Connect to share and comment Archeologists may never solve the
mysteries of a pre-Columbian indigenous site if Venezuela goes
ahead with a plan to create a hydroelectric dam. Whatever its
origins, there seems to be little doubt that the site was used
by the local indigenous people: lithic axes and a clay grinder
were discovered nearby. Tachira, which borders with Colombia, is
rich in archaeological sites. Duran is also investigating a
2,300-year-old village consisting of 30 terraces of houses at
Queniquea, a site that she calls “the Macchu Picchu of
Venezuela.” The site has been declared a site of cultural
interest by the Institute of National Patrimony, a status that
should guarantee its protection. But whether archaeologists will
ever be able to solve El Porvenir’s mysteries hangs in the
balance. The government has earmarked the valley as the site for
a 20-square-kilometer reservoir. With Venezuela undergoing its
worst electricity crisis in history, plans to flood the valley
and build a new power plant are