Andean Archaeology

This thesis will test the hypothesis that the 19 female individuals interred in the Stone Temple, at Túcume, Peru were honoured members of Inka society who functioned as specialized weavers. The lives of the aqllacuna were described in ethnohistoric documents which provide the background from which testable hypotheses can be drawn.

...Utilizamos las siguientes páginas de esta introducción del volumen para ofrecer un contexto historiográfico de las contribuciones que presentamos. Consideramos tres temas —o, más bien, tres procesos historiográficos—, que han influido en las interpretaciones arqueológicas de manera fundamental: el medioambiente, el desarrollo del concepto de Chachapoyas a través de la época colonial y la historia de la arqueología regional

The Moche culture (A.D. 200‑800) has left one of the richest iconographies in the history of ancient Andean civilizations. Due to the lack of written sources for the pre‑Hispanic period of Andean South America, the first information about the religious beliefs and rituals of the people from the north coast came from early colonial time. These written sources provide revealing information about the concept of the principal god and even a supreme creator in the Moche pantheon, named Ai Apaec in muchic or yunga language. Actually, the understanding of Moche religion is based not only on the historical perspectives but also on information produced during the extensive study of its iconography. Despite the numerous studies about the Moche pantheon of gods and goddesses, the problem of number and identity of the deities still poses innumerable questions and obstacles. This article offers a reassessment of the character of symbolic organization of Moche religion, based on iconographic analysis of the famous portrait vessels (huacos retrato) from the collection of the Larco Museum in Lima, Peru.

New archival and ethnographic evidence reveals that Inka style khipus were used in the Andean community of Santiago de Anchucaya to record contributions to communal labour obligations until the 1940s. Archival testimony from the last khipu specialist in Anchucaya, supplemented by interviews with his grandson, provides the first known expert explanation for how goods, labour obligations, and social groups were indicated on Inka style Andean khipus. This evidence, combined with the analysis of Anchucaya khipus in the Museo Nacional de Arqueología, Antropología y Historia Peruana, furnishes a local model for the relationship between the two most frequent colour patterns (colour banding and seriation) that occur in khipus. In this model, colour banding is associated with individual data whilst seriation is associated with aggregated data. The archival and ethnographic evidence also explain how labour and goods were categorised in uniquely Andean ways as they were represented on khipus.

Este trabajo abre una nueva línea de investigación sobre el significado del TOCAPU. Es una línea que en futuro podría resultar errónea, nacida únicamente por el producirse de un discreto, aunquesolo casual,número de coincidencias.Sin embargo, es definitivamente una teoría fascinante que merece ser analizada.

trustees for harvard university, Washington, d.c. all rights reserved. Printed in the united states of america library of congress cataloging-in-Publication data Merchants, markets, and exchange in the Pre-columbian world / kenneth g. hirth and Joanne Pillsbury, editors. p. cm. -(dumbarton oaks Pre-columbian symposia and colloquia) includes index. ISBn 978-0-88402-386-9 (hardcover : alk. paper) 1. indians of Mexico-commerce. 2. indians of Mexico-economic conditions. 3. indians of Mexicoantiquities. 4. indians of central america-commerce. 5. indians of central america-economic conditions. 6. indians of central america-antiquities. 7. indians of south america-andes regioncommerce. 8. indians of south america-andes region-economic conditions. 9. indians of south america-andes region-antiquities. i. hirth, ken. ii. Pillsbury, Joanne. f1219.3.c6m49 2013 972´.01-dc23 2012022302 general editors: Joanne Pillsbury and Mary e. Pye art director: kathleen sparkes design and composition: Melissa tandysh Managing editor: sara taylor Volume based on papers presented at the Pre-columbian studies symposium "Merchants, trade, and exchange in the Pre-columbian World," held at dumbarton oaks research library and collection, Washington, d.c., on october 8-9, 2010.

This article focuses on a linked pair of " documents " from mid-seventeenth-century coastal Peru. The analysis first examines a revisita (an administrative " revisit ") carried out in 1670 in settlements around the town of San Pedro de Corongo, in the lower Santa River Valley. The revisit describes a census of the population of what are described as six pachacas (" one-hundreds ") administrative/census units that usually coincided with ayllus (the Andean clanlike sociopolitical groups). The document identifies 132 tributaries distributed across the six ayllus, all but two of whom are identified by name. Tribute is assessed on this new census count. The information in the revisit is then compared to the organization of a group of six khipus (knotted-string recording devices) that were said to have been recovered from a burial in the Santa Valley. The six khipus are organized into a total of 133 color-coded groups of six cords. The knot values on the first cords of the six-cord groups total the same value as the tribute assessed in the revisit document, and it is argued on these grounds that the khipus and the revisit document pertain to the same administrative procedure. The attachment knots of the first cords of the six-cord groups vary in a binary fashion by attachment type (i.e., tied either " verso " or " recto "). It is argued that this construction feature divides the tributaries identified in the revisit into moieties; therefore, the khipus constitute a gloss on the social organization of the population identified in the revisit document. It is suggested that the names of the tributaries may be signed by color coding in the khipus.

