A classic example of plate tectonics and Continental drift, the Andes Mountains were born around four million years ago when the underwater Nazca Plate began burrowing beneath the South America Plate, lifting the crust higher than anywhere else on Earth … except the Himalayas.
The Sacred Valley of the Incas, Cusco.
The result is the longest mountain range in South America, and Peru’s most prominent landscape feature.
Moreover, the Andes have been one of the cradles of ancient Peruvian civilisation.
When the Spanish conquistadors arrived in 1532, they encountered an Inca civilisation that was the greatest empire the New World had known.
But the Incas were just the last in a long line of civilisations that had emerged in the Andes Mountains … and left us with massive monuments, as well as intricate and artistic ceramics, ornaments and textiles:
The Chavin cult flourished from 1000 to 300 BC approx, centred around Huaraz.
The religious Tiahuanaco (also spelt Tiawanaku) emerged around 500 AD and left us with important temples in the Lake Titicaca region and developed extensive trade routes.
The warlike Wari culture, with its capital near Ayacucho, extended its influence down from the central Andes as far as the north coast, from 500 AD to around 1000 AD
The Colla people (also spelt Qolla or Qulla) came after the Tiahuanaco, in the high Andes of Peru and Bolivia, and built the idiosyncratic funerary towers of Sillustani near Puno.
Further north, the Chachapoya culture constructed the massive fort of Kuelap, from about 900 AD onwards, and were still resisting Inca domination when the Spanish arrived six centuries later.
Wari pottery at Wari Willka Site Museum.
The Spaniards chronicled what they observed about Inca society in the early years of the Conquest, but given that the Incas had no written language, there was very little recorded information available about the dozens of civilisations that had come before.
Realistic or symbolic images found in ceramics, textiles, and jewellery are the mainstay of archaeological investigation, but without ancient alphabets or hieroglyphics, much of what is known about pre-Inca Andean civilisations is essentially educated guesswork.
At the same time, this is what makes a visit to the mountains of Peru so exciting. It is replete with archaeology that is continually evolving, as new discoveries are made and theories propounded.
Plus, the scenery is constantly awe-inspiring!
How to explore Andean Civilisations with PeruNorth:
Typical Chachapoya circular dwelling at Kuelap.
Tihuanaco: an optional visit to the ruins of Tiwanaku is included in the Titicaca, La Paz & Uyuni 7D tour
Wari: Wilkahuaina can be visited as a half-day hike or excursion from Huaraz.
Chachapoya: nearly all our Kuelap & Gocta itineraries include visits to multiple Chachapoya sites, not just the most famous, Kuelap.
Colla: a visit to Sillustani is included in Lake Titicaca 4D itinerary.
Inca: any visit to Cusco, the Sacred Valley & Machu Picchu explores their heartland; but given the extent of their Empire by the time of the Conquest, one can also find Inca vestiges all over Peru, such as in Colca Canyon, to the South; and Tucume, to the North.
Being so mountainous, and without the benefit of wheeled vehicles or horses, the main form of transport in the pre-Colonial Andes was on foot. Therefore, many of PeruNorth’s hiking itineraries follow ancient walkways, which are dotted with archaeological sites … and often culminate at a well-known ruin: