I leave my hostel, Casa de Nelly, and walk a half-mile up a winding dirt road to towards San Agustin Parque Arqueologico. I had stopped several times to ask a local for directions. Most it was “Parque Arqueologico?” and they point further down the road. San Agustin Parque Arqueologico is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The park is home to South America’s largest collection of religious monuments and megalithic sculptures. Most of the monuments were discovered buried in the ground as well as near many tombs.
Please note: Very little is known about the creation of these statues or their sculptures. Almost all the statues were buried. They have been placed above ground and protected for viewing by the tourists. There is no official consensus on what or why the statues were buried in the ground. All names and commentary on the statues are my own. I make no claims of the scientific validity.
Here are my favorite idols in the park.
The Hiking Tribal Leader
This statue is of a tribal elder/leader. He is wears a ceremonial headdress. He is leaning on his trekking poles as he grimes in pain after the long journey to the San Agustin region. He has arrive to pose for his statue.
The Birth of a Baby
The village medicine man has just delivered his village’s newest arrival. He is holding the new baby upside down as he inspects the baby. The exhausted mother looks on up proudly.
Jack-o-lantern Grin Man
This little guy following the Hiking Tribal Leader on his trek to San Agustin. His Jack-O-Lantern grin betrays his evil thoughts. He has a practical joke up his sleeve and is waiting for the opportune moment on the trek to San Agustin.
Crazy Eyes with Hipster Beard
Like Jack-O-Lantern, Crazy Eyes is with the Tribal Leader. His beard has a head of his rival braided into it. It ensure no one will mess with him. His crazy eyes show that no matter what he will protect his people and leaders. He isn’t afraid of making the hard decisions.
The Elephant Lady
She has traveled a long way across the great ocean to reside in San Agustin. Her big ears fan out like a headdress behind her. She uses her long trunk as a clarinet to play music at the sacred events.
The Hidden Heart
The heart was hidden on the back of a statue of a man. He had the heart carved on the back of his statue. It was a gift for his wife.
Dracula
With his large fangs, this South American Dracula used his fangs to drink blood. He explores the jungles looking for his next meal.
The Monkey Head
While swinging around the surround jungles, this monkey pulled a Goerge of the Jungle and ran into a tree. The tree knocked his head off and his body ran off into the jungle and never came back.
The Guardian Frog
The Guarding Frog overlooks the trail down to La Fuente Ceremonial del Lavapatas. This frog has overlooked La Fuente for hundreds of years. He marks the last landmark until one reaches La Fuente
The Colombia Penguin
This penguin made the second longest journey to arrive in San Agustin. He traveled from Chile up to this sacred valley in Colombia. He caught a snake for food and has carried it all the way here.
I love exploring places like this and seeing sculptures made centuries ago. I like Dracula and hipster beard guy too! Its amazing that these have survived and can be viewed today. I wonder what the sculptors were thinking when they started working on them? Great experience, thanks for sharing
I know. The most interesting part is that they were buried in the ground.
I like the mystery of not knowing the back story of these statues! What a fun idea to create your own stories! My favorite is definitely Dracula lol
I thought so. I enjoyed look back and thinking about what I had seen and what my thoughts were.
The statues are very cool. While no one is aware of why they were created, did you manage to learn how old they were?
The carbon dating puts them having been made sometime between the 6th and 14th centuries.
This is so funny! I like the monkey and the penguin the most. What country are you in?
I was in Colombia. So I am pretty sure it isn’t actually a penguin but since we know nothing about them. It is possible.
How cute they are! Lovely post!
They are cute and interesting. I wish we knew more of the history.
I love the Dracula one and the penguin.
Those are my favorite as well.
The Crazy Eyes and Dracula are my favorites. So strange how they were buried like that. I would really love to go back and in time and learn why they did that and the story behind each one of these.
Dracula and the Penguin are my favorite. Crazy Eyes kind of creeps me out. I am and the same why. Why spend all that time carving them to bury them in he ground. There are a lot of tombs in the area so that probably has something to do with it.
I used to play this game as a kid and make up stories about statues and monuments. Love your imagination. You should let loose on totem poles in the Pacific Northwest!
I haven’t spent much time looking at totem poles, but I love the pictures of them. I will do a post as soon as I visit and see some totem poles.
Love all these pictures! What an amazing experience!
It was a lot of fun to wander around and try and figure out the meanings.