The ICA Stones Controversy

The Ica Stones Controversy

One of the most prolific set of images depicting concurrent man-dinosaur co-existence are the Ica stones collected by Dr. Xavier Kabrera and other explorers, and stored in the private museum of Dr. Kabrera, as well as the Ica museum, the Aeronautics museum in Lima, the Naval museum in Callao, and others. The total number of Ica Stones is between 11,000 and 15,000, and, according to Dr. Kabrera, taking into account all of the stones which have been distributed to private collectors, there are more than 50,000 stones. Dr. Kabrera estimates that in subsoil (buried or hidden) remains more than 200 - 300 thousand similar stones.
The engraved Ica stones are river boulders of andesite from 15-20 g to 500 kg in weight and from several centimeters to 1 meter and more in diameter (length) with pictograph inscribed on them by some means of engraving - grooves of 1-2 mm in depth, or executed in the technology of a low relief. The images are different enough and include:

People and extinct (dinosaur) figures

Polydactyl horses (meryhippuses), prehistoric elephants (mastodon or dinotheres), prehistoric camels (alticameluses), and other animals

Dinosaurs including triceratops, stegosauruses, brachiosaurs, pterosaurs, iguanodons, tyrannosaurs and pterodactyls, etc.

Semimen-semibirds, like kimnaras and sirens 

People astride polydactyl horses, prehistoric elephants, alticameluses, dinosaurs

Operations on ablation of extremities (limbs), transplantation of kidneys, hearts, trepanation of sculls and replanting of brain and so on

Geographical and star maps with images of known and unknown continents, the suns, stars, comets and "people" watching them

Erotic scenes of obvious homosexual activity, etc.

'People', or more correctly 'Hominid' images engraved on the Ica stones differ from modern humans with their depiction of an anatomically larger head. Their head size to torso relationship is 1:3 or 1:4, and for modern humans this ratio is 1:6 – 1:7) their heads show a slanting forehead. These 'hominids' appear to belong to a different branch of the Homo sapiens tree, something like a very large Neanderthal, or other Giant hominids. Kabrera had a similar point of view and considered that hominids on the Ica stones probably were not our grandparents.

One of the earliest mentions of the engraved stones is found in Juan de la Santa Cruz Pachakuti's report “The List of Documents of the Antiquity from Peru” (1613). In that report , Santa Cruz states that “...during governing of Pachakuti’s Inca Jupanka (1438-1471) in the region where Ica province is situated today, great number of stones with engravings had been revealed.” 

The reference to the Ica stones at the beginning of 17th century reduces to zero a probability they ALL are modern hoaxes. Of course, the document in question has to be verified, but it is unlikely that records of that antiquity will be lost in any short time frame, because several copies exist. The main record is probably held in the Spanish National Archives, and a copy in the National Archives of Peru.

However, that being said, and provenance being established, it is still likely that indigent farmers of this area, when confronted with tourist traffic that will pay for 'relics', find it reasonable and easy to create a cottage industry producing local similar fresh 'copies' to meet that tourist demand. With provenance being established for at least some of the Ica Stone, does not mean they all are authentic, any more than if does if some of the stones are copies, means they all are copies. The real conundrum is we don't know at this point which is which.

Understanding provenance on all stones being impossible to ascertain, does not in any way negate the provenance of various report from the 1500’s and later. It remains up to qualified specialists to find reasonable means to validate the authentic from the copies. In conclusion, some of the stones have been recorded in the mid to late 1500's and some of them are more than likely local forgeries. At the current time it is difficult to ascertain which is which, although dating methods should be available that can determine patina dating. I would suggest that a blanket acceptance on all stones would be as foolish as denial of authenticity of all stones. 

It is up to individual researches to do their own due diligence and research to determine which stones are authentically 'ancient' and which are modern.

An Ica stone depicting a man riding an Apatosaurus.

