Caral, the oldest pre-Hispanic civilization

[Manimal]

There is an ancient pre-hispanic civilization that seems to be as old as the Maya civilization, if not older : the Carals.
 

Quote

source = https://ufe-perou.com/es/caral-el-sitio-arqueologico/ :

La cultura Caral se desarrolló entre 3000 y 1800 a.C. (Arcaico Tardío y Formativo Inferior) es decir, fue contemporánea de otras civilizaciones primigenias como las de Egipto, India, Sumeria, China, pero a diferencia de ellas (que intercambiaron sus logros), se desarrolló en completo aislamiento. En América, es la más antigua de las civilizaciones prehispánicas, superando en 1500 años a la civilización Olmeca, otro importante foco civilizatorio situado en Mesoamérica.

Google translation (because I'm a bit lazy)
 

Quote

 https://ufe--perou-com.translate.goog/es/caral-el-sitio-arqueologico/?_x_tr_sl=es&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=fr&_x_tr_pto=wapp :

The Caral culture developed between 3000 and 1800 BC. (Late Archaic and Lower Formative) that is to say, it was contemporary with other primitive civilizations such as those of Egypt, India, Sumeria, China, but unlike them (which exchanged their achievements), it developed in complete isolation. In America, it is the oldest of the pre-Hispanic civilizations, surpassing the Olmec civilization by 1,500 years, another important civilizational focus located in Mesoamerica.

The Carals might be an nice addition to the american antique civilizations.

 

Their wonder is a monumental solar calendar.

However, there are no well preserved buildings that would help in making 3D models of them...

Edited June 13, 2022 by Manimal
Title of the topic is in english now, as it should have been

[Stan`]

Where do you want to move it ?

[Genava55]

In English, I suggest those articles:

Dating Caral, a Preceramic Site in the Supe Valley on the Central Coast of Peru

Radiocarbon dates from the site of Caral in the Supe Valley of Peru indicate that monumental corporate architecture, urban settlement, and irrigation agriculture began in the Americas by 4090 years before the present (2627 calibrated years B.C.) to 3640 years before the present (1977 calibrated years B.C.). Caral is located 23 kilometers inland from the Pacific coast and contains a central zone of monumental, residential, and nonresidential architecture covering an area of 65 hectares. Caral is one of 18 large preceramic sites in the Supe Valley.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/12010372_Dating_Caral_a_Preceramic_Site_in_the_Supe_Valley_on_the_Central_Coast_of_Peru

 

The Evolution of Social Institutions in the Central Andes

The chapter traces the evolution of complex socio-political institutions in the Andes from their appearance in the north coast of Peru at the end of the 4th millennium BCE to the sprawling Inca Empire of the fifteenth century CE. For each period, the author describes the kinds of social institutions that developed among the varied societies of this vast region. The evolutionary process centers on monumental architecture requiring coordinated labor. After two millennia of complex social development, state societies emerged by coopting trade networks and barter fairs. The states focused on the control of roads and strategic colonies throughout their region. An elite style of architecture and statecraft was based on earlier, nonstate political, and economic institutions. These grew slowly and lasted for at least a half a millennium. State collapse was followed by political and social realignments, the context for the rapid growth of the Inca Empire in the fifteenth century. Unlike the first states, the Inca Empire was characterized by contiguous provinces and an imperial bureaucracy that administered dozens of distinct ethnic groups and provinces. The earlier relationships between trade, production, and distribution were coopted by the Inca into a grand imperial strategy of population concentration and the creation of industrial enclaves. The rapid rise of the Inca was followed by its relatively quick political collapse at the hands of European invaders.

https://docdro.id/EpB1Td1

And this thesis:

Caral and the rise to civilization in the Norte Chico Peru

The site of Caral, Peru has undergone much archaeological excavations under the direction of Dr. Ruth Shady over the course of the years following 1994. Caral has been radiocarbon dated to over five thousand years ago. It has been proposed by some scholars, Dr. Shady included, that the site of Caral and the surrounding sites in the Supe Valley represent a state level society. However, there is a general consensus in the literature holding that Caral does not represent a highly stratified society such as a state. In order to gain a better understanding of what Caral really represents, this thesis compares Caral to two known state level societies, the Moche and Tiwanaku states. The comparison is based on a number of key factors seen in state levels societies namely, site size and distribution, monumental architecture, craft specialization, iconography and burial stratification.

https://minds.wisconsin.edu/handle/1793/66572