May 07, 2014 10:03 AM EDT By Russell Westerholm, UniversityHerald Reporter

Peru's Nazca Lines may be world famous and highly mysterious, but researchers have discovered ancient rocks hundreds of years older that may explain them.

According to LiveScience, the researchers dated the rocks at 300 BC, approximately 300 years older than the Nazca Lines. Originally crafted by the Paracas, a civilization predating the Nazca, the lines are shaped into massive depictions of animals and even something appearing to be a runway.

The newly discovered rocks even predate the Nazca culture, which arose around 100 BC, replacing the Paracas culture that originated in 800 BC. Published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, a new study finds the rocks were used as markings for an ancient fair.

"They used the lines in a different way than the Nazca," Charles Stanish, director of the Cotsen Institute of Archaeology at UCLA, told Live Science. "They basically created these areas of highly ritualized processions and activities that were not settled permanently."

The Nazca Lines are significant evidence in the theories of alien life. These drawings in the ground are only visible from the sky even though humans would learn to fly thousands of years later. There are also lines that run parallel with each other that appear to mark a runway for an aircraft. Of more interest is the area in Peru, which is particularly diverse in its natural resources.

However, the newly discovered geoglyphs told Stanish and his team more about the Paracas people, who lived before the Nazca. He said the geoglyphs were meant to attract people to various trading fairs and other social events. This would offer a rare look into life pre-government.

They're converting this landscape into a big theater, and the ultimate goal is to bring people together to market, exchange goods, manufacture goods, exchange marriage partners, gossip, do all the things people like doing. And then they're competing with each other to bring in the most supporters," Stanish told Science Magazine.

He also said the fair grounds would not be where the people lived, so they seemed exclusively tied to social gatherings. Given their placement, the grounds also were likely used for yearly celebrations of the June solstice.

"When you stand behind the mounds and you're facing the sunset-and we were there for the solstice-the sun sets right on the mound," Stanish said. "And if you're a human being standing there, the sun melts right on your head. It's pretty impressive."

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