The ancient people of La Tolita left a legacy of pottery, architecture and metalwork that is now one of the most important monuments in Ecuador. The site, which is located on a small island at the mouth of the Santiago River, was home to the ceremonial center of the La Tolita culture. As such an important place of tribute, many beautiful and well-crafted artifacts were left at the site, including some of the oldest-known human figurines and jewelry of gold and platinum. The people of La Tolita are thought to be the oldest complex human society in the Americas. A small museum holds some of the more valuable artifacts and the local people who run it are happy to give tours of the nearby grave sites. The site is not often visited by tourists, but to the people of Ecuador it is one of their most important monuments.
Ingapirca is the largest remaining Inca ruin in Ecuador. The site consists of several concentric walls and foundations built in the Inca style, with no mortar used. The most important and well preserved structure at Ingapirca is the Temple of the Sun, which is a beehive-shaped structure built around a large stone. Ingapirca has been devastated by the passage of time and the re-purposing of its stones for other building projects in the area, although preservation efforts began in the 1970s to keep the remaining structures intact. Ingapirca is a very popular national monument to Ecuador's Inca heritage, receiving thousands of visitors every year.
The Middle of the World Monument in Quito sits on the line of the equator, which runs through the center of the country. The 10-meter-high stone monument is topped with a heavy brass globe and is oriented at its base to the four cardinal directions. It marks the exact point--zero degrees of latitude--that defines the northern and southern hemispheres. Several other such monuments exist around the world, left by various geodesic expeditions working to discover the circumference and curvature of the Earth's surface. This interesting monument is hugely popular with the Ecuadorian people and receives thousands of visitors every year.
