A ''chullpa'' is an ancient
Aymara
Aymara may refer to:
Languages and people
* Aymaran languages, the second most widespread Andean language
** Aymara language, the main language within that family
** Central Aymara, the other surviving branch of the Aymara(n) family, which today ...
funerary tower originally constructed for a noble person or noble family. ''Chullpas'' are found across the
Altiplano
The Altiplano (Spanish for "high plain"), Collao (Quechua and Aymara: Qullaw, meaning "place of the Qulla") or Andean Plateau, in west-central South America, is the most extensive high plateau on Earth outside Tibet. The plateau is located at the ...
in
Peru
, image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg
, image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg
, other_symbol = Great Seal of the State
, other_symbol_type = National seal
, national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...
and
Bolivia. The tallest are about high.
The tombs at
Sillustani
Sillustani is a pre-Inca cemetery on the shores of Lake Umayo near Puno in Peru. The tombs, which are built above ground in tower-like structures called chullpas, are the vestiges of the Qulla people, who are Aymara conquered by the Inca Empir ...
are most famous. Recent research has focused on the connection between ''chullpas'' and the ritual pathways etched into the landscape around
Nevado Sajama
Nevado Sajama (; ) is an extinct stratovolcano and the highest peak in Bolivia. The mountain is located in Sajama Province, in Oruro Department. It is situated in Sajama National Park and is a composite volcano consisting of a stratovolcano on t ...
, as well as possible patterns within ''chullpa'' sites.
Description
Corpses in each tomb were typically placed in a
fetal position along with some of their belongings, including clothing and common equipment.
In virtually all cases, the only opening to the tomb faces the rising
sun
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is a nearly perfect ball of hot plasma, heated to incandescence by nuclear fusion reactions in its core. The Sun radiates this energy mainly as light, ultraviolet, and infrared radi ...
in the east. The construction of the ''chullpa'' varied with ethnic group: in general, those of the north Altiplano are circular and constructed with stone, while those of the south are rectangular and constructed with
adobe.
Some are unadorned, while others have intricate carvings. At Sillustani, many of the ''chullpas'' have
lizards, which were considered a symbol of life because they could
regenerate their tails, carved into the stone.
Similar tombs
It is possible that ''chullpas'' were also used by the
Inca
The Inca Empire (also known as the Incan Empire and the Inka Empire), called ''Tawantinsuyu'' by its subjects, (Quechua for the "Realm of the Four Parts", "four parts together" ) was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The admin ...
following their conquest of the Aymara.
Very similar stone constructions on
Easter Island
Easter Island ( rap, Rapa Nui; es, Isla de Pascua) is an island and special territory of Chile in the southeastern Pacific Ocean, at the southeasternmost point of the Polynesian Triangle in Oceania. The island is most famous for its ne ...
known as ''tupa'' have sometimes been suspected to be closely related to chullpas.
[Heyderdahl, Thor. ''Easter Island – The Mystery Solved''. Random House New York 1989. ]
See also
*
Inka Murata
Inka Murata is an archaeological site in the Altiplano of Bolivia. It is located in the Oruro Department, Litoral Province, Escara Municipality, in the community of Escara. The site with the adjacent burial towers ''(chullpa
A ''chullpa'' is ...
*
Jach'a Phasa
Jach'a Phasa (Aymara language, Aymara, ''jach'a'' big, ''phasa'' edible earth, Hispanicized spellings ''Jachapasa, Jachapaza, Jachaphasa, Jachcha Paza'') is an archaeological site in Bolivia located in the La Paz Department (Bolivia), La Paz Dep ...
*
Kuntur Amaya
Kuntur Amaya (Aymara ''kunturi'' condor, ''amaya'' dead body, dead / beloved son / battlement / a thin person / lazy, Hispanicized spellings ''Condor Amaya, Cóndor Amaya'') is an archaeological site in Bolivia. It is located in the La Paz Depa ...
*
Kunturmarka
*
Kutimpu
Cutimbo (possibly from Quechua for giant armadillo)Fabián Potosí C. et al., ''Ministerio de Educación del Ecuador: Kichwa Yachakukkunapa Shimiyuk Kamu, Runa Shimi - Mishu Shimi, Mishu Shimi - Runa Shimi''. Quito (DINEIB, Ecuador) 2009. (Kichw ...
*
Markahirka
Markahirka or Marka Hirka (Quechua ''marka'' village, Ancash Quechua ''hirka'' mountain,Robert Beér, Armando Muyolemaj, Dr. Hernán S. Aguilarpaj, Vocabulario comparativo, quechua ecuatoriano - quechua ancashino - castellano - English, Brighton ...
*
Ninamarka
Ninamarca (possibly from Quechua ''nina'' fire, ''marka'' village, "fire village") is an archaeological site in Peru.Teofilo Laime Ajacopa, Diccionario Bilingüe Iskay simipi yuyayk'ancha, La Paz, 2007 (Quechua-Spanish dictionary) It is located in ...
*
Qulu Qulu
Qulu Qulu (Aymara ''qulu'' hump, little hill,Planes y Programas de Estudio Subsector Lengua y Cultura Aymara, NB1-NB6, Educación Intercultural Bilingüe, Región de Tarapaca : ''Qulu'' (Aymara) - ''Joroba'' (Spanish) the reduplication signifies ...
*
Uskallaqta
Uskallaqta (Quechua ''uska'' poor, ''llaqta'' place (village, town, city, country, nation),Teofilo Laime Ajacopa, Diccionario Bilingüe Iskay simipi yuyayk'ancha, La Paz, 2007 (Quechua-Spanish dictionary) other spellings ''Juscallacta, Uscallacta ...
*
Wanqaran
*
Wich'un
References
{{coord missing, Peru
Tombs
Mausoleums
Aymara people
Tombs in Bolivia
Tombs in Peru