I.

INTRODUCTION
Paracas comes from the Quechua word para-ako meaning "sand falling like rain."
The Paracas culture flourished on the south Pacific coast of the central Andes in
what is now Peru in around 600-150 B.C.E. and is one of the earliest known
complex societies in South America.
The Great Paracas Necropolis was discovered by archaeologists during the 1920s
on the south Pacific Coast of the Central Andes. It is a vast communal burial site
holding 420 bodies, which dates to around 300-200 B.C.E.
These textile fragments would originally have been part of a larger piece of finely
woven, brightly-colored cloth found wrapped around mummified bodies in the
Great Paracas Necropolis in Peru. They depict flying, supernatural winged figures
perhaps representing shamanic flight. Each figure grasps a severed human head
by the hair. Together they communicate native beliefs about journeys into the spirit
world.
As well as depending on fish and other resources from the sea, the people of the
Paracas culture were also farmers and cultivated beans, maize, red peppers, yuca
and peanuts. They were also exceptional craftspeople and produced exquisitely
worked stone clubs, obsidian knives, gourd bottles, rattles, pottery, shell and bone
necklaces, hammered gold face and hair ornaments, feather fans and basketry.
Textiles were valued as a means for sharing religious lore and beliefs. They were
worn to indicate status and authority. Some textiles were over 34 meters long and
would have required large numbers of people and complex organization to make.
They are made from camelid wool (probably llama or alpaca) and plant fibers
(identified as cotton). The bright colors include indigo, green, browns, pink and
white. These were all produced using natural dyes and would have been
particularly striking against the sandy beige colors of the surrounding landscape.
The Paracas and other contemporary communities laid the foundations for the later
societies of the Andes, including the Inca.

II. OBJECTIVES
II.I General Objective
The main features of the Paracas culture
II.II Specific Objectives
a. Recognize the place where the Paracas culture was located.
b. Identify the influence of other cultures that entered the Paracas
culture.
c. Know the customs that identify the Paracas culture.
d. Learn the techniques of cranial trepanation of the Paracas culture.
e. Know the techniques used for the production of textiles belonging to
the Paracas culture.
f. Recognize the art for the manufacture of ceramics of the Paracas
culture.

III. PARACAS ANCIENT CULTURE

Space and initial population
The southern coast of Peru presents a set of peculiarities that make it unique and
determined social development that began in the Archaic and was transformed to
acquire the characteristics that are recognized in the Paracas and Nazca cultures.
Harnessing the wealth of the sea and the maximization of resources obtained
along the valleys, from the coast to the highlands, they have highlighted the history
of the southern villages thousands of years ago.
Geographic characteristics
The coast of Ica is one of the most arid regions of America. As along the coastal
strip of Peru, this territory is crossed by rivers that descend from the mountains and
are fertile areas. Unlike the rest of the Peruvian coast, the south coast is
considerably more extensive (up to 30 km wider); therefore its deserts and valleys
are also wider.
Also, due to the presence of the coastal mountain range, located next to the sea
and near the Valley of Ica River, this region is drier than others, because the chain
of hills acts as a dike containing clouds are formed marine waters. Even when the
"El Nio phenomenon" occurs, and the ocean waters warm, produce unseasonal
rains all along the coast, this area remains dry.

The climate in ancient times: In ancient times, the climate or "paleoclimate"

off the coast of Ica was very different from that seen today. During the
Archaic period the inhabitants of this region enjoyed a much more benign
environment, and up to about the end of that period, all the desert area was
a fertile meadow.
Even until 1800 B.C., much of the current Nazca desert was covered in
grass, scattered bushes and forests of carob more extensive than today.
When paracas society development, climate and had become more similar
to what is known today.
3

The winds paracas: Paracas is the indigenous name - not Quechua - that is
designated from time immemorial to the winds blowing in the peninsula and
islands. It can reach 100 km per hour and lifting large amounts of sand on
their way.
The peninsula is named after Paracas by the frequency with which these
winds affect the area.

What was Paracas?