The depiction of the skin texture and patterning on various dinosaurs on Ica stones is “dead on” as confirmed by every paleontologist that the stones were shown to. Since the discovery of fossilized dinosaur skin in 1992, it has been suggested that the large circles (not the small ones of which there are many more), would have most likely been located on the animals in places where the skin did not move as much, such as the side instead of near joints such as hips. This is how the circular patterning is shown on the animals on these stones.

On the left stone a man is shown riding a Triceratops.

Note that the textured skin shown on the animal was not known by scientists until 1992. Not to mention the amazing fact that this stone shows a warrior riding a Triceratops!

The stone to the right depicts an image of a man riding a pterosaur for battle purposes. Note the clear skin texture that is evident on all dinosaurs on Ica stones, as well as the dagger in the warrior’s hand. It even seems to show membrane skin on the wings and not feathers or hair, indicating these indigenous natives must have seen living specimens to have such anatomical knowledge. 

I obtained several large photos of the ICA stones from the Wikimedia Commons website and they are displayed below without much comment. All ICA Stones photos are used with permission.

What the authentic stones do seem to suggest is that we have some chronology of the history of life muddled up a bit. The stone’s story seems to say in quite clear detail, that a form of humans, not necessarily modern man, or even Cro-Magnon, coexisted with very large animals, including what we call ‘dinosaurs’. 

The fact that Stegosaurus spine plates are visible on many of the drawings, and those plates were not discovered until 1992 suggests another avenue of authenticating that man and dinosaur coexisted at some time on this planet. Based on other depictions, glyph's, carvings and legends from around the world, these animals probably existed up through the recent Epoch.

First, there are the references from the Jesuit missionaries in 1535 and in 1562; the Spanish sent some of the stones back to Spain. 

Second, archaeologists found stones in Paracas, Tiahuanaco, and Ica tombs dating from 500 B.C. to 1,000 A.D. 

Third, laboratory tests indicate a degree of antiquity with patina covering the grooves of the stones. 

Fourth, microscopic analysis reveals that there is no evidence that rotary tools or saw blades were used to carve the stones that were tested. 

Fifth, there are twelve Moche vases in Peruvian museums dating from 70 A.D. to 900 A.D. with dinosaurs on them. 

Sixth, a Nazca textile depicts thirty-one dinosaur figures. The textile was found in a Nazca tomb. The textile had been authenticated and dated from 400 A.D. to 700 A.D. 

There are over thirty thousand figures engraved on more than three thousand stones discovered in Southern Peru in 1951 at Toro Muerto, far from the Ica Providence. Many of the stones are engraved like those in the Cabrera Museum in bas relief style.

The stones are believed to be done by the Wari who inhabited the region from 500 to 1,000 A.D. Some of the stones depict dinosaurs. 

An engraved stone with dinosaurs and other animals was excavated from a tomb near the Rio Grande Palpa. The stone had been found in a Nazca tomb and has been dated from 400 to 700 A.D. There were about thirty eyewitnesses to the discovery.

The conclusion is quite clear. Many of the stones from the Nazca-Ica area are from historically recent time. Many may be copies created simply to sell to the tourist trade. This should not be shocking to researchers, professionals, science, or academia, as it is a time worn practice in many other ‘archaeology’ sites around the world. Some of the copies may be very sophisticated reproductions, where an artificial ‘aging’ process is created (baked) onto the surface. Others are cruder, and easier to identify.

The various locations where the stones are found and the different patina layering suggests the stones, like the Pre-Inca and Inca cultures survived across quite different periods of time.

The stones themselves suggest a possibility of three periods of manufacture. One is current (within 40-60 years) consisting of fakes, forgeries and copies. 

The second is ‘recent’, based on light patina and oxidation; this could be anything from near current to a pre-Columbian era around 1,000 AD. 

The third is the authentically genuine old stones that show a very high degree of patina, aging, encrustations, and uniform weathering.

