Caral (Department of Lima), Peru

CARAL archaeological project
Prepared initially for course '''PERU 3000 BC to 1963. '''As yet there is no podcasting from this page. Try this instead.

Travel north from Lima along the Panamericana highway for about two hours (Km. 159). After passing Huacho, Huara and Vegueta (or is it just before Vegueta?)(map)you will find a turning signposted CARAL. Few, as they speed towards Trujillo or Huaraz have the time (or the right vehicle - but why not try a bike) to journey the extra hour (or so) along a dirt track to anarchaeological site boasting to have been the "earliest city / urban settlement in the Americas". (Caral website), A map of the site shows a group of truncated pyramids: the Pirámide Mayor is 153.52 m by 109.42 m by 28.00 m (See www.arqueologia.com.ar) but one of the most interesting is the Gallery Pyramid (See Caral official site photo). For pictures of other (truncated) pyramids see Facebook: red educativa peru (you need to join Facebook to see / use these) and for collections of slide shows, talks and videos see YouTube: search caral. For more learned articles try Google Scholar. For example (as many initial articles are forbidding access without an Athens password or similar) open the article by David Toye which deals with the comparative multiplier effect. Caral is referred to following note 21. Also useful and accesible for us are the research articles on the Caral website. If you are new to history, historiography and archaeology the Open University and the openlearnwebpages or Wikipedia are often enlightening. A 9 minute movie shows that net-working (correction net-making - the Bridport effect!) triggered-off urban living in Caral.

Please note that these pages are not a course, nor intended to be encyclopedia or dictionary entries. There are horses for courses and courses for horses - as they say - and the exact formulation for a course is best left to the local group to tailor to their needs. What the overall network can do is start up various conversations, following themes (such as Caral above)or threads as they are called in many online forums. These conversations will touch points which can then be incorporated in the work of the study groups or learning communities who may share their comments, other links and sources and a copy of their presentation in networking websites such as YouTube or Facebook