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<< Our Photo Pages >> Punta Walichu - Cave or Rock Shelter in Argentina

Submitted by DrewParsons on Thursday, 05 November 2009  Page Views: 8013

Natural PlacesSite Name: Punta Walichu
Country: Argentina
NOTE: This site is 167.126 km away from the location you searched for.

Type: Cave or Rock Shelter
Nearest Town: El Calafate
Latitude: 50.29592S  Longitude: 72.20344W
Condition:
5Perfect
4Almost Perfect
3Reasonable but with some damage
2Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site
1Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks
0No data.
-1Completely destroyed
3 Ambience:
5Superb
4Good
3Ordinary
2Not Good
1Awful
0No data.
5 Access:
5Can be driven to, probably with disabled access
4Short walk on a footpath
3Requiring a bit more of a walk
2A long walk
1In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find
0No data.
4 Accuracy:
5co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates
4co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map
3co-ordinates scaled from a bad map
2co-ordinates of the nearest village
1co-ordinates of the nearest town
0no data
4

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Punta Walichu
Punta Walichu submitted by DrewParsons : The view from the cave on a fine October's day - what a lovely place to live!! (Vote or comment on this photo)
Punta Walichu is a cliff dwelling site with caves and overhangs some 40 metres inland from the present day shore of Lago Argentino in Santa Cruz state in Argentinian Patagonia. It comprises a series of rock art paintings of symbols and anthropomorphic figures now all well faded but still visible.

Dating is uncertain although a date of 4000 years before present is suggested by comparison with similar but better rock art further north in areas such as the World Heritage site of Cueva de las Manos some 500 kilometres north from here.

The paintings are made from iron oxides, guanaco (a small llama) grease, plant resins, gypsum, the white of eggs and human saliva and are thought to have been painted by the pre Tehuelche indigenous populations who inhabited these shores in the Patagonian neolithic age. They were first mentioned in modern times by the explorer and naturalist and Argentinian national hero Francisco Pascasio Moreno (after whom various places in Argentina were named).

The site is located 7 km east from the town of El Calafate reached along the highway towards the airport travelling eastwards and then down an unsurfaced but driveable side road running north east for some 4 kilometres to the shore of the lake where a private visitors' centre and cafe operate. Entry fees in October 2009 were Argentinian Pesos 50 per person (Euros 11 at the time of writing).

A path follows the line of the cliff past some reproductions of rock art found at other sites, to reach a series of overhangs and caves which have the original paintings, those in red being the most visible whilst others are almost lost to sight. The views from the caves and cliffs across beautiful Lago Argentino were stunning in the October sun as we looked across to the snow capped mountains at the top of the lake.
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Punta Walichu
Punta Walichu submitted by DrewParsons : View from a second cave further along the ridge (Vote or comment on this photo)

Punta Walichu
Punta Walichu submitted by DrewParsons : An overview of the main freize (Vote or comment on this photo)

Punta Walichu
Punta Walichu submitted by DrewParsons : These paintings are new - they are part of the information trail and are copies of some of the art work found at other similar sites in Argentina (Vote or comment on this photo)

Punta Walichu
Punta Walichu submitted by DrewParsons : Photographed during a hiking trip in the Andes in October 2009 (Vote or comment on this photo)

Punta Walichu
Punta Walichu submitted by DrewParsons : One of the many faded wall paintings some 4000 years old

Punta Walichu
Punta Walichu submitted by DrewParsons : These paintings are new - they are part of the information trail and are copies of some of the art work found at other similar sites in Argentina

Punta Walichu
Punta Walichu submitted by DrewParsons : More arrow heads found at the site.

Punta Walichu
Punta Walichu submitted by DrewParsons : Some of the arrow heads found near the cave and now on display in the small visitor centre

Punta Walichu
Punta Walichu submitted by DrewParsons : View of the cliffs

Punta Walichu
Punta Walichu submitted by DrewParsons : October 2009

Punta Walichu
Punta Walichu submitted by DrewParsons : A fish or a snake??

Punta Walichu
Punta Walichu submitted by DrewParsons : October 2009

Punta Walichu
Punta Walichu submitted by DrewParsons : A hand painted onto the low overhang above the main gallery of paintings.

Punta Walichu
Punta Walichu submitted by DrewParsons : Photographed in October 2009

Punta Walichu
Punta Walichu submitted by DrewParsons : These squares are painted low down withing half a metre of the present floor level of the cave.

Punta Walichu
Punta Walichu submitted by DrewParsons : Anthropomorphic figures

Punta Walichu
Punta Walichu submitted by DrewParsons : A series of concentric lines may represent a cave entrance or fertility symbols.

Punta Walichu
Punta Walichu submitted by DrewParsons : A dotted painting - locals speculate about what is represented in these paintings - some see animals. (3 comments)

Punta Walichu
Punta Walichu submitted by DrewParsons : The site sign on highway 11 east of El Calafate

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Nearby sites listing. In the following links * = Image available
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