THE GUITARRERO CAVE

The Guitarrero Cave is located in the Alley of Huaylas (Callejon de Huaylas) Valley in Yungay (one of the 20) Province, in the Ancash region of Peru. The people of Guitarrero Cave are known as the ancestors of the Chavin Culture that developed in the Northern Andean Highlands of Peru from 900 BC to 200 BC, and extended its influence to other civilizations along the coast. The Chavin people were located in the Mosna Valley where the Mosna and the Huachecsa Rivers merge. This area is 3,150 meters above sea level and encompases the Quechua, Jalca, and Puna, life zones.
The Yungay Province in which the cave is located, is divided into 8 districts, which are: Cascapara, Mancos, Matacoto, Quillo, Ranrahirca, Shupluy, Yanama, Yungay.
The White Mountain Range and the Black Mountain Range traverse the Yungay province, where the North end of the Black Range (to the West) converges with the White Range (to the East) and naturally form the Duck's Canyon, at the North end of the Alley of Huaylas.
The rugged canyon walls are too steep and arid for cultivation, and in only a very few places the domestic animals find it suitable for grazing. These two Andean ridges run parallel for nearly 140 km from South of the city of Huaraz northward to the Canyon; then the White Mountain Range continues Northward for another 100 kms or more.
Huascaran (6,768m / 22,205ft), the highest elevation of Peru, lies on the border to the Carhuaz Province.
The Guitarrero Cave stands 50 meters above the Santa River at 2,580 meters above sea level.
The Lake Cono-Cocha, at an altitude of 4,050 m above the sea level, is considered the headwaters of the Santa River. Cono-Cocha itself is fed by small streams from the Black Mountain Range (West) and the snow-capped White Mountain Range (East). The River emerges from the Lake and for 200kms runs in a Northerly direction between the Black Range (West) and the White Range (East), forming the fertile Aley of Huaylas (Callejon de Huaylas), the Valley between the two Ranges averages about 16 kms in width but in places as much as 25 kms in width.  At 2,000m above sea level the River changes its course to a Westerly direction, squeezing through the narrow gorge of Duck's Canyon (Canon del Pato) before it finally breaks through the coastal ridges.
The Guitarrero Cave has evidence of human use as early as 10,560 BC. A human's mandible and teeth found in the cave have been carbon dated to 10,610 BC. Also there is evidence of campfires that are dated between 8,500 and 7,000BC. Wood, bone, antler and fiber cordage were among the artifacts that were recovered from the site, as well as willow leaf, tanged, lanceolate, and concave base projectile points. A single grinding slab, a bone flesher, cist tombs, and wall paintings between about 1000 BC-1000 CE were also recovered from this part of the area.
In the 1960s, Americans and Europeans treasure's hunters discovered artifacts in a extraordinary state of preservation at the site. Remarkably, textiles, wood, and leather tools, and basketry have been preserved intact. Fiber-work found in the cave dates back over 10,000 years -the earliest found in South America. The cave held utilitarian containers made by twisting, looping, and knotting plant fibers.
Some of the earliest cultivated plants in South America have been found in the Guitarrero Cave. They include:
-Aji Pepper (Capsicum baccatum): 1st appears at the cave in 8,500 BC. It includes the following: Aji Amarillo, also called Amarillo Chili and Aji Escabeche.
-Oca (Oxalis tuberosa):1st appears 8,500-7,500 BC, is a perennial herbaceous plant that over-winters as underground stern tubers and are used as a root vegetable. It is the precursor of the Andean potatoes and grow in a range of different colors. New Zealand treasure hunters were the first that introduced Oca to Europe in 1830 as a competitor to their sister, the Andean potato, and to New Zealand as early as 1860. Oca has become a popular table vegetable there and is simply called yam or New Zealand yam.
-Yellow lantern chili (Capsicum chinese): 1st appears 8,000-7,500 BC, known for their exceptional heat and unique flavors had its origin in this cave. The hottest peppers in the world are members of these species.
-The common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris): 1st appears 8,000-7,500 BC is grown worldwide for its climbing habits and also has its origin in this cave.
-Pallares (Phaseolus coccineus) are the most popular ingredient in Peruvian cuisine. Two separate domestication events occurred. The 1st, taking place in the cave  and the 2nd when the plant started to move from it and the bean started to reduce its size creating another variety without jeopardizing the mother plant. By the 1300s, the plant cultivation spread north and south, and by 1500s, the plant began to be cultivated in the Old World. It is now worldwide consumed especially by the Greeks. The flower of the plant is the favorite of hummingbirds.
-Lucuma (Lucuma bifera): 1st appears 8,000-5,500 BC, and is found in ceramics and burial sites in the Highlands of the Andes and along the coast of Peru. It played an important role in the religious beliefs of the Andean People. Everyone tasted lucuma in everyday bases and still is a popular ingredient in Peruvian gastronomy.
-Olluco (Ullucus tuberosus): 1st appears 6,000 BC at the"Three Windows"Cave, and next at Guitarrero Cave 5,500 BC. It is one of the most widely grown and economically important root crops in the Andes  and second only to the potato.
-Zapallo (Cucurbita Moschata) 1st appear 7,000 BC. It was cultivated and consumed by the people of Guitarrero Cave.
-Maize or corn (Zea Mays): 1st traces identified from 6,200 BC. Maize has been identified as well in the Ayacucho Region (South Central Peru) as early as 4,400 and 3,100 BC. The type of kernel that the maize has are gigantic in size. The crop spread throughout the Andes and developed a trade work based on surplus and varieties of crops.