Tulor, Archaeological site near San Pedro de Atacama, Chile
Tulor is an archaeological site in the Atacama Desert in northern Chile, made up of several circular mud-brick structures spread across open, flat ground. The remains include living spaces and communal areas, all built using simple unfired mud.
The first signs of occupation at Tulor date to around 380 BCE, though most of the surviving structures were built during a later period of growth between roughly 800 and 1200 CE. That expansion was linked to improvements in farming that allowed people to settle more permanently in the desert.
The round mud structures at Tulor follow a layout that reflects how the community organized daily life, with living spaces grouped closely together. Pottery fragments found on the ground give a direct sense of the objects people used every day.
The site is fully exposed to the sun with no shade, so going early in the morning makes the visit more comfortable. The ground is uneven in places, so wear sturdy shoes.
Among the objects found during excavations were seashells from the Pacific coast, hundreds of miles away. This suggests that the people living here were part of a trade network that connected the desert to the ocean.
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