Red sandstone used at Pumapunku came from a quarry roughly 10 km away. Andesite blocks are attributed to quarries on the Copacabana Peninsula, about 90 km northwest across Lake Titicaca. Transport by reed boats followed by overland hauling is one proposed route, not a settled reconstruction. Finished andesite blocks are often estimated at 20–40 tons; 100–500-ton figures for larger quarry blocks are disputed estimates. The blocks rest on prepared foundation areas, but their composition has not been conclusively identified as magnetite-rich sandstone.
Pumapunku’s giant blocks: disputed quarry weights and transport routes
BoliviaArchitecture
Site mentioned
Key facts
- The Copacabana Peninsula is about 90 km northwest of Pumapunku across Lake Titicaca, not southwest.
- Red sandstone used at Pumapunku came from a quarry roughly 10 km away.
- Transport by reed boats followed by overland hauling is a proposed route, not an established mainstream reconstruction.
- Finished andesite blocks are often estimated at 20–40 tons, but 100–500-ton figures for larger quarry blocks are disputed estimates rather than confirmed measurements.
- Prepared foundation areas are documented, but identifying their material as magnetite-rich sandstone is an interpretation attributed to Robert Schoch, not a conclusive finding.
- The Aswan granite-pounding test concerns a separate site and does not establish how Pumapunku’s stone was quarried.
Sources
thestageoftime.com
Linked in video description
Pumapunkuen.wikipedia.org
Construction of Puma Punku is believed to have begun after AD 536. Pumapunku was the most important construction in Tiwanaku, other than Akapana, which is ...
Puma Punku's Architectural Wonders: Ancient Engineering ...discoveryuk.com
The ruins of Pumapunku form a pre-Columbian archaeological site, part of the ancient Pumapunku and Tiwanaku complex near Lake Titicaca in ...
Tiahuanaco Monuments (Tiwanaku / Pumapunku), Bolivia ...geopolymer.org
Pumapunku site in Tiahuanaco, Bolivia, proves that the stones are artificial and are not carved with unknown technology or by extraterrestrials.
The Mystery of Puma Punku's Precise Stoneworkamusingplanet.com
Puma punku is the name of a large temple complex located near Tiwanaku, in Bolivia, and is part of a larger archaeological site known as ...
(DOC) The Enduring Enigma Of Puma Punku in Boliviaacademia.edu
The grey andesite blocks, some weighing 40 tons, are believed to have been brought from Copacabana, approximately 90 kilometers away, possibly using reed boats ...
6 Andesite monolithic portal located in Pumapunku's east ...researchgate.net
The Pumapunku structure itself was primarily a sandstone and earth construction. Like the Akapana, in Pumapunku andesite was built into particularly visible ...
Puma Punku royalty-free imagesshutterstock.com
Puma Punku, part of the Tiwanaku archaeological complex, a UNESCO world heritage site near La Paz, Bolivia. With Enormous Sandstone and Andesite Blocks. ...
Was this story useful?
Keep exploring
Every site on this page sits on the globe, and the people who research them are on the Discord.
3D Globe · Sites by country · Story Archive · Research Library · Weekly Journal · Search
AI-generated text · images from the original sources · always verify with the sources.