Itá Letra in Paraguay: Mysterious Ancient Rock Carvings

There are places in the world that hold an ancient stillness, a kind of quiet conversation between the earth and time. Itá Letra in Paraguay is one of those places. Hidden within the hills of the Guairá department, near the small town of Villarrica, this site seems to whisper in a forgotten tongue. It is a place where stone remembers, where symbols carved long before the Spanish arrived continue to puzzle and inspire those who make the journey to see them.

To visit Itá Letra is to step into the mystery of Paraguay’s deep past. It is not a grand site filled with tourists or signposts. It is modest, quiet, and yet hauntingly powerful. The rock faces covered in ancient markings rise from the green landscape like open books written in a language no one has yet been able to read.

The site has been known to local people for centuries. The Guaraní, the Indigenous people of the region, have long considered the area sacred. They knew of the stones, called them “Itá Letra,” and believed that the markings were the work of ancient spirits or ancestors who wished to communicate through stone.

European explorers first mentioned the site in the nineteenth century. The first written references appeared in the early 1900s, when researchers and priests from Villarrica began to document what they saw. Drawings and photographs were taken, but for many years the site remained largely unknown to the outside world.

It was only in the second half of the twentieth century that archaeologists began to take a closer look. They recognized Itá Letra as one of Paraguay’s most important rock art sites. But even then, little funding or protection was given. The carvings were left exposed to the weather, to curious visitors, and sadly, to vandalism.

Determining the exact age of rock art is never easy, and in the case of Itá Letra, it remains uncertain. Some researchers suggest the carvings could be over two thousand years old, possibly created by early inhabitants of the region who lived long before the rise of known cultures in the area. Others argue they may be more recent, perhaps linked to the ancestors of the Guaraní people themselves.

There are no written records or clear archaeological layers to provide a date. What can be said is that these carvings belong to a time before European contact, and possibly to a world whose beliefs and languages have vanished. The patina on the stones, the way the carvings have weathered and darkened, suggests great age. They are not recent scratches but the slow work of ancient hands.

The symbols at Itá Letra vary in form. Some are geometric, with circles, spirals, lines, and intersecting shapes that could represent the sun, stars, or movement. Others seem to depict animals, perhaps armadillos, fish, or serpents. There are also human-like figures, hands, and footprints.

One of the most intriguing aspects of Itá Letra is that the carvings seem deliberate and organized. They were not random marks or idle scratches. They were made with intention, possibly as part of ritual activity. Some scholars believe the site could have been a place of ceremony, where ancient peoples came to record their presence, their prayers, or their stories.

In Guaraní tradition, stones were often seen as living beings, capable of memory. The earth itself was sacred, and carving upon stone was a way of speaking directly to the spirits. The symbols of Itá Letra might therefore be messages left for the gods, or perhaps for future generations.

Others have suggested that the markings could be connected to constellations or the cycles of the moon. Certain spirals and circular forms align with the movement of the sun at particular times of year. While no theory has been proven, the idea that Itá Letra was a kind of ancient observatory or cosmic record remains a fascinating possibility.

The people of Villarrica and the nearby villages have long told stories about Itá Letra. Some say the stones were carved by giants who lived before the Great Flood. Others claim that the markings are a kind of writing left by the first people who walked the land, a record of their journey and their dreams.

One popular legend says that the carvings were made by a tribe of ancient beings who had the power to speak with the stars. They came to this hill to record messages from the heavens, inscribing what they learned into the rock. When their time ended, they disappeared, leaving only their stone writings behind.

There are also more mystical beliefs. Some locals say that if you visit Itá Letra at dawn, when the first light touches the carvings, you can see shapes appear that are invisible during the day. The light, they say, reveals the hidden meaning of the symbols, if only for a moment. Whether myth or truth, these stories show how deeply the site still touches the imagination of those who live nearby.

Itá Letra is more than a collection of carvings. It is part of a larger sacred landscape. The Ybytyruzú hills are filled with caves, waterfalls, and hidden stone outcrops. Many of these places are connected by oral tradition to ancient events or spirits. For the Guaraní, mountains were seen as dwellings of the gods, and stones were vessels of energy.

The word “Itá” means “stone” in Guaraní, and “Letra” is the Spanish word for “letter.” The name itself reflects the blending of two worlds, the Indigenous and the colonial. To the Guaraní, these carvings were messages of power. To the Spanish, they were “letters” written on rock. The combination of the two ideas still feels poetic today, as if the land itself were trying to communicate in more than one tongue.

Unfortunately, the story of Itá Letra is also a story of neglect. Over the years, the site has suffered from weathering, erosion, and human damage. Visitors have carved their own names over the ancient symbols. Pieces of rock have been broken or painted. There are few signs, no guards, and minimal efforts to protect the carvings.

Archaeologists and historians in Paraguay have long called for better conservation. The site is part of the country’s heritage, yet it remains largely unprotected. In comparison with major sites in neighboring countries, Itá Letra receives almost no funding or attention.

This neglect is heartbreaking, because once such carvings are damaged, they cannot be restored. Each mark that disappears takes with it a fragment of the story of Paraguay’s earliest inhabitants. The weather continues its slow work, and each year the lines fade a little more.

Paraguay is a land of deep history, but much of that history remains hidden or uncelebrated. Itá Letra deserves to be recognized as one of the oldest expressions of art and communication in the region. It connects us to a time when humans first sought to express meaning through symbols. It shows that the people who lived here thousands of years ago were not primitive or silent but thoughtful, creative, and deeply connected to the natural world.

This site deserves protection, respect, and care. It deserves to be seen not as a curiosity but as a national treasure. It is part of the world’s shared heritage, a message from deep time carved into the bones of the earth.

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