Josh's Month in Chavin, Peru

When Laura returned home to photograph Katie's wedding, Josh put his degree to use and spent a month volunteering at a pre-colonial archaeological site in the Peruvian Andes called Chavin de Huantar.










While working at the archaeological site Josh rented a room in an Andean Cevicheria.




The ice cold shower


...The shared bathroom with the hole in the floor was a bit of a downer, but aside from that the place was fine....


Pack llamas


The trench... Josh's office for the month.

After a week of excavating, a couple of small holes appeared at the bottom of a section of the trench. When I measured the depth I found it exceeded the length of a 5-metre tape.

Anticipation builds as we work to thoroughly document as much pertinent information as possible prior to removing the large flat rocks which surround the holes.


Once the roof stones were removed the team was able to descend headfirst to take a look. Above is one of the first glimpses of the previously unknown canal system. A sight that can let the imagination run wild when one considers that these walls may not have been seen by human eyes for thousands of years.


The head archaeologist takes a look.


Jefa


Many detailed ceramics were encountered in and around the canal.


Every ounce of soil had to be sifted in search for material culture. Can you spot the artifact?













How about now?

Examining the canal


The remaining trench crew pose for a photo after hand digging and sifting through soil from over 200 metres of ditch.


The site's grass trimming llamas


Inside Rocas, the largest of the canals.



The famous lanzon





Chavin is situated in a valley surrounded by stunning scenery. Josh loved to spend his day off exploring the hillsides.
























Cuy (guinea pig), an andean delicacy