Last, it is important to keep a level view of this material phenomenon. This is an ‘all’ or ‘none’ proposition for both sides of the Evolution vs Creation debate. Both sides have a very strong motive to prove one side or the other wrong, based on their particular world view and belief systems. The authentic stones do not prove anything about creationism. We are not able to determine their age, the method of carving, the method of producing bas relief images, or whether they are a library, or a written language. We do not have the first clue as to their purpose or meaning, other than they are found in many grave sites.

So it is less than genuine to speculate on their subjective relationship to any theology. On the other hand, fakes and forgeries do not in the least invalidate authentic stones. It is not necessary to invalidate the whole lot in order to disprove a ‘Gradualism’ or creationist view. What the authentic stones do seem to suggest is that we have some chronology of the history of life muddled up a bit. The stone’s story seems to say in quite clear detail, that a form of humans, not necessarily modern man, or even Cro-Magnon, coexisted with very large animals, including what we call ‘dinosaurs’, and in all probability, in the not too distant past.

The fact that Stegosaurus spine plates are visible on many of the drawings, and those plates were not discovered until 1992 suggests another avenue of authenticating that man and dinosaur coexisted at some time on this planet.

Based on other depictions, glyphs, carvings and legends from around the world, these animals probably existed up through the recent Epoch.

In conclusion, there are more than 30,000 Ica Stones from Peru. Many are copies and fakes, and many more are original artifacts from burial sites that date back 700 or more years. (Carbon dated results are based on grave remains (pottery, linens, etc. in the graves where one or more ICA stones were removed from). Experts surmise there are more than 200,000 + stones still unearthed. It appears the stones were some kind on intelligent “library” or some similar mechanism. It would seem to me a logical assumption that a surviving group from a devastating cataclysm might try to record their pre-cataclysm history while the memories were still fresh. The pictographs on the stones make the case that the original civilization was quite advanced.

ICA Stones Bibliography:

Cientifico Descubre Dinosaurios en Ica. Ojo-Lima, Domingo 03 de Octobre de 1993, p. 7.

Juan de Santa Cruz Pachacuti Llamquie: Relacion de antiquedades deste reyno del Piru. 1571.

Interviews with Dr. Javier Cabrera, his sister, Isabel Cabrera, and his daughter, Eugenia Cabrera.
Herman buse. Introduccion Al Peru. Lima, 1965

Santiago Agurto Calvo. “Las piedras magicas de Ocucaje”. El Comercio. Lima, 11 December, 1966.

Alejandro Pezzia Asserto. Ica y el Peru Precolombino. Volume I (Ica: 1968), p. 25ff.

Erich Von Daniken. According to the Evidence. (Souvenier Press: Great Britain, 1976), pp 284ff.

Ryan Drum. “The Cabrera Rocks,” Info Journal. No. 17 (May, 1976), p. 10.

Robert Charrous. L’Enigme des Andes Editions. (Robert Laffont: Paris, 1974), p. 72.

“The Amazing Ica Stones. The Peruvian Times. (August, 25, 1972).

Roy L. Moodie. “Injuries to the Head among the Pre-Columbian Peruvians”. Annals of Medical History. (Vol. 9), p 278

Alejandro Pezzia Asserto. Ica y el Peru Pre-Colombino, Vol. 1. (Ica: 1968)

John W. Verano. “Prehistoric Disease and Demography in the Andes.” In Disease and Demography in the Americas. Ed. J. Verano and D. Ubelaker, pp. 15-24, (Washington D.C. and London: Smithsonian Institution Press), 1992.

John W. Verano. “Physical Evidence of Human Sacrifice in Ancient Peru.” In Ritual Sacrifice in Ancient Peru.

Ed. Elizabeth P. Benson and Anita G. Gouv, (Austin: University of Texas Press), 2001, pp. 165-184.

John M. Jensen Jr.

JohnMJensenJr@gmail.com 

- AncientCanalBuilders.com

- EarthEpochs.com

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