It is known as Paracas to all societies that between 850 and 200 BC inhabited the
valleys located between:
- To the north, the river Chincha.
- To the south, the river Acari.
In other words, Paracas is a desert peninsula located within the Pisco Province in
the Ica Region, on the south coast of Peru.
What kind of culture was Paracas?
It is known as "culture" set of ideas, beliefs, traditions and habits of a society; and
"archaeological culture" to the material expression of that culture, that is, objects
and buildings, and the styles that they reflect in a given period of the past.
In this last line, you can say that Paracas is an archaeological culture that
corresponds to a set of objects (ceramics, textiles, etc.) and cultural expressions
(tombs, temples, images) shared by people from different areas of the southern
coast between 850 and 200 BC, objects and expressions which are, moreover,
very unique and different from those of other regions (the Lima culture) or other
times (such as the Nazca period)
Is usually interpreted that people in the same geographical area maintained
relationships with each other: if used objects of the same style, they shared
traditions and built buildings with similar characteristics. While this accounts for the
contact between these people, it does not mean they were governed by the same
leader. That is not necessarily formed a political unity and even could be
addressed.

3.1 The Paracas culture (700 B.C. - 200 A.D.)

was a pre-Inca civilization which was developed on the southern coast of present
Republic of Peru, the Paracas people has a worldwide reputation for its skill in
making the finest and most beautiful textiles of all Pre-Columbian America. It is
speculated that the Paracas culture was the coastal end of the Chavin culture, in
other words, that emerged after the collapse of the Chavin culture. Paracas
means Sandstorm or Large Front people. Paracas are also known for their surgical
techniques in skull, called "cranial trepanning" to save the lives of their soldiers
wounded by wars they faced.
3.2 Geographic Location
The Paracas Culture is originated in Ica, Pisco city nowadays, Paracas Peninsula,
Per. Its because of that closeness to the coast that allowed them to develop their
economy based on fishing. Sea provided them an main element for their survival.
3.3 Origin of the Paracas Culture
The Paracas Culture was discovered by the Peruvian Archaeologist Julio C.
Tello in 1925. He discovered in the cemeteries of Cerro Colorado y Cavernas four
hundred twenty-nine funerary bundles, many of which contained up to sixteen
coats plus capes, turbans, towels and other personal ornaments worn by the
paracas people, funeral bundles and the remains found belong to 500 B.C.
The archaeologist Julio C. Tello, based on the pattern of burial, divides the Paracas
culture into two periods: Paracas Caverns and Paracas Necropolis.
A.- Paracas Caverns Culture (700 BC -200 BC): This period is called
"Paracas Caverns" by the shape of the graves that were found by
archaeologists, these were shaped like an inverted glass of champagne,
with deep wells which lead to underground chambers with several mummies
wrapped in there.

B.- Paracas Necropolis Culture (200 A.C. -200 D.C.): Called that way by
the shape of their tombs, Necropolis means "City of the Dead". Paracas
created real cities for their dead, the necropolis shaped tombs were
discovered by Xesspe Mejia, Julio C. Tello disciple.

A- PARACAS CAVERNS (700 A.C. - 200 A.C.)

It is the oldest period. It is linked to art Chavin the most noticeable in ceramics.
Caverns Paracas culture had its main center in Pea de Tahajuana, in the Ica
valley, 300 km south of Lima.
According to Tello, the tombs were shaped like a inverted glass of
champagne. The shape of the tombs was a symbol of the return to the womb of
the earth after death.
A.1. Paracas Political Organization
The political organization of the Paracas culture was predominant class to the
priestly class, together with the warrior nobility.
A.2. Paracas Social Organization
The Paracas culture was a theocratic society influenced by the Chavin culture, and
the use of terrifying gods.
The economy of the Paracas culture was based primarily on agriculture and fishing
(which took place on totora reed boats, with shellfish harvesting).
A.3.Textiles of the Paracas culture
The textile art of the Paracas culture is considered as one of the finest and
sophisticated in pre-Columbian America and the world. Paracas used vicua fiber,
wool, cotton and feathers to make their famous textiles that decorated
harmoniously and with many colors with geometric anthropomorphic designs,
zoomorphic, animals, plants, etc.
6

