The mystery of the Nazca Lines: giant drawings in the desert
Giant figures of a hummingbird, a monkey and a spider in Peru's desert — how they were made, how they survived 2,000 years and how AI found new ones.
Rohit Tandon · 31 October 2026 · 4 min read
In a dry desert in Peru, in South America, hundreds of giant lines and figures are drawn on the ground — a hummingbird, a monkey, a spider and many geometric shapes. They are so big that they can only be seen properly from the sky or the nearby hills. They are called the "Nazca Lines". Here is the mystery of the Nazca Lines and what scientists have found out about them.
The Nazca Lines at a glance
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Location | The Nazca Desert, southern Peru |
| Made by | The people of the Nazca culture (and the earlier Paracas people) |
| When | Between about 500 BCE and 500 CE |
| What they are | Straight lines, geometric shapes and figures of animals and plants |
| Honour | UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994 |
How were they made?
The ground of the Nazca Desert has a thin layer of reddish-brown stones, darkened by a coating of iron oxide. Beneath it lies lighter soil. The Nazca people moved the dark surface stones aside and piled them along the edges, exposing the light ground below and making a clear line. Experiments have shown that a small group of people with wooden stakes and ropes could make such a large figure in just a few days — no "mysterious technology" was needed.
How did they survive 2,000 years?
Nazca is one of the driest places in the world, with very little rain, and the wind near the ground is not very strong. By day the stones heat up and keep a layer of warm air over themselves, so less dust blows about. Thanks to this dry, still climate, the lines have stayed almost as they were for about two thousand years. Read about dry deserts in The world's largest deserts.
Did you know? In 2024 researchers from Yamagata University in Japan used artificial intelligence to scan aerial images and found 303 new figures in just six months — almost as many as had been found in the previous hundred years or so. Read about AI in What is artificial intelligence.
Why were they made? The main ideas
- An astronomical calendar: the German mathematician Maria Reiche studied them for decades and believed some lines were linked with the directions of the Sun and stars.
- Worship of water and rain: in so dry a region water was the most precious thing; many scholars think the lines were part of rituals linked with water, rain and fertility.
- Sacred walking paths: some figures are made of a single continuous line, which people may have walked along in ceremonies.
Some popular books claimed they were runways built for "aliens", but there is no evidence for this — no aircraft could land on such soft ground, and archaeologists have found the tools and pottery of the Nazca people who made them close by.
A heritage in danger
The Nazca Lines are very fragile — once footprints or tyre tracks are left, they can last for centuries. In 2014 some activists went near the hummingbird figure and left marks, and in 2018 a truck driver damaged some of the lines. So ordinary visitors are now completely forbidden to walk on the lines; they are seen only from small planes or from viewing towers. Another ancient mystery: The mystery of Stonehenge.
Key points
- The Nazca Lines are in the desert of southern Peru.
- They were made by the Nazca people between about 500 BCE and 500 CE.
- Dark surface stones were moved aside to reveal the lighter ground below.
- The dry, still climate has preserved them for 2,000 years.
- In 2024, 303 new figures were found with the help of AI.
Frequently asked questions
Where are the Nazca Lines?
In the Nazca Desert, in the southern part of Peru in South America.
Were the Nazca Lines made by aliens?
No, there is no evidence for that; they were made about 2,000 years ago by the people of the Nazca culture.
More articles: Interesting facts.
Sources
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