List of Muisca and pre-Muisca sites

This is a list of Muisca and pre-Muisca archaeological sites; sites on the Altiplano Cundiboyacense, where archaeological evidence has been discovered of the Muisca and their ancestors of the Herrera, preceramic and prehistorical periods.

A
Ti
Su
Te
C
Ag
Sa
H
I
ST
CZ
Important pre-Muisca sites on the Altiplano Cundiboyacense
Rock shelters
Open area settlements
Constructed sites
A - El Abra
Ti - Tibitó
Su - Sueva
Te - Tequendama
C - Checua/Nemocón
Ag - Aguazuque
Sa - Sáchica
H - Lake Herrera
I - El Infiernito
ST - Sun Temple
CZ - Cojines del Zaque

Over the course of the centuries and mainly in the 21st century, many sites with evidences of Muisca and pre-Muisca presence have been found and reported.[1][2][3][4][5]

The possibly oldest evidence of human settlement in the Eastern Ranges of the Colombian Andes has been discovered just west of the former Muisca territories, at Pubenza in Tocaima, Cundinamarca. Eight stone tools have been found with bone remains, consisting of among others Haplomastodon and turtles, which have been dated at 16,400 ± 420 years BP. Due to the location at an inundated platform, it is unclear if the bones and thus age were in situ.[6]

Background
Stage Start age End age
Prehistory
10,000
Preceramic
10,000
2800
Herrera
2800
1200
Muisca
1200
479
Colonial period
479
206
Colombia
206
See also: Muisca Confederation § Prehistory, Andean preceramic, Herrera Period, Muisca art, and Spanish conquest of the Muisca

The Altiplano Cundiboyacense, with its valleys of Sogamoso-Duitama, Tunja and Ubaté-Chiquinquirá and the southeastern flatlands of the Bogotá savanna, as well as the Tenza Valley to the east, was inhabited for 12,000 years by indigenous peoples. At the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors, the area of approximately 25,000 square kilometres (9,700 sq mi) was populated by the Muisca, organised in a loose confederation; the Muisca Confederation.

While various classifications of the archaeological history of the Andean high plateau exist,[7] the most commonly accepted sequence, in years BP, is shown to the right.

Timeline of inhabitation
Timeline of inhabitation of the Altiplano Cundiboyacense, Colombia
TequendamaAguazuquePiedras del Tunjo Archaeological ParkBD BacatáLake HerreraZipaquiráEl AbraChecuaTibitóEl InfiernitoHistory of ColombiaSpanish EmpireSpanish conquest of the MuiscaMuisca peopleHerrera PeriodBochicaMuisca mummificationCeramicAndean preceramicMuisca agricultureHunter-gatherer