The Caverns tissues are characterized by geometric and rigid, predominating the
double fabric technique. In them there is still a strong reminiscence in the
representation of the feline or anthropomorphic beings geometrized with serpentine
hair seen in the Chavin culture.
One of the main reasons why the Paracas culture is well known for the quality of its
textiles, especially those belonging to the period "Paracas Necropolis" which
constitute an exceptional artistic expression of their culture. Importantly, these
textiles are constantly associated with circles of power and a symbol of wealth, as
paracas nobles were buried with their personal belongings and textiles. In religious
ceremonies Paracas, textile items were actually "sacrificed" showing its primary
importance in the Paracas culture.
A.4. Paracas Medicine
It had characteristics of magical and religious character.
The Paracas practiced a crude form of brain surgery called trepanning, the
Paracas doctors surgically made holes in the skull to treat cranial traumas caused
by injuries in wars, apparently. The formation of scar tissue indicates that many
patients actually survived the operations, although, of course, is impossible to
know about the physical and psychological consequences.
It found a fairly significant number of skulls with gold plates covering holes. Still it
has not been able to properly explain the cause of such a large number of
operations, but it is believed that the wars that ravaged those territories during that
period was the reason. Tools have been found several types paracas used by
doctors, instruments such as knives and scalpels of obsidian volcanic stone were
the main operations. The paracas surgeon is called Sir kah.
A.5. PARACAS CERAMIC
It is polychrome and painted in some kind of post-cooking painting, it had the
shape of a pumpkin. The vessels have a spherical body with two short peaks

(sometimes one of them with a sculptural motif zoo) linked by a bridge handle with
incised figures.
B. PARACAS NECROPOLIS A.C. 200 - 200 D.C.
Age: Necropolis Paracas culture has an antiquity that goes from the 200 years B.C.
until the early A.D. The main area of development of this stage of the parachutists
was between the Pisco river, the ravine Topar and the Paracas Peninsula.
Type of Cemeteries: This period is characterized by the rectangular shape of its
cemeteries, where they entered dozens of mummies buried a few meters high,
these are known as Necropolis.
There are indications of the existence of social categories in these burials, as the
most powerful characters were highly decorated.
The name of the Paracas Necropolis, comes, as is easy to assume, existence of a
necropolis. The tombs consist of large burial chambers, in more advanced
constructions involving several rows of underground rooms. A necropolis is a
cemetery or place intended to burial. Etymologically means city of the dead, it
comes from the Greek language: necro, death, and polis, city. The term is usually
used to designate cemeteries belonging to large cities, as well as burial areas that
have been found near cities of ancient civilizations.
Discoverer of Paracas Necropolis: It was the disciple of Julio C. Tello: Toribio
Mejia Xesspes. He placed the capital of Paracas Necropolis in Topar.
B.1. Political-social-Economical Organization
The political organization of the Paracas culture had as leader the warrior nobility
Existence of a militaristic society in Paracas necropolis
Priests lost influence in this period
The Paracas necropolis economy is based on agriculture and fisheries as in the
previous period
8

 More Gods appear in the Paracas religion

B.2. Paracas Necropolis Ceramic
Pottery culture Paracas necropolis is not as representative as the previous period.
Although the shape and the double peak and remains handle bridge, he lost wealth
and is less than the caverns decorated period, is yellowish, and it is more scarce. It
is a monochrome ceramics with less work and finishing.
B.3. Characteristics:
They are monochromatic, used the pre-cooking paint, the colors used were mostly
white and cream, it had a pumpkin shape.
B.4. Textiler Necropolis Paracas Culture
The Necropolis tissues, however, have greater mastery and delicacy in designs
because they were embroidered by skilled artisans paracas, which allowed for
beautiful motifs and colorful creations. Paracas characters in tissues or gods
holding trophy heads with walking sticks or strips that attach to your waist and
become two-headed snakes, headdresses topped with a ceremonial knife, nose
ring and mustache are represented.
In the second order, the paracas textilery highlights the naturalistic designs taken
both flora and fauna such as snakes, birds, cats, fish, fruits, flowers, etc. At that
time they correspond ceremonial robes that are characterized by a plain fabric
based on which the decorative motifs are embroidered in camelid wool, dyed in the
most diverse harmony of colors, making the tissues of the Paracas culture the
most beautiful Pre-Columbian textile art.
The ruling class was buried with funeral wrappings using wool, cotton, alpaca and
vicuna. The degree of gold decoration, designs, materials denoted the importance
of the person.

