Pyramid in Peru torn down by developers

Officials lodge criminal complaints against two firms after building at El Paraiso, one of Peru's oldest archaeological sites, destroyedReal estate developers using heavy machinery tore down a 20ft (6m) tall pyramid at one of Peru's oldest archaeological sites, cultural officials have said.Rafael Varon, deputy minister of cultural patrimony, told reporters on Wednesday that the destruction occurred over the weekend at the ruins of El Paraiso, a few miles north of Peru's capital, Lima.He said his agency has lodged criminal complaints against two companies for the damage – identified as Alisol and Provelanz – and has moved to seize the equipment used. People who answered the telephone at both companies said no one was available to comment.Peru's tourism ministry says El Paraiso was built some 4,000 years ago and was a religious and administrative centre, long before the rise of the Inca culture encountered by the Spanish conquerors.Marco Guilen, director of an excavation project at El Paraiso, said the people who tore down the pyramid "have committed irreparable damage to a page of Peruvian history"."We are not going to be able to know in what ways it was constructed, what materials were used in it and how the society in that part of the pyramid behaved," said Guilen.Varon said people apparently working for the two companies tore down one pyramid and tried to destroy three others, but were stopped by witnesses.Mayor Freddy Ternero of San Martin de Porres, the town where the...

Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - July 4, 2013 Category: Science Tags: Peru Americas World news Archaeology guardian.co.uk Science Source Type: news