In 1968, Swiss author Erich von Däniken would publish his wildly popular book Chariots of the Gods? where he put forward the claim that the Nazca Lines were proof positive that ancient aliens had once visited our planet and gave our ancestors knowledge. Not only is his assertion state that the lines were created to be seen only by aliens flying overhead (or they themselves created them), but that one of the geoglyphs pays direct homage to our ancient alien overlords, and in all fairness that human figure we mentioned earlier does kind of look like a spaceman waving.
Much to the ire of serious scientists like Carl Sagan and I. S. Shklovskii, who criticized and roundly mocked von Däniken, this idea has gained a lot of followers in recent years. Sadly, with the rise of the location’s popularity comes the rise in boots on the ground. Although designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994, many have dedicated their own time and money trying to preserve this most mysterious of sites.
