Built by the Norte-Chico people almost 5000 years ago (2600BC), the sacred city of Caral-Supe was the center of a civilization that many believe is among the oldest in the Americas. At one time, over 3000 people lived in the city, making it one of the most densely populated areas of the Americas, and an amazing example of early Norte-Chican culture.
For more information on the Norte-Chico culture see here: (
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Caral was already a well-established large city at the same time that the Egyptians were building their great pyramids in the Nile Valley. Source: (
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Archaeologists believe that what the early Norte-Chico people of this region built at Caral influenced every other Incan or Andean city built afterwards, until the the arrival of Spanish Conquistadores in 1532 destroyed the Incan culture.
Caral was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2009.
From the UNESCO website: (
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"Sacred City of Caral-Supe
The 5000-year-old 626-hectare archaeological site of The Sacred City of Caral-Supe is situated on a dry desert terrace overlooking the green valley of the Supe river. It dates back to the Late Archaic Period of the Central Andes and is the oldest centre of civilization in the Americas. Exceptionally well-preserved, the site is impressive in terms of its design and the complexity of its architectural, especially its monumental stone and earthen platform mounts and sunken circular courts. One of 18 urban settlements situated in the same area, Caral features complex and monumental architecture, including six large pyramidal structures.
A quipu (the knot system used in Andean civilizations to record information) found on the site testifies to the development and complexity of Caral society. The city’s plan and some of its components, including pyramidal structures and residence of the elite, show clear evidence of ceremonial functions, signifying a powerful religious ideology.
Outstanding Universal Value
Brief Synthesis
The Sacred City of Caral-Supe reflects the rise of civilisation in the Americas. As a fully developed socio-political state, it is remarkable for its complexity and its impact on developing settlements throughout the Supe Valley and beyond. Its early use of the quipu as a recording device is considered of great significance. The design of both the architectural and spatial components of the city is masterful, and the monumental platform mounds and recessed circular courts are powerful and influential expressions of a consolidated state.
Criterion (ii): Caral is the best representation of Late Archaic architecture and town planning in ancient Peruvian civilisation. The platform mounds, sunken circular courts, and urban plan, which developed over centuries, influenced nearby settlements and subsequently a large part of the Peruvian coast.
Criterion (iii): Within the Supe Valley, the earliest known manifestation of civilisation in the Americas, Caral is the most highly-developed and complex example of settlement within the civilisation’s formative period (the Late Archaic period).
Criterion (iv): Caral is impressive in terms of the design and complexity of its architectural and spatial elements, especially its monumental earthen platform mounds and sunken circular courts, features that were to dominate a large part of the Peruvian coast for many centuries.
Integrity and Authenticity
Caral is remarkably intact, largely because of its early abandonment and late discovery. Once abandoned, it appears to have been occupied only twice and then not systematically: once in the so-called Middle Formative or Early Horizon, about 1000 B.C.; and once in the States and Lordships period, between 900 and 1440 A.D. Since both these settlements were on the outskirts of the city, they did not disturb the ancient architectural structures. In addition, since the site lacked gold and silver finds, there was little looting. The site has no modern permanent constructions in its immediate surroundings (except for tourism facilities built from local materials). It is part of a cultural and natural landscape of great beauty, relatively untouched by development.
Most development has occurred in low valley areas near Lima (to the south of the site). The middle Supe Valley, where the site is located, is an area dedicated to non-industrialised agriculture. There is little argument about the authenticity of the site.
Radiocarbon analysis carried out by the Caral-Supe Special Archaeological Project (PEACS) at the Caral site confirms that the development of the site can be located in time between the years 3000 to 1800 B.C. and, more specifically, to the Late Archaic Period.
Management and protection requirements
The management system in place is adequate, and a recently modified Management Plan (as of late 2008) has been implemented. The modified plan includes regulations to guarantee the preservation and conservation of the property."
Also from the UNESCO website, a press release about the designation of Caral-Supe as a World Heritage Site: (
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"Cities of Caral-Supe (Peru) and Levoca (Slovakia) added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List
Sunday, June 28, 2009
at 12:00 AM
The Sacred City of Caral-Supe (Peru), the oldest centre of civilization in the Americas, was inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List by the World Heritage Committee, chaired by María Jesús San Segundo, the Ambassador and Permanent Delegate of Spain to UNESCO. . . . .
The 5000-year-old 626-hectare archaeological site of The Sacred City of Caral-Supe is situated on a dry desert terrace overlooking the green valley of the Supe river. It dates back to the Late Archaic Period of the Central Andes and is the oldest centre of civilization in the Americas. Exceptionally well-preserved, the site is impressive in terms of its design and the complexity of its architectural, especially its monumental stone and earthen platform mounts and sunken circular courts. One of 18 urban settlements situated in the same area, Caral features complex and monumental architecture, including six large pyramidal structures. A quipu (the knot system used in Andean civilizations to record information) found on the site testifies to the development and complexity of Caral society. The city’s plan and some of its components, including pyramidal structures and residence of the elite, show clear evidence of ceremonial functions, signifying a powerful religious ideology. . . ."