Mameria facts for kids

Mameria is a special area of high jungle in southeast Peru. It's located northeast of the Paucartambo mountains. A river called the Mameria river flows through it, eventually joining the Nistrón river.

This remote place was once considered part of the Callanga jungle. The Machiguenga people, who were trying to escape difficult times along the Yavero river, found safety here. They gave the area its name "Mameria" because "mameri" in their language means "there are none," referring to the lack of fish in the river.

Mameria is also home to ancient stone ruins from the Inca people. These ruins were once coca plantations, where the Incas grew plants for their culture. In 1979, French-Peruvian explorers Herbert and Nicole Cartagena were among the first from the outside world to reach Mameria by helicopter. They were guided by a Peruvian adventurer named Goyo Toledo. Their book, Paititi, dernier refuge des Incas (1981), tells the story of their search for the legendary lost city of Paititi.

Exploring Mameria

Early Modern Journeys

In 1980, Goyo Toledo returned to Mameria, this time on foot. He was the first person known to do so since the ancient Incas. The next year, his brother Gabino and Guillermo Mamani went to Mameria to find Goyo, and they succeeded.

In 1983, a group from Cusco, Peru, made a very challenging two-month trip to Mameria. This group included architect César Vilchez, his nephew César Medina, Carlos Cartagena, and Manuel Guevarra. They faced great difficulties and almost ran out of food during their journey.

Research and Mapping

Between 1984 and 1989, an American explorer named Gregory Deyermenjian made five trips to Mameria. For three of these expeditions, he was joined by Peruvian explorer Paulino Mamani H.. They studied the Machiguenga people living there and also researched the ancient Inca ruins.

In the mid-1990s, Peruvian adventurer Darwin Moscoso made a long journey to Mameria. He later created a very detailed map of the area.

Gregory Deyermenjian wrote an article called Mameria: An Incan Site Complex in the High-Altitude Jungles of Southeast Peru. It was published in 2003 in a magazine called Athena Review. In his article, Deyermenjian suggests that Mameria was an important border settlement for the Incas before the Spanish arrived. It supplied coca to the Incas in the highlands. After the Inca Empire fell, Mameria was largely forgotten. Its remote location and difficult access have kept it protected even today.

See also

In Spanish: Mameria para niños