Chavín Figure Holding Huachuma Cactus

Although largely unknown to most travelers, one of the most influential ancient cultures of South America is that of Chavín. It served as an important pilgrimage site from roughly 1200-500 B.C.E. As it rose in prominence, artwork bearing its religious symbols began appearing throughout the central Andes and down to the Peruvian coast. This expansion points towards a widespread transformation of the Andean belief system within the archeological timeline, in what's been dubbed the Early Horizon.

Peru’s Cerro Sechín is the creepiest place I’ve been. The outer walls of this three-thousand-year-old temple are covered in relief carvings of dismembered bodies, likely depicting human sacrifice. What was their worldview that gave rise to this practice?

The Inca's precise stonework is often depicted as shrouded in mystery. Yet their construction methods were documented by early Spanish chroniclers. These historical records, supported by physical evidence, reveal how the Inca quarried, transported, split, shaped, fitted, and dressed their stones.