Tierradentro Archaeological Park protects clusters of hypogea—funerary chambers cut into volcanic rock—across steep Andean ridges in Cauca. Spiral stairways descend to chambers whose columns, niches and red, black and white geometric paintings reproduce aspects of houses for the dead. Stone statues and surface remains add evidence for a society that lived in the region more than 1,400 years ago.
The UNESCO World Heritage property is distributed rather than enclosed in one museum compound. Scientific investigation began in 1936 with work by Georg Burg and José Pérez de Barradas, although local communities had long known the tombs. Research continues to refine chronology and meaning; painted motifs should not be assigned invented translations or named owners.