B.5. Paracas Writing

According to Dr. Victoria de la jara his writing was expressed in tokapu (writing in
the tissues). The paracas writing was based on the use of tissues, the kind of color
had a meaning, design, everything communicated.
B.6. Paracas Religion and Philosophy
Paracas people worshiped God Kon. Religion and Mythology paracas also
considers that perfection is not a being but a being. The world is dynamic, rhythmic
and changing, consisting in maintaining proper and fragile equilibrium relationship
between the different component elements of society or an organization. Each
element plays an essential role in all so diverse beings are used in mythology as
symbols of situations, manifestations of power or for socializing.
B.7. Cranial Deformation had a distinctive social order and religious.
In the Paracas culture especially in the Paracas Necropolis stage is characteristic
by the practice of cranial deformation. Cranial deformation is a practice that as
trepanation was carried out in different Andean cultures. There is a hypothesis that
was used to distinguish one individual from another, belonging to the same racial
group. Its original function was, therefore, obey the displayed search other than an
aristocratic group against another of lower social status and also for religious
reasons.

10

IV. SUMMARY
Paracas, culture centred on the peninsula of the same name, located in presentday southern Peru in the vicinity of Ica, during the Early Horizon and the Early
Intermediate periods (c. 900 bcad 400). The Paracas cultures earlier phase,
called Paracas Cavernas, is related to the Chavn culture (c. 1000400 bc). The
pottery of the period is not well-fired and was sometimes painted after firing. The
Paracas cultures of the middle Early Intermediate Period (c. ad 1400) are referred
to as the Paracas Pinilla and the Paracas Necrpolis phases. These periods show
an improvement in pottery making. The Paracas Necrpolis people were named for
and described by the study of cemeteries discovered at Cerro Colorado. The
people wrapped the mummified corpses of their deceased, along with funeral
offerings, in embroidered cloaks, which are among the finest examples of the art of
textile making. The multicolored designs on these textiles bear a definite
relationship

to

those

of

painted

pottery

of

the

contemporaneous

and

later Nazca culture. These people also engaged in artificial deformation of the skull
by binding the skull in infancy.

11

V. CONCLUSIONS
a) The Paracas culture has two periods: Paracas Cavernas dating from 500 to
300 BCE and Paracas Necropolis from 300 to 100 BCE.
b) During Paracas Cavernas, mummies were buried in underground caverns or
caves which were up to 6 meters in diameter. The mummies were wrapped
in simple textile. Their ceramic represented deities such as jaguars and
snakes and used bright colors to decorate them.
c) During the period of Paracas Necropolis the territory extended beyond the
Pisco River up to Topara. Burial grounds evolved and contained large
underground funerary chambers aligned horizontally. Adult Paracas
mummies were buried in fetal position wrapped with different textiles and
food such as maize and yucca. Bodies were distinguished by their social
position; those belonging to a high class were wrapped in layers of fine
textile, exuberant jewelry and religious objects. Many mummies found in the
Necropolis period showed an elongated skull which is associated with a high
social status and power. The Paracas culture is also well known for
performing cranial surgery called ttrepanations in which a doctor would drill
a hole in the skull to treat a psychological disorder, headaches or a fracture
covering it with a gold plate. They probably used coca, hallucinogen herbs
or alcohol as anesthetic.
d) During this period the production of their textile increased in size, complexity
and quality meaning that they used a superior technique in their method of
production. Their ceramic did not evolve as much as their textile and it
became monochromatic using mostly yellow shades.
e) The Paracas people were also known for their burial grounds as they
venerated their dead. In the 1920s a burial ground was discovered with
more than 400 mummies some of them wrapped in layers of fine alpaca
wool blankets and tapestries and preserved in excellent condition because
of the dryness of the desert and the lack of contact with oxygen.

