Japanese archaeologists have discovered 24 new geoglyphs on the Nazca Plateau in Peru that were created two centuries earlier that the giant images that the region is famous for.

Archaeologists from the University of Yamagata in Japan made the discovery a mile north of the city of Nazca, in central Peru.

The shapes are mostly geometrical, including a figure resembling a flame, along with what appears to be a llama, with the largest being 20m long.

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Japanese archaeologists have discovered 24 new geoglyphs, including several that look like Llamas, on the Nazca Plateau in Peru that were created two centuries earlier that the giant images that the region is famous for.

THE NAZCA LINES Only a few inches deep, the lines were created by removing the top layer of red pebbles to expose the light gray ground beneath. They are believed to have been intended to act as a kind of observatory, to point to the places where the sun and other celestial bodies rose or set in the solstices. Other theories suggest that they were created to be seen by the gods in the sky. Advertisement

The geoglyphs, found in surveys between last December and February, have been reported to the Peruvian government.

The geoglyphs are almost invisible on the surface and the team needed to analyze them using a three-dimensional scanner to highlight the images on the ground.

As a result, the Yamagata University team was able to identify 24 geoglyphs of animals, some of which probably depict Andean native camelid, llamas.

Last year, the team had discovered 17 geoglyphs of similar style in the adjacent area and thus it became clear the total of 41 animal geoglyphs are concentrated in a specific area.

These geoglyphs are estimated to date back to 400 BC to 200 BC.

According to a report submitted to the Peruvian government by the Japanese team, the newfound figures are smaller and less distinct than the older ones (a spider, a hummingbird, a condor and a monkey).

'Because they have been degraded, it is difficult to determine the exact shape of the picture on the ground of all the animals,' the researchers said told the Telegraph.

The head of the team, Dr. Masato Sakai,said: 'They made these kinds of geoglyphs on the sides of hills so they could be clearly seen,' he said, adding the images' sizes range from 16 feet to 66 feet tall.

The team identified five distinct new groups of images, but say expansion in the area could ruin them.

Researchers took 3D scans of the ground where patterns were difficult to spot

One analysed the images revealed the patterns clearly

'Nazca geoglyphs are being affected by the expansion of urban areas. We want to preserve them by sharing their importance with local people,' he said.

The team of Asian researchers began investigating the Nazca culture in 2004, and has since found around 50 new geometric figures since.

The Nazca lines and huge animal images were designated as a Unesco World Heritage site in 1994.

Several appear to show animals

The Nazca lines and huge animal images were designated as a Unesco World Heritage site in 1994.

The geoglyphs, discovered about 1½ km north of the town of Nazca in southern Peru, include what looks like a llama and other unrecognizable land pictures

The purpose of the mysterious Nazca Lines in Peru has long puzzled archaeologists.

But now a team of researchers says they may have been used separately by two cultures, for different reasons.

One group may used them as part of a religious pilgrimage, but another may have smashed pots at their corners in religious ceremonies.

The Nazca Lines are located in the Nazca desert in South Peru. However, their purpose and origin has remained somewhat of a mystery since they were first seriously studied in the 20th Century

Scientists in Japan studied the Nazca Lines in Peru, and they found different sets were used for different reasons. One type was used as part of a religious pilgrimage but, 200 years later, another group smashed pots on them for a ceremony. Shown is a view of the famous 'spaceman' Nazca Line drawing

The new research, reported by Live Science, was conducted by the University of Yamagata University in Japan.

They examined 100 of these so-called geoglyphs - huge structures drawn in the ground, some tens or hundreds of metres wide.

And they deduced that two separate groups of people created and used the lines.

Most of the strange lines seem to head towards a pre-Incan temple complex known as Cahuachi, a religious centre that pilgrims travelled to.

One group of lines, including animals like the condor, is found in an area near the Ingenio Valley and towards Cahuachi, possibly an ancient religious route.

Another group, which includes apparently supernatural beings, is found mostly in the Nazca Valley and towards Cahuachi from a different direction.

One group of lines, including animals like the condor, is found in an area near the Ingenio Valley and towards Cahuachi, possibly an ancient religious route. Another group, which includes apparently supernatural beings, is found mostly in the Nazca Valley and towards Cahuachi from a different direction (shown in map)

The researchers deduced that that first group was made during a time called the Formative period, up until 200AD.

This group of people used the lines solely as part of their pilgrimage to Cahuachi.

But a second group in the Nazca period, up until 450 AD, used the lines for a different purpose; they seemed to smash ceramic pots at the intersection of the lines, possibly for religious ceremonies.

Evidence for this comes from the remains of pots smashed during this time period.

All of the strange lines seem to head towards a pre-Incan temple complex known as Cahuachi (pictured), a religious centre that pilgrims travelled to

One group of lines, including animals like the condor or spider (shown), is found in an area near the Ingenio Valley and towards Cahuachi, possibly an ancient religious route

'Our research revealed that the Formative geoglyphs were placed to be seen from the ritual pathways, while those of the early Nazca period were used as the loci of ritual activities such as intentional destructions of ceramic vessels,' lead researcher Dr Masato Sakai told Live Science.

Further supporting the 'multiple groups' theory is that the lines have been created in different ways.

Some have been made by removing rocks from the interior of the shapes, but others were made by removing the border.