The site

Allow 4 hrs to see the ruins and visit the village. The site is fenced and you cannot go directly from it to the village.

There are two museums on the site, the older Museo Regional Arqueológico, with well-illustrated explanations of the system of agriculture as well as ceramics, textiles and intentionally deformed skulls - a common practice among ancient Andean peoples. The newer Museo Lítico, opened in 2002 but still unfinished in 2008, houses the ticket office, visitors' centre and some of the larger stone pieces such as the 8-m high, 20-ton Bennett megalith which was returned to the site from La Paz. Other artefacts are in the Museo Nacional de Arqueología .

The main structure is the Kalasasaya Temple, which was the holiest part of the site and the burial place of the ruling elite. The name means 'standing stones', referring to the statues found in that part. Two of them, the Ponce monolith (in the centre of inner patio) and the Fraile monolith (in the southwest corner), have been re-erected.

In the northwest corner of the Kalasasaya is the Puerta del Sol (Gateway of the Sun), which was originally at Pumapunku. The split in the top probably occurred in the move. This massive carved portal was hewn from a single block of stone 3 m high, nearly 4 m wide and weighing 10 tonnes. The central motif is a figure common throughout the empire. It displays many of the typical Tiahuanaco features: puma faces looking downwards, condor faces, two left hands and the snake with a human face. This is thought to represent the principal deity of Tiahuanaco. The complex markings are thought to be part of a calendar.

In front of the Kalasasaya is a large sunken courtyard, the Templo Semisubterráneo, filled with the sacred monolithic icons of the kingdoms conquered by Tiahuanaco. They were positioned there for all to see that Tiahuanaco's gods were more powerful than any others. According to other theories, though, the faces on the walls depicted states of health, the temple being a house of healing.

The Akapana, next to the Kalasasaya, originally a pyramid, was the largest structure, but is now no more than a hill. A little way from the main site, on the other side of the access road is Pumapunku, a mysterious collection of massive fallen stones, some of which weigh up to 100 tonnes. The widespread confusion of fallen stones has led some to suggest a natural disaster putting a sudden end to the construction before it was finished. This part of the site is often not included on tours.