme is broken, and developed technologies are replaced by primitive ones.

Indians who imitated the drawings

It is believed that the early author of all Nazca geoglyphs (photos presented in the article) was a highly developed civilization. Precisely calibrated drawings crossing complex terrain required enormous labor costs and special skill. It is these signs that amaze scientists and tourists with their careful execution and their scope. And the Indian tribes who lived on the plateau simply tried to imitate the remaining examples. But they didn’t have many opportunities, which is why shoddy copies appeared. The facts speak of one thing: the oldest drawings were made either by representatives of another civilization, or with their direct participation.

However, not all researchers agree with this theory. They combine the two stages, making a cautious assumption that the Nazca civilization possessed a special technique of artistic expression.

Has the mystery of the Nazca geoglyphs been solved?

The images, the true purpose of which scientists cannot yet understand, are striking in their size. But why did the Indians do such a titanic job? Some researchers believe that this is a giant calendar that accurately shows the change of seasons, and all the drawings are in one way or another connected with the winter and summer solstices. Perhaps representatives of the Nazca culture were astronomers who observed celestial bodies. For example, a huge image of a spider, according to a scientist at the Chicago Planetarium, is a diagram of the star cluster of the Orion constellation.

Others are sure that the Nazca geoglyphs, which are impossible to see from the ground, have a cult meaning: this is how the Indians communicated with their gods. The famous archaeologist J. Reinhard is one of them. He sees in the kilometer-long lines of roads that led to the place of worship of deities. And all the figures of animals, insects or birds are the personification of living creatures dying without water. And he draws his conclusion: the Indians asked for life-giving moisture - the basis of life. However, most scientists do not support the version, considering it doubtful.

Still others believe that this is a kind of map of the Lake Titicaca area, only its scale is 1:16. However, no one can answer who it was intended for. And some see in the bizarre patterns a map of the starry sky transferred to the surface of the desert.

Still others, who saw the crossed lines, suggested that this was how the runway of ancient spaceships was designated. Scientists examined an ancient cosmodrome in a plateau formed by mudflow deposits. But why do aliens plying interstellar space need such primitive visual cues? In addition, there is not a single evidence of the use of the desert for take-off or landing of aircraft. But the number of supporters of the alien version is not decreasing.

Still others claim that all images of people, animals and birds were made in memory of the Flood.

Sixth put forward a hypothesis according to which the ancient Nazca Indians mastered aeronautics, which is confirmed by the found ceramic products. They clearly show symbols resembling balloons. That is why all Nazca geoglyphs are visible only from a great height.

Trident on the Paracas Peninsula (Peru)

To date, there are approximately 30 hypotheses, each of which tries to explain the strange masterpieces of the Indians. One cannot fail to mention another interesting hypothesis. Some archaeologists who saw the image of the giant trident El Candelabro, more than 128 meters long, on the slope of the Pisco rock on the Paracas Peninsula, believed that it contained the key to the solution. The gigantic figure is visible only from the sea or air. If you mentally draw a straight line from the middle prong, it will turn out that it is directed towards the Nazca Desert (Peru) covered with strange lines. The geoglyph was made several hundred years before the birth of Christ.

Nobody knows who created it and why. Researchers believe that it is a symbol of the mythical Atlantis, which contains important information about our planet.

An ancient irrigation system?

Several years ago, archaeologists who studied the geoglyphs of the Nazca Desert, visible even from space, stated that the spiral lines that ended in funnels were the oldest aqueducts. Thanks to an unusual hydraulic system, water appeared on the plateau, where drought had always reigned.

An extensive system of canals distributed life-giving moisture to those areas where it was needed. Wind entered through holes in the ground, which helped drive away the remaining water.

The craftsmanship of the ancient Indians

Other questions arise regarding mystical patterns. Our contemporaries are surprised how the ancient Indians created trenches more than a kilometer long in rough terrain. Even using modern geodetic measurement methods, drawing a perfectly straight line on the ground is quite difficult. But the Nazca Indians (or representatives of another civilization) did it very easily, cutting ditches through ravines or hills. Moreover, the edges of all lines are ideal parallel.

Unusual find

Recently, not far from the desert, in which unique drawings were found that are traces of an ancient civilization, an international expedition discovered an unusual mummy with three fingers and toes. It is the limbs that look very strange. The sensational find, strewn with white powder, looks a bit like a plaster sculpture containing a skeleton with organ remains inside. Studies have shown that the age of the mummy is more than 6 thousand years, and the powder has embalming properties.

The genome of the individual was solved by Russian scientists, who stated that it was not a human mutant, but a representative of an extraterrestrial race. According to experts, next to the mummified body there were drawings depicting a three-fingered creature. His face can also be found on the surface of the desert.

However, not all scientists believed the Russians' findings. Many are still convinced that this is a skillfully executed fake, and the find has all the signs of a hoax.

New drawings and riddles without answers

In April of this year, the scientific world was rocked by information that new Nazca geoglyphs had been discovered using drones. 50 unknown images, damaged by time, cannot be seen with the naked eye. They were discovered not only by aerial photographs, but also by subsequent analysis using the latest technologies. It is curious that most of the half-erased drawings of various sizes are abstract patterns and warriors of the Paracas civilization.

Scientists have stated that some of the discovered symbols were made by the ancestors of the Nazca Indians. Soil erosion previously prevented the discovery: the crumbling soil of the plateau made the intricate patterns blurred. Therefore, it was not possible to view the Nazca geoglyphs from a satellite or from an airplane. And only thanks to high-resolution cameras installed on drones (unmanned aerial vehicles), clear images were obtained.

Ecological problems

For now, the mystery of the Nazca geoglyphs remains unsolved. The matter is further complicated by the fact that the plateau now has the status of a sacred zone, where archaeological excavations are prohibited. Access to the anomalous territory, reminiscent of a giant easel on which ancient “artists” left their messages, is closed.

In addition, the desert faces an environmental threat: deforestation and pollution are changing its climate. Due to frequent rains, unique creations on earth can fall into oblivion. And descendants will never know the whole truth. Unfortunately, nothing has been done to save them yet.

Everyone can admire the mysterious patterns of the desert

Travelers planning to visit Peru should remember that the plateau belongs to the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site and it is prohibited to visit it without permission. But tourists are loved in Nazca because they allow local residents to make a good living in a very inhospitable area. Thanks to the constant flow of foreigners, people survive.

However, anyone who wants to admire the mysterious signs can do so without even leaving home. It is necessary to launch a special program demonstrating satellite images of the planet. Let us recall once again the coordinates of geoglyphs in the Nazca Desert – 14°41"18.31"S 75°07"23.01"W.

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