  the nazca culture (also nasca) was the archaeological culture that flourished from 100 bc to 800 ad beside the dry southern coast of peru in the river valleys of the rio grande de nazca drainage and the ica valley (silverman and proulx, 2002). having been heavily influenced by the preceding paracas culture, which was known for extremely complex textiles, the nazca produced an array of beautiful crafts and technologies such as ceramics, textiles, and geoglyphs (most commonly known as the nazca lines). they also built an impressive system of underground aqueducts, known as puquios, that still function today. the nazca province in the ica region was named for this people. ==history== ===time frame=== nazca society developed during the early intermediate period and is generally divided into the proto nazca (phase 1, 100 bc &nbsp;â 1 ad), the early nazca (phases 2â4, 1â450 ad), middle nazca (phase 5, 450â550 ad) and late nazca (phases 6â7, 550â750 ad) cultures (vaughn, 2006). ===decline and fall of the civilization=== from 500* ad, the civilization started to decline and by 750 ad the civilization had fallen completely. this is thought to have occurred when an el niÃ±o triggered widespread and destructive flooding. evidence also suggests that the nazca people may have exacerbated the effects of these floods by gradually cutting down prosopis pallida trees to make room for maize and cotton agriculture. these trees play an extremely important role as the ecological keystone of this landscape: in particular preventing river and wind erosion. gradual removal of trees would have exposed the landscape to the effects of climate perturbations such as el niÃ±o, leading to erosion and leaving irrigation systems high and dry (see beresford-jones et al. 2009). ==society== ===social structure=== early nazca society was made up of local chiefdoms and regional centers of power centered around cahuachi, a non-urban ceremonial site of earthwork mounds and plazas (valdez, 1994). scholars have developed theories resulting from various excavations at cahuachi and suggest that the site was the center for rituals and feasting relating to agriculture, water, and fertility. this may have been as a result of environmental deterioration; the eventual collapse of the center may have also been a result of that decline (valdez, 1994). cahuachi lies in the lower portion of the nazca valley and was initially occupied during the late paracas phase. it is unique among all other nazca sites in the region and 
Andean_civilizations Archaeological_cultures_of_South_America Archaeology_of_Peru Headhunting