Japan university to study Nazca lines

21 March 2012 - 13:37 By Sapa-AFP
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A Japanese university will open a research centre near Peru's Nazca Lines to study the ancient geoglyphs which are designated a UNESCO world heritage site, Kyodo news agency said Wednesday.

The Nazca lines: the heron
The Nazca lines: the heron
Image: Marcito
The Nazca lines: the heron
The Nazca lines: the heron
Image: Marcito

The new facility set up by Yamagata University will operate for 15 years to study the large designs etched into the ground in Peru's southern plains, with Japanese and local researchers expected to take part in the project.

The research lab is scheduled to open in September, Kyodo said.

"It's not known why those geoglyphs were created and we also know little about the lifestyle of the people (who created them)," Masato Sakai, a professor heading the university's research team, was quoted as saying.

"We hope to conduct scientific analyses (on these matters) by opening the research centre."

Located about 400 kilometres (250 miles) south of Lima, the designs include depictions of plants and animals and were believed to have been drawn between 500 BC and 500 AD, UNESCO said on its website.

"(They are) among archaeology's greatest enigmas because of their quantity, nature, size and continuity," the UN agency said.

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