Empty spots wait for monuments in the National Museum. |
Their absence is due to opposition by San Agustin area residents, who blocked the temporary transfer of some monuments to Bogotá, fearing that they could be damaged or not returned. The museum describes the locals' attitude as selfish. But the Sanagustinianos remember well that dozens of San Agustin statues were taken away in the early 1900s and remain in storage in Gemany.
The San Agustin monuments, located in Huila Department near the town of San Agustin, were created between about the time of Christ and 900 a.d. According to the museum exhibition, they may have been created by several different cultures. Nobody's sure what the figures represent or who created them, but climate change apparently played a key role in the cultural flowering and decline. According to the exhibition, the great period of monument building coincided with a time of abundant rainfall and good harvests.
An artist's rendering of an indigenous man before the arrival of the Spanish. |
In any case, those interested in seeing San Agustin monuments in Bogotá can visit replicas in the Los Martires district.
Information about European and Colombian writing and research about the monuments. |
By Mike Ceaser, of Bogotá Bike Tours
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