Travelling in Ecuador...Chobshi

This is a place I love, why? Well, it is a very important piece of our past, as the Ecuadorian austral zone is more Cañari than Inca. People don't appreciate this archaeological zone as much as they should. And it is really beautiful, too. Let's go back in time.

The fortress of Cacique Duma

Inside the fortress

Chobshi surroundings and Santa Barbara River

People used to think that Chobshi meant "house of the star" but, actually, it means "house of the moon", because it come from two cañari words: "cho" (house) and "shi" (moon). This place is located in Sigsig and it has great historical importance in our country, because it is the second oldest archaeological site with evidence of human presence in Ecuador, Chobshi Black Cave. We can also find here Shabalula, cañari settlement, and "The fortress of the Great Cacique Dumapara", the largest and best preserved cañari building in the country. There's a museum where you can see different types of tools of the Paleoindio period, and potsherds of Regional Development and Integration periods.

Tacalshapa zoomorphic vessel, Chobshi Museum

Cañari potsherds, Chobshi Museum

Archaelogical sites with evidence of human presence in Ecuador, the oldest is El Inga, followed by Chobshi, Cubilán and Las Vegas. The main difference between Chobshi and these other places is that the "Black Cave" was the only place that could function as natural shelter from the inclemency of the weather and many other dangers that the groups of people (called bands) of the Preceramic period had to face. They were hunters and gatherers, and nomads and it is estimated that the cave could hold up to sixty people, although it is believed that the bands of that time didn't have more than thirty members.

Black Cave

Down the path, you can find the "Fortress or Castle of the Great Cacique Dumapara". It was built with volcano stones around the year 1450, the year which the Cacique Duma comes to power, therefore belongs to the Integration period, and cultural phase, Cashaloma. The measures of the castle are 115 meters long by 22 meters wide by 2.8 at maximum height. The width of the walls at its lower part is about 1 meter wide, and at its higher part, 1 meter wide, as it was built in a pyramidal form. The legend says that about 500 to 1000 people worked on this project, and it was built within a night.

At first, this place was used for protection, and subsequently it was as accommodation for Túpac Yupanqui and his troops. Cacique Duma arranged a marriage between Túpac Yupanqui and his daughter, and they become Huayna Cápac's (the first Ecuadorian Inca) parents. The fortress is divided in three zones: the first and biggest was used to accommodate the troops; the second one, to accommodate the generals; the last one, was used by Cacique Duma, his family and servants. The walls were constructed really wavy, and it's believed is for these reasons:

• It was a pretty rudimentary work, so each person who was working in the construction, didn't think about the details, and everyone of them placed the stones as they wanted.
• Another theory says that the walls represented the Snake, one of their goddess. 
• It's believed that it was a construction technique, due to the waviness of the walls, they were more resistant.

The fortress' walls

At the end of the tour we hit a cañari road called "El Camino Real Andino" (Royal Andean Road). This road linked the northern towns with Chobshi and was also used to monitor what happened around. The castle was strategically built, proctected by two natural formations, the "dry creek bridge" and the nowadays known as the "Canyon of Santa Barbara River". Probably the river was called Sangurima, but with the Spanish conquering, the name was changed to Santa Barbara, as Saint Barbara is the saint of the miners, and in that time the river had a lot of gold. Beside the road you can find cairns called Apachitas, which served as a book or a record for each family; when something important happened (a birth, a death, a good or a bad harvest, etc.) a stone was placed. Each apachita belonged to one family and its construction took a long time. After that, you can see a Cañari house, which probably was used for the guardian to rest or spent the night. There are also mysterious stones, each one with different purpose. The Cañaris used "moon mirrors" to study the night sky; they used to pour water into holes in stones, so the sky would reflect in the water.

Cult stone

Royal Andean Road

Apachita

On our tour we got to "El Pailón", a place of great energy that the Cañaris surely used for rituals and ceremonies. To get to this place you must go through the Chobshi Lagoon (now it's dry and filled with cattails). Following the line of the lagoon, some steones are arrenged in a crescent shape.

Pailón

We reach Shabalula (meaning "shining house") at the end of the tour. Cacique Duma used this place to rest. Here you can find a stone carved in the shape of a snake's head. We can also appreciate the "lying Cañari face".

Lower Shabalula

Apachita

Lying Cañari face

Huaca (Cañari burial)

Recommendations: bring a cap and sun block, bring your own food (if you call before you go, the people on the community can prepare lunch for you), listen to the guide.