Altiplano


Muisca Confederation

List of Muisca and pre-Muisca sites
Site name Image Municipality Department Start End Oldest date
years BP		 Finds Notes Map
El Abra
Zipaquirá Cundinamarca Prehistory Herrera 12,560 Rock art
Stone tools		 [1]
Tibitó Tocancipá Cundinamarca Prehistory Herrera 11,850 Stone & bone tools
Carbon		 [1]
Sueva Junín Cundinamarca Prehistory Herrera 11,180 Rock shelter [1]
Tequendama Soacha Cundinamarca Prehistory Spanish conquest 11,120 Stone tools
Domestication of guinea pigs		 [1]
Piedras del Tunjo
Facatativá Cundinamarca Prehistory or
Preceramic		 Muisca unknown Rock art
Stone tools		 [3]
Galindo Bojacá Cundinamarca Preceramic Herrera 8800 Open area settlement [1]
Checua Nemocón Cundinamarca Preceramic Herrera 8500 Stone tools [1][8]
Nemocón Cundinamarca Preceramic 7630 Rock shelter
Main salt producing town		 [1]
Piedra del Indio
Chía I-VIII
Moon Temple		 Chía Cundinamarca Preceramic 5140 Rock art
Burial site
Religious place		 [1][9]
Zipaquirá Cundinamarca Preceramic 5140 Main salt producing town [1][10]
Aguazuque Soacha Cundinamarca Preceramic Herrera 4065 Stone tools
Burial grounds
Human remains
Guinea pigs, deer		 [1][11]
Lake Herrera Madrid
Mosquera
Bojacá		 Cundinamarca Preceramic Herrera 3410 Stone tools
Ceramics		 [12]
SO10-IX
Sativanorte Boyacá Preceramic Preceramic 3386 Muisca mummy [13]
Zipacón Cundinamarca Preceramic 3270 Rock shelter
Rock art
Oldest agriculture		 [1]
El Infiernito
Villa de Leyva Boyacá Preceramic Muisca 2975 Archaeoastronomical site
Muisca mummy		 [14][15]
Pasca Cundinamarca Herrera 1400 Muisca raft [16]
Buenavista Boyacá Herrera 1396 Nose piece and pectoral
dated at 620 & 990 AD		 [17]
Suesca Cundinamarca Muisca 150 Muisca mummies
Petrographs
Ceramics		 [2][3][4]
[5][14]
Gachantivá Boyacá Muisca Muisca mummy
Muisca copper mines		 [18][19][14]
Gachancipá Cundinamarca Muisca Muisca mummy [14]
Ubaté Cundinamarca Muisca Muisca mummy [14]
Tenjo Cundinamarca Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Tibacuy Cundinamarca Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Berbeo Boyacá Muisca Petroglyphs [2][3][4][5]
Sáchica Boyacá Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Ocetá Páramo
Monguí Boyacá Muisca Petroglyphs
Birth sites
Myths		 [20]
Payará Tausa Cundinamarca [21]
Choachí Cundinamarca Muisca Choachí Stone [22]
La Calera Cundinamarca Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Chipaque Cundinamarca Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Cogua Cundinamarca Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Cota Cundinamarca Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Cucunubá Cundinamarca Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Guachetá Cundinamarca Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Guasca Cundinamarca Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Guatavita Cundinamarca Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Machetá Cundinamarca Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Madrid Cundinamarca Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Mosquera Cundinamarca Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
San Antonio
del Tequendama		 Cundinamarca Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
San Francisco Cundinamarca Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Sibaté Cundinamarca Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Subachoque Cundinamarca Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Tena Cundinamarca Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Tibiritá Cundinamarca Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Tocancipá Cundinamarca Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Une Cundinamarca Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Bosa Cundinamarca Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Usme Cundinamarca Muisca Muisca mummy
Petrographs		 [2][3][4]
[5][14]
Boavita Boyacá Muisca Muisca mummy [14]
Tasco Boyacá Muisca Muisca mummy [14]
Tópaga Boyacá Muisca Muisca mummy [14]
Gámeza Boyacá Muisca Muisca mummy
Petrographs		 [2][3][4]
[5][14]
Belén Boyacá Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Iza Boyacá Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Mongua Boyacá Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Motavita Boyacá Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Ramiriquí Boyacá Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Saboyá Boyacá Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Tibaná Boyacá Muisca Petrographs [2][3][4][5]
Sutamarchán Boyacá Muisca Muisca ceramics production [19]
Tinjacá Boyacá Muisca Muisca ceramics production [19]
Sun Temple
Sogamoso Boyacá Muisca September 1537 Most important Muisca temple [23]
Cojines del Zaque
Tunja Boyacá Muisca Early colonial Religious place [24]
Hunzahúa Well Tunja Boyacá Muisca Early colonial Mythological place [25]
Goranchacha Temple Tunja Boyacá Muisca Early colonial Temple of Goranchacha [26]

See also

References
  1. (in Spanish) Caracterización de los sitios arqueológicos Sabana de Bogotá - ICANH
  2. Muñoz Castiblanco, 2006, p.10
  3. Martínez & Botiva, 2004a
  4. López Estupiñán, 2011
  5. Martínez & Botiva, 2004b, p.15
  6. Aceituno & Rojas, 2012, p.128
  7. N.N., s.a.
  8. Groot de Mahecha, 1992, p.7
  9. Muñoz Castiblanco, 2013
  10. Groot de Mahecha, 2008
  11. Correal Urrego, 1990
  12. (in Spanish) Colombia Prehispánica - V. La Altiplanicie Cundiboyacense
  13. Martínez et al., 2010
  14. Valverde, 2007, p.280
  15. Silva Celis, 1981, p.12
  16. (in Spanish) Official website Pasca
  17. (in Spanish) Official website Buenavista Archived 2015-06-02 at Archive.today
  18. Martínez & Martínez, 2012
  19. Ocampo López, 2007
  20. (in Spanish) Objeciones del páramo más lindo del mundo - Universidad Sergio Arboleda
  21. Groot de Mahecha, 1992, p.5
  22. Izquierdo Peña, 2009, p.87
  23. (in Spanish) Temple of the Sun - Sogamoso - Pueblos Originarios
  24. (in Spanish) Archaeology of the Cojines del Zaque Archived 2016-06-02 at the Wayback Machine - Banco de la República
  25. (in Spanish) Hunzahúa Well - Pueblos Originarios
  26. (in Spanish) Goranchacha - Pueblos Originarios

Bibliography

Further reading
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