This piece of work opens a new line of investigation of the meaning of the TOCAPU. It is a line which can be proved as incorrect in the future, only as a result of a reasonable number, althoughjust casual, of coincidences. Nevertheless, it is an interesting theory for sure, which deserves to be analyzed.

This paper presents a case study for the development of paleoethnobotanical data together with a focus on ancient charcoal use to interpret the organization of craft production and domestic economy. In 1999 and 2001 the Sicán Archaeological Project, working in the La Leche Valley, excavated mains from a ceramic and metalworking facility active during the tenth century AD in Northern Peru. Additional experimental work, including recreating the pyrotechnologies used in production, a survey of the local forests of the area, and a detailed examination and determination of fuel remains from the site, all aided in the reconstruction of primary material allocation across contexts. This work highlights the necessary coordination among a variety of anthropological and other scientific methods of inquiry to interpret adequately the carbonized production remains. Although wood charcoal can address some of the variables critical to production, we are only able to reconstruct site-wide activities when these data are interpreted together with the feature-to-feature remains of seeds, flowers and fruits. Our analyses permit the description and assessment of recycling and fuel supplements, solutions seen in ethnographic examples of fuel use that typifies some pre-industrial models of resource allocation. These integrated analyses generate baseline data for ecological studies to understand humanenvironment interactions over the long term and assess sustainable resource use in the past and present.

El ushnu y la organización espacial astronómica en la sierra central del Chinchaysuyu JOSÉ LUIS PINO M. 1 RESUMEN El ushnu inca tuvo gran importancia en la dominación ideológica en los wamani del Chinchaysuyu. Este artículo ofrece nuevas interpretaciones basadas principalmente en evidencias encontradas en Huánuco Pampa y otros tampus de la sierra central. Se propone que el ushnu en los Andes sólo tuvo funciones de recepción de ofrendas, especialmente líquidos, en ceremonias programadas de acuerdo a un calendario instituido, y que posteriormente los incas superponen funciones de observación astronómica. Se demuestra que estos tampus inca fueron planificados de acuerdo a la ubicación del ushnu y de determinados alineamientos astronómicos, basándose en un posible modelo de organización espacial radial astronómica.

En el marco de la tendencia global hacia la accesibilidad de las bases de datos, reseñamos los protocolos diseñados para la confección del muestrario y la colección histológica utilizados en el estudio arqueobotánico del patrimonio culinario Centro-Surandino, así como su sistematización y puesta a disposición digital. El herbario etnoarqueológico, muestrario e histoteca que integran la colección del Herbario JUA están compuestos, por un lado, de ejemplares de cultivos andinos provenientes de la agricultura familiar a pequeña escala en el sector centro y centro-sur de la Quebrada de Humahuaca. Por otro lado, incluye productos procesados a partir de estos cultivos (harinas, semillas tostadas, mote, entre otros), los cuales fueron obtenidos en ferias y mercados de la región. Finalmente, se incorporan las muestras obtenidas durante nuestras experiencias etnoarqueológicas y etnobotánicas con las comunidades locales. Como parte fundamental del trabajo, relevamos toda la información pertin...

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This paper presents, describes, and analyzes the sectoral fallowing system of a sector of the ayllu/community Marcapata Collana (District of Marcapata, Province of Quispicanchi, Department of Cusco) from the perspective offered by other case-studies about the same system from both Peru and Bolivia, the rest of the agro-pastoral activities in which the Marcapatenian families are engaged, and the genealogical links existing among them. The purpose of the paper, aside from dealing with the specificities of the Marcapatenian case, is to establish in which sense and how far an economic or productive phenomenon could be understood from the point of view of the kinship relationships existing among the families engaged in it. It also attempts to consider its comparative scope in order to understand other similar case-studies in the Central Andes.

A monumental tomb in pure Inca-style stone working was found in the site of Ccopan, Andaray district, region of Arequipa. A question arises: for whom such a prestigious funerary monument was erected, in this rather remote part of the Inca Empire?

The Middle Horizon period in the Andes was a time of growth, conquest, decline, and beer. Evidence of the production of chicha de molle, a beer made from the fruit of the pink peppercorn tree (Schinus molle), has been found at many prominent Wari sites including Cerro Baúl, Beringa, and the recently-excavated site of Millo II in the Vitor Valley. