272
two-level platform connected by pairs of stairways. The lower level was accessed
from below by staircases on each side, each with nine steps and a landing. The
upper level is U-shaped, with a central dais and two lateral extensions, built atop the
lower level; it was accessed by shorter stairways (four steps and a landing) aligned
with those below. The upper level of the platform has pillared galleries (sixteen pillars on the central dais, four on each arm), which originally supported a roof made
of perishable materials.
A narrow doorway, aligned with the SSW flight of stairs, is the only entrance to
the secluded rooms in the back of the temple. This circulation pattern, a two-level
atrium with stairs on the NNE and SSW sides, where the only entrance to the rest of
the building is a restricted access doorway on the SSW side, is repeated at the
Administrative Centre. This entrance to the room(s) of the Temple of the Pillars is
one of the most important symbolic positions at Chankillo. The archaeoastronomical evidence supports the idea that elite individuals could have made sudden public
appearances here, emerging at auspicious times relating to the solar cycle, and presiding over ceremonies taking place in and around the buildings and plazas below
(Ghezzi & Ruggles, 2008). The timing would have meant that they became part of
a sacred manifestation or hierophany. Thus, from certain areas in the plaza, temple
officials standing at the entrance to the Temple of the Pillars could have been seen
with the sun setting behind them, thus providing a sort of “hierophany for the
masses”. The association apparently relates to the concept of the Sun’s Temple,
where it dwells during the solstices (Bauer & Dearborn, 1995). A similar hierophany would have worked for the moon, which, as seen from the Plaza, sets behind the
Temple of the Pillars on certain dates.
The distant eastern horizon is clearly visible from the single entrance and the
atrium of the Temple of the Pillars. This spectacular mountainous profile, with a
variety of prominent natural features, would have provided natural foresights marking the changing rising position of the sun. This horizon calendar might well have
been the precursor of, and inspiration for, the later construction and use of the
Chankillo Solar Observatory for an astronomical purpose (Ghezzi & Ruggles,
2011a, 2011b, 2011c).
The temple entrance leads to four secluded rooms that were probably used for
ritual functions or elite habitation. It is not a simple, direct entrance: towards the
left, a blind corridor disguises the true access to the right, which leads to the interior
through an entrance baffled by two small blocking walls and offset doorways.
Direct entrances interconnect the rectangular rooms. The excavations suggest
that each entrance had wooden lintels and doors. Room 3 stands out because it is the
largest (347 m
2
) and is the only one that includes a platform. The patio in front of
the platform is rectangular and though it is half the total area (173.43 m
2
), it is relatively small, when compared to other patios at the site. Two direct entrances connect
this patio to other rooms.
I. Ghezzi
two-level platform connected by pairs of stairways. The lower level was accessed
from below by staircases on each side, each with nine steps and a landing. The
upper level is U-shaped, with a central dais and two lateral extensions, built atop the
lower level; it was accessed by shorter stairways (four steps and a landing) aligned
with those below. The upper level of the platform has pillared galleries (sixteen pillars on the central dais, four on each arm), which originally supported a roof made
of perishable materials.
A narrow doorway, aligned with the SSW flight of stairs, is the only entrance to
the secluded rooms in the back of the temple. This circulation pattern, a two-level
atrium with stairs on the NNE and SSW sides, where the only entrance to the rest of
the building is a restricted access doorway on the SSW side, is repeated at the
Administrative Centre. This entrance to the room(s) of the Temple of the Pillars is
one of the most important symbolic positions at Chankillo. The archaeoastronomical evidence supports the idea that elite individuals could have made sudden public
appearances here, emerging at auspicious times relating to the solar cycle, and presiding over ceremonies taking place in and around the buildings and plazas below
(Ghezzi & Ruggles, 2008). The timing would have meant that they became part of
a sacred manifestation or hierophany. Thus, from certain areas in the plaza, temple
officials standing at the entrance to the Temple of the Pillars could have been seen
with the sun setting behind them, thus providing a sort of “hierophany for the
masses”. The association apparently relates to the concept of the Sun’s Temple,
where it dwells during the solstices (Bauer & Dearborn, 1995). A similar hierophany would have worked for the moon, which, as seen from the Plaza, sets behind the
Temple of the Pillars on certain dates.
The distant eastern horizon is clearly visible from the single entrance and the
atrium of the Temple of the Pillars. This spectacular mountainous profile, with a
variety of prominent natural features, would have provided natural foresights marking the changing rising position of the sun. This horizon calendar might well have
been the precursor of, and inspiration for, the later construction and use of the
Chankillo Solar Observatory for an astronomical purpose (Ghezzi & Ruggles,
2011a, 2011b, 2011c).
The temple entrance leads to four secluded rooms that were probably used for
ritual functions or elite habitation. It is not a simple, direct entrance: towards the
left, a blind corridor disguises the true access to the right, which leads to the interior
through an entrance baffled by two small blocking walls and offset doorways.
Direct entrances interconnect the rectangular rooms. The excavations suggest
that each entrance had wooden lintels and doors. Room 3 stands out because it is the
largest (347 m
2
) and is the only one that includes a platform. The patio in front of
the platform is rectangular and though it is half the total area (173.43 m
2
), it is relatively small, when compared to other patios at the site. Two direct entrances connect
this patio to other rooms.
I. Ghezzi