At the height of the Chachapoyas culture, settlements dotted this landscape for miles. However, the citadel of Kuelap was reserved for the most revered members of the Chachapoyas society: the best artisans, warriors, and shamans. The shamans' houses are distinguished from others by the rhomboid shaped reliefs along the bottom perimeter of the house. These shapes signified the undulating serpent (the underworld), which is revered all over Peru. Together with the puma (the earth) and the condor (the world above), the serpent is a mystical character who communicates with humans through the use of medicinal, hallucinogenic plants. The Chachapoyas shamans had deep relationships with these plants.