Lake Titicaca - Bolivia - page 187

in 1992 from Marka Pampa, referred to by locals as La Ciudad Submergida (Sunken
City). Among the dusty exhibits are anthropomorphic figurines, Tiwanaku-era artifacts,
animal bones, skull parts, puma-shaped ceramic koa censers and cups resembling Monty
Python's Holy Grail.

Piedra Sagrada & Templo del Inca
From Cha'llapampa Village, the Chincana route continues parallel to the beach, climbing
gently along an ancient route to the isthmus at Santiago Pampa (also known as
Kasapata).
Immediately east of the trail is an odd carved boulder standing upright in a small field.
This is known as the Piedra Sagrada Offline map (Sacred Stone). There are theories that it
was used as an execution block for those convicted of wrongdoing.
Over the track and in a field, just southwest of the Piedra Sagrada, are the ancient walls
of the complex known as the Templo del Inca (or Templo del Sol). Although little re-
mains of this temple, built for an unknown purpose, it contains the only Bolivian ex-
amples of expert Inca stonework comparable to the renowned walls found in Cuzco.

RUINS

RUINS

Chincana Ruins
Offline map
(admission B$10) The island's most spectacular ruins complex, the Chincana ruins, lies
near the island's northern tip. Its main feature is the Palacio del Inca , a maze of stone
walls and tiny doorways, also known as El Laberinto (the Labyrinth) or by its Aymará
name, Inkanakan Utapa. Within the labyrinth there is a small well, believed by Inca pil-
grims to contain sacred water with which they would purify themselves.
About 150m southeast of the ruins is the Mesa Ceremónica (Ceremonial Table). It's
thought to have been the site of human and animal sacrifices and makes for a damned
good picnic spot in modern times. East of the table stretches the large rock known as Tit-
icaca - or, more accurately, Titi Khar'ka (Rock of the Puma) - which is featured in the
Inca creation legend. The name is likely to derive from its shape, which, when viewed
from the southeast, resembles a crouching puma.
Three natural features on the rock's western face also figure in legend. Near the north-
ern end is one dubbed the Cara de Viracocha (Face of Viracocha) - your guide will point
it out with the help of a mirror (and some imagination). At the southern end are four dis-
tinctive elongated niches: the two on the right are locally called the Refugio del Sol
(Refuge of the Sun); the ones on the left are called the Refugio de la Luna (Refuge of the
Moon). According to tradition it was here during the Chamaj Pacha ('times of flood and