12

VI. VOCABULARY
1. Necropolis:

A necropolis is

large

ancient cemetery with

elaborate tomb monuments.

Necrpolis: Una necrpolis es un gran cementerio antiguo con elaborados
monumentos funerarios.
2. Culture: systems of knowledge shared by a relatively large group of people.
Cultura: sistemas de conocimiento compartidos por un grupo relativamente
grande de personas
3. Polychrome: practice of decorating architectural elements, sculpture, etc.,
in a variety of colors.
Policromo: prctica de decorar elementos arquitectnicos, escultura, etc.,
en una variedad de colores.
4. Andes or Andean Mountains:

are

the longest continental mountain

range in the world.

Los Andes o Cordilleras Andinas: son la cordillera continental ms larga
del mundo.
5. Shaft tomb or shaft grave: a type of deep rectangular burial structure,
similar in shape to the much shallower cist grave, containing a floor
of pebbles, walls of rubble masonry, and a roof constructed of wooden
planks.
Tumba de eje o sepulcro de eje: tipo de estructura de enterramiento
rectangular profundo, de forma similar a la tumba cist ms superficial, que
contiene un piso de piedras, paredes de mampostera de escombros, y un
techo construido de tablones de madera.
6. Peninsula:.an area of land almost completely surrounded by water except f
or anisthmus connecting it with the mainland.
Pennsula: un rea de tierra casi completamente rodeada de agua, excepto
el anisthmo que lo conecta con el continente.
7. Excavation: is the exposure, processing and recording of archaeological
remains
Excavacin: es la exposicin, procesamiento y registro de restos
arqueolgicos
8. Cluster: a number of things of the same kind, growing or held together.
Cmulo: una serie de cosas del mismo tipo, creciendo o mantenidas
juntas.

13

9. Ceramics: inorganic and nonmetallic materials that are essential to our

daily lifestyle.
Cermica: materiales inorgnicos y no metlicos que son esenciales para
nuestro estilo de vida diario.
10. Burnish: to make shiny or lustrous especially by rubbing
Bruido: para hacer brillante o brillante, especialmente frotando
11. Tradition: is a belief or behavior passed down within a group or society with
symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past.
Tradicin: es una creencia o comportamiento transmitido dentro de un
grupo o sociedad con significado simblico o significado especial con
orgenes en el pasado.
12. Burial: the ritual act of placing a dead person or animal, sometimes with
objects, into the ground.
Enterramiento: el acto ritual de colocar a un muerto o animal, a veces con
objetos, en el suelo.
13. Wrap: to enclose in something wound or folded about
Envoltura: para encerrar en algo herido o doblado alrededor
14. Bay: is a body of water connected to an ocean or lake, formed by an
indentation of the shoreline.
Baha: es un cuerpo de agua conectado a un ocano o lago, formado por
una hendidura del litoral.
15. Ornate: elaborately or sumptuously adorned, often excessively or showily
so.
Adornado: adornado elaboradamente o suntuosamente, a menudo
excesivamente o llamativamente as.
16. Hilltop: the top of a hill.
Colina: la cima de una colina.
17. Slopes: to have or take an inclined or oblique direction or angle considered
with reference to a vertical or horizontal plane
Pendientes: tener o tomar una direccin o ngulo inclinado u oblicuo
considerado con referencia a un plano vertical u horizontal
18. Grave: an excavation made in the earth in which to bury a dead body
Tumba: una excavacin hecha en la tierra para enterrar un cadver
19. Deerskin: the skin of a deer.
Piel de ciervo: la piel de un venado.
20. Signs: a conventional or arbitrary mark, figure, or symbol used as an
abbreviation for the word or words it represents.

