Mystery of spiralling holes across Peru solved

Known as puquios, the holes are located in the Nasca region of Peru — a location famous for gigantic geometric images carved into the landscape. While the origin of these formations remained unsolved for years, the use of satellite imaging has provided the answers. Puquios served as a sophisticated hydraulic system constructed to retrieve water from underground aquifers. The discovery explained how the native people of Nasca were able to survive and thrive in a region severely lacking water.

Exploiting an inexhaustible water supply throughout the year, the puquios system contributed to an intensive agriculture of the valleys in one of the most arid places in the world. According to researchers, the corkscrewing funnels were used to force wind down to a series of underground canals, which then forced water through the system to areas it was needed.

The structures prove the Nasca natives, who inhabited the region from 1000BC to AD750, had a vast understanding of the region’s geology and annual variations in water supply. Great effort, organization and co-operation were required for their construction and regular maintenance. Maintenance was likely based on a collaborative system, similar to that of the construction of the ‘Nasca lines’ some of which are clearly related to the presence of water.