THE ENIGMATIC CHAVIN OF HUANTAR.

Chavin of Huantar holds a notorious religious significance which is the reason why the geographical location was used as a ceremonial center and was also the central power for the Chavin culture.
The Chavin civilization was a major pre-Inca culture. The occupation of the site has been dated to at least 3,000 BC.
Chavin of Huantar is at an elevation of 3,180m /10,430 ft, East of the White Cordillera at the start of the Conchucos Valley, North of modern day Lima, where 2 Rivers merges: the Mosna River and the Huanchecsa River. As a result this site allows for easy transportation and, at the same time, limited access to outsiders.
The confluence of two large Rivers was understood mystically as the harmonious meeting of opposing forces. Chavin of Huantar served as the meeting place of the natural and cosmic forces. The area is known to have natural hot springs as well as an awe-inspiring view of the Huantsan peak (part of the White Cordillera) which adds more religious significance to the site. It has 4 peaks with a maximum elevation of 6,369 / 20,896 ft above sea level.
While the large population was based on agricultural economy, the city's location at the headwaters of the Maranon River, between the coast and the jungle, made it an ideal location for the dissemination and collection of both ideas and goods. They were able to cultivate lowland crops such as maize and high altitude crops such as potatoes. They also domesticated llamas in the high altitude areas as a means to carrying heavy loads on the steep slopes of the hills.
The site shows a large ceremonial centre that reveals a great deal about the culture. It served as a gathering place for people of the region to come together and worship as one single body. Findings indicate that social instability and upheaval began to occur between 500 and 300 BC, at the same time that the larger Chavin civilization began to decline. Large ceremonial sites were abandoned, some unfinished, or some were replaced by villages and agricultural land. No later than 500 BC, a small village replaced the Circular Plaza. Then the Plaza was occupied by a succession of cultural groups.
The Circular Plaza appears to have been a sacred and ritually important open-air space within a ceremonial center. It has a number of functions, including serving as an Atrium for entering the Temple A through the Temple's North staircase. The plaza is bounded on 3 sides by major Temples A, B, and C, and is perfectly circular, close to 20m/66 ft in diameter. The floor consisted on pillow-shaped pavers of yellow sedimentary rock. It appears that a center line of black limestone blocks runs on its architectural East-West axis. Walls of the Plaza were constructed of cut stone, principally granite, laid in courses of varying width. The two broadest courses were carved in arcs closest to the Western staircase and in two pairs or terminal stones flanking the Eastern staircase.
The Old Temple was inward-facing structure composed primarily of passageways built around a circular courtyard. The structure contained obelisks and stone monuments with relief carvings depicting jaguars, caimans, and other forms with anthropomorphic features.
The Lanzon Gallery, located at the very center, contained a sculpture of the Lanzon, with a feline head and human body.
The New Temple is also based on a Gallery and Plaza design and contained many relief sculptures. The Lanzon deity is also present, holding a srombus shell in the right hand while the left hand holds a Spondylus shell. Smaller renovations happened consistently over the Chavin horizon ending by 500 BC when the new Temple was completed, still embodying a U-shaped ceremonial center design. The main objective of the renovations appears to be based on enabling more people to gather in one place.
The site has been studied with laser scanning in an attempt to determine whether it was planned by an elite or had resulted from religious favor. Because details such as stair placement remain constant throughout generations of builders, the site is a very early example of the use of a standardized building code.