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Image / Fuente de Lavapatas, San Agustín, Colombia, 1975

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Title
Fuente de Lavapatas, San Agustín, Colombia, 1975
Creator
Cross, Richard, 1950-1983
Date Created and/or Issued
1975-08
Publication Information
California State University, Northridge
Contributing Institution
California State University, Northridge
Collection
Richard Cross Photographs (Bradley Center)
Rights Information
Use of images from the collections of the Tom & Ethel Bradley Center is strictly prohibited by law without prior written consent from the copyright holders. The responsibility for the use of these materials rests exclusively with the user.
The Bradley Center may assist in obtaining copyright/licensing permission to use images from the Richard Cross collection. http://www.csun.edu/bradley-center/contact
Description
The Lavapatas Ceremonial Fountain located in the Alto de Lavapatas site at San Agustín Archaeological Park, located in San Agustín, a municipality of Huila Department. The Lavapatas Ceremonial Fountain was discovered in 1937 Spanish archaeologist José Pérez de Barrada and Colombian archaeologist Gregorio Hernández de Alba. The Fountain is an extraordinary labyrinth and monument of channels and figures sliced into rock by ancient Indigenous Americans that include snakes, lizards, the faces of children, and a woman in labor. Experts surmise that the Fountain was used for ceremonial religious purposes. People inhabited the Colombian Massif in southwestern Colombia since at least 3300 BC. This and other statues seem to tell their creation story and depict gods, animals, common people, and other aspects of their culture. San Agustín Archaeological Park is home to the largest collection of religious monuments in Latin America, the world's largest necropolis, and has been the site of important archaeological digs and discoveries since its inception on November 20, 1935 by then Colombian president Alfonso López Pumarejo. In 1995, it was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO as its wealth of megalithic statues are a, "vivid witness to artistic creativity and imagination of a prehispanic culture that flowered in the hostile tropical environment of the Northern Andes." Richard Cross took this image during his work as a Peace Corps volunteer in Colombia between 1974-1976. He was assigned to work for the now Ministry of Culture and his assignment was to create a photographic record of Colombia’s archaeological remains.
La fuente ceremonial de Lavapatas, localizada dentro del sitio del Alto de Lavapatas en el Parque Arqueológico San Agustín, localizado en San Agustín, un municipio del departamento de Huila. La fuente ceremonial de Lavapatas fue descubierta en 1937 por el arqueólogo español José Pérez de Barradas y el arqueólogo Gregorio Hernández de Alba. La fuente es un extraordinario monumento y laberinto de canales y figuras talladas sobre la piedra por indígenas antiguos que incluyen ranas, lagartijas, las caras de niños y una mujer dando a luz. Sobre la parte baja de la imagen se observa un charco pequeño de agua. Sobre ésta área vivieron indígenas que formaron parte de la cultura San Agustín, personas que habitaron, cultivaron, y vivieron en el macizo colombiano en el suroeste de Colombia desde al menos el año 3300 A de C. Ésta y otras estatuas parecen contar la historia de la creación de ellos y son de dioses, animales, gente común, y otros aspectos de su cultura. El Parque Arqueológico de San Agustín es el hogar de la colección de estatuas religiosas más grande de Latinoamérica, la necrópolis más grande del mundo, y ha sido el sitio de importantes excavaciones y descubrimientos arqueológicos desde su creación el 20 de noviembre de 1935 por el entonces presidente colombiano Alfonso López Pumarejo. En 1995, fue declarado Patrimonio de la Humanidad por la UNESCO ya que su riqueza en estatuas megalíticas es un "vivo testigo de la creatividad artistica e imaginación de una cultura prehispánica que floreció en el medio ambiente tropical y hostil de los Andes norteños". Richard Cross tomó esta imagen durante su estancia en Colombia como voluntario del programa estadounidense Peace Corps entre los años 1974-1976. Él fue asignado a trabajar para el ahora Ministerio de Cultura y su asignación fue crear un record fotográfico de los restos arqueológicos de Colombia.
Type
image
Format
Photographs
image/jpeg
Color slides
Extent
35 mm
Identifier
99.01.RCr.sl.B17.04.20.06
http://digital-collections.csun.edu/cdm/ref/collection/p17169coll1/id/7444
Subject
Stone carving--Colombia--San Agustín (Huila)
San Agustín culture (Colombia)
San Agustín Archaeological Park (Colombia)
World Heritage Areas--Colombia
Archaeology--Colombia--San Agustín (Huila)
Place
San Agustín (Huila, Colombia)
Relation
99.01.RCr.sl.B17.04.20.06.tif
Richard Cross Photographs
California State University Northridge. University Library. Special Collections & Archives. Tom & Ethel Bradley Center

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