![](https://web.archive.org/web/20160612042050im_/https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/48/Taironapendants_metropolitan_2006.jpg/220px-Taironapendants_metropolitan_2006.jpg)
Photograph of Tayrona gold pendants in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City. Repatriation of archaeological treasures is a very important issue for the Colombian government
Archaeological sites in Colombia are numerous and diverse, including findings and archaeological excavations that have taken place in the area now covered by the Republic of Colombia. The archaeological finds and features cover all periods since the paleolithic, representing different aspects of the various cultures of ancient precolumbian civilizations, such as the Muisca, Quimbaya and Tayrona among many others. Preservation and investigation of these sites are controlled mainly by the Ministry of Culture, the National Institute of Anthropology and History, and the Bank of the Republic. The lack of funding to protect sites and enforce existing laws, results in large scale looting and illegal trading of artifacts.
Sites
Age | Period | Site | Image |
---|---|---|---|
10,400 BC | Pleistocene | El Abra | ![]() |
9000 BC | Pleistocene | Tequendama | |
6000-5000 BC | Neolithic | Monsú and Puerto Hormiga archaeological site | ![]() |
2500-1500 BC | pre-Herrera formative stage | El Infiernito | ![]() |
1600-500 BC | Delayed Cacical | El morro del tulcán | ![]() |
600 BC - 300 AD | Formative Sinú Malagana-Sonsoid | Malagana | |
800 BC | Early Tayrona | Ciudad Perdida | ![]() |
200 BC | Classic San Agustin | San Agustín | ![]() |
200 BC - 600 AD | Classic Tierradentro | Tierradentro | ![]() |