Editing Caral (section)

== History ==
Caral was inhabited between approximately [[26th century BC]] and [[20th century BC]],<ref>[https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.1059519], "Dating Caral, a Preceramic Site in the Supe Valley on the Central Coast of Peru" SCIENCE, 27 Apr 2001, Vol 292, Issue 5517 pp. 723-726</ref> and the site includes an area of more than {{convert|60|ha}}.<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/2001/04/27/world/archaeological-site-in-peru-is-called-oldest-city-in-americas.html NYtimes.com], "Archaeological Site in Peru Is Called Oldest City in Americas" Public release date: 27-Apr-2001 The New York Times</ref> Caral has been described by its excavators as the oldest urban center in the Americas. This claim has been challenged by the discovery of other ancient sites nearby, such as [[Bandurria, Peru]]. Accommodating more than 3,000 inhabitants, Caral is the best studied and one of the largest sites known of the [[Norte Chico civilization]].

The city was declared a [[UNESCO]] [[World Heritage Site]] in 2009.<ref name="UNESCO WHC">UNESCO World Heritage Centre.</ref> In early 2021, tensions arose between squatters claiming land rights and archaeologists researching the site, as housing construction encroached on the site.<ref>{{cite news |last=Collyns|first=Dan |title=Squatters issue death threats to archaeologist who discovered oldest city in the Americas |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jan/03/squatters-ancient-ruins-peru-death-threats-archeologist-caral|work=The Guardian|access-date=3 January 2021 |date=2021-01-03  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210103102715/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jan/03/squatters-ancient-ruins-peru-death-threats-archeologist-caral |archive-date=3 January 2021 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Mandujano |first=Carlos |date=2021-01-20 |title=The Oldest City in The Americas Is an Archeological Wonder, And It's Under Invasion|url=https://www.sciencealert.com/oldest-city-in-the-americas-under-threat-from-squatters|access-date=2021-01-20|work=ScienceAlert|language=en-gb}}</ref>
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PeruCaral01.jpg|The Caral temples in the arid Supe Valley, some 20&nbsp;km from the Pacific coast.
Caral 1.JPG
</gallery>