Ayquina is a village located on the northern flank of Salado River Canyon in the Calama

Calama, Chile

Calama is a city and commune in the Atacama Desert in northern Chile. It is the capital of El Loa Province, part of the Antofagasta Region. Calama is one of the driest cities in the world with average annual precipitation of just . The River Loa, Chile's longest, flows through the city...

 commune of the El Loa Province

El Loa Province

El Loa Province is one of three provinces of the northern Chilean region of Antofagasta . It is named after the longest of rivers in Chile, the Loa River...

 in Chile

Chile

Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...

's Antofagasta Region

Antofagasta Region

The II Antofagasta Region is one of Chile's fifteen first-order administrative divisions. It comprises three provinces, Antofagasta, El Loa and Tocopilla...

. It sits at an elevation of 2980 m (9,777 ft) above sea level. The festival of Our Lady of Guadalupe of Ayquina is the most important religious festival in the area.

Cerro Paniri, a stratovolcano, plays an important role in the local culture and beliefs. On September 1, 1998, the city, along with Toconce

Toconce

Toconce is a small Chilean village located on the south rim of the Toconce River Canyon at 3,350 m above sea level. To the north, the landscape is dominated by the volcanoes Cerro Paniri, Cerro del León and Toconce....

, was added to the UNESCO

UNESCO

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...

 World Heritage Tentative List for its universal cultural importance.