Chavin de Huantar
also known as 'Chavín de Huantar', El Lanzon, Lapitog
C · weakly documentedDocumentation grade: CA name in wide circulation with little verifiable origin information. Treat the details as provisional.
name drift high · name is ambiguousName drift risk: highThis name is actively contested or applied to several different plants. Verify against the identification notes rather than trusting the label.
IDENTIFYING FEATURES
Stems to 4in diameter, dark green epidermis, new growth blushed blue. 5 to 7 radial spines, the downward facing ones to 1.5in. One central spine to 2.5in. New spines yellow to red-brown.
LINEAGE
Parents:No Data
Parents note:No Data
Offspring:No Data
ORIGIN
Locality:rocky cliffs on the western slopes above the north end of the town and ruins of Chavin de Huantar, eastern slopes of the Cordillera Blanca, Ancash Dept., Peru, ~10,600ft
Origin note:The plant that grows around the 3000 year old temple complex of Chavin de Huantar in Ancash, Peru. Material in trade traces to Chavin Herbalists, who are working to preserve the genetics; Herbalistics record their cuttings as coming from two seed grown plants sourced from them. The former parents_text entry "unknown (cf. BK09511.7)" was a cross-reference to a Sacred Succulents accession, not a parentage claim, and has been moved here.
STORY
Chavin de Huantar is where the oldest known depiction of a succulent plant occurs, an anthropomorphic figure carrying what is thought to be a rooted Trichocereus cutting, and possibly the oldest depiction of plant propagation. The plants growing in and around the ruins are widely assumed to descend from very old cultivation at the site. "El Lanzon" refers to the carved stela at the temple; "Lapitog" is reported as an informal local name in parts of Ancash.
NOTES
Named for an archaeological site, so the name identifies a place and a population rather than a single documented clone. More than one distinct Chavin accession exists, including Sacred Succulents BK09508.2 and BK09509.1.
Name drift · highA locality-and-site name applied to material from several collections. Sacred Succulents alone hold at least two distinct Chavin accessions from different spots above the town. Anything labelled simply "Chavin de Huantar" should be treated as a population label until the specific collection is known.
SOURCES
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