14

Signos: una marca, figura o smbolo convencional o arbitrario utilizado

como abreviatura de la palabra o palabras que representa.
21. Dishes: an open, relatively shallow container of pottery, glass, metal, wood,
etc., used for various purposes, especially for holding or serving food.
Platos: un recipiente abierto, relativamente poco profundo de cermica,
vidrio, metal, madera, etc., utilizado para diversos fines, especialmente para
la celebracin o el servicio de alimentos.
22. Clay: a natural earthy material that is plastic when wet, consisting
essentially of hydrated silicates of aluminum: used for making bricks,
pottery, etc.
Arcilla: un material terroso natural que es plstico cuando est mojado,
consistente esencialmente de silicatos hidratados de aluminio: usado para
hacer ladrillos, cermica, etc.
23. Skull: the bony framework of the head, enclosing the brain and supporting
the face; the skeleton of the head.
Crneo: el armazn seo de la cabeza, encerrando el cerebro y
sosteniendo la cara; El esqueleto de la cabeza.
24. Cranium: the part of the skull that encloses the brain.
Crneo: la parte del crneo que encierra el cerebro.
25. Archaeologist: a specialist in archaeology, the scientific study of prehistoric
peoples and their cultures by analysis of their artifacts, inscriptions,
monuments, etc.
Arquelogo: especialista en arqueologa, el estudio cientfico de los
pueblos prehistricos y sus culturas mediante el anlisis de sus artefactos,
inscripciones, monumentos, etc.
26. Coast: the land next to the sea; seashore.
Costa: la tierra junto al mar; costa
27. Century: one of the successive periods of 100 years reckoned forward or
backward from a recognized chronological epoch, especially from the
assumed date of the birth of Jesus.
Siglo: uno de los sucesivos perodos de 100 aos contados hacia delante o
hacia atrs desde una poca cronolgica reconocida, sobre todo desde la
fecha supuesta del nacimiento de Jess.
28. Valley: an elongated depression between uplands, hills, or mountains,
especially one following the course of a stream.
15

Valle: una depresin alargada entre tierras altas, colinas o montaas,

especialmente una que sigue el curso de una corriente.
29. Cavern: a cave, especially one that is large and mostly underground.
Caverna: una cueva, especialmente una que es grande y sobre todo
subterrnea.
30. Weapons: any instrument or device for use in attack or defense in combat,
fighting, or war, as a sword, rifle, or cannon.
Armas: cualquier instrumento o dispositivo para ser utilizado en ataque o
defensa en combate, combate o guerra, como espada, rifle o can.

VII. BIBLIOGRAPHIES

http://www.go2peru.com/peru_guide/culture/paracas_culture.htm
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/art-americas/south-americaearly/paracas-nasca/a/paracas-an-introduction

https://global.britannica.com/topic/Paracas

http://www.tampere.fi/ekstrat/taidemuseo/arkisto/peru/800/paracas_en.htm

http://archaeology.about.com/od/peru/fl/Guide-to-the-Paracas-Culture.htm

http://www.discover-peru.org/chavin-paracas/

http://www.latinamericanstudies.org/paracas.htm

http://www.enjoyperu.com/peru_travel_tours_information/enjoy_peru_whats
_new/the-textiles-of-the-paracas-culture.html

https://www.boundless.com/art-history/textbooks/boundless-art-historytextbook/native-american-art-before-1300-ce-16/south-america111/ceramics-in-early-south-america-492-1513/

http://traffickingculture.org/encyclopedia/case-studies/paracas-textiles/

http://www.peruthisweek.com/search/paracas+culture?ft=buscar
16

https://answersingenesis.org/human-body/ancient-humans-of-paracas-arevictims-of-a-twisted-tale/

VIII. ANNEXES
PARACAS CULTURE CERAMICS

THE EN LONGITUD SKULLS PARACAS

17

DEFORMATIONS AND CRANIAL TREPANNING

18

ARCHAEOMETRIC CONTRIBUTION

PARACAS TEXTILERIAS

Paracas textile, Paracas Necropolis, c. 300-200 B.C.E. camelid wool

(probably llama or alpaca) and plant fibers (identified as cotton), 8 x 8 cm,
Peru Trustees of the British Museum.

19

Border (detail), Border from an embroidered mantle, 200 B.C.E. 600 C.E.,
Peru Trustees of the British Museum Natural dyes dont always last when
exposed to light or moisture so the survival of these in such vibrant
conditions for over 2,000 years is extraordinary. This survival is likely to be
due to the dry conditions of the unlit underground burial chambers in which
they were found.

20

FUNERARY ARCHITECTURE PARACAS

21

22