SAN AGUSTIN, Spiritual Workshop in Colombia

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Here, in the Valley of the Statues, there are some hundreds of large rough-hewn stone figures of men, animals and gods, dating from roughly 3300 BC. Little is known of the culture which produced them, though traces of small circular bamboo straw-thatched houses have been found. There are about 20 archaeologic sites, with excellent opportunities for hiking.

The Park which was declared a World heritage site in 1995, is about 2 and a half Km from San Agustin. The statues in the Park are in situ, though some have been set up on end and fenced in, those in the Bosque (a little wood) have been moved and rearranged, and linked by gravel footpaths.

Of particular interest are the carved rocks in and around the stream at the “Fuente de Lavapatas” in the Park, where the water runs through carved channels. There is a museum in the Park which contains pottery and indigenous artefacts and a good scale model of the local sites giving an excellent idea of the topography of the area.

Archaeological Sites
“El tablón” is a five sculptures brought together under a bamboo roof, is shortly down to the left. “La Chaquira”, figures carved on rocks, is dramatically set half way down to the river, walking time round trip from San Agustin is 2 hours. Plenty of houses offer refreshments as far as “El tablón”.

Continue along the road from San Agustin for the site of “La Pelota”, two painted statues which were found in 1984. The latest archaeological discovery (1986) in the area is a series of at least 30 stones carved with animals and others designs in high relief.

“Alto de los Idolos” is about 10 Km by horse or on foot, here on a hill overlooking San Agustin are more and different statues known as “vigilantes” each guardian a burial mound. The “Salto del Mortiño” a 300 m fall, 7 Km before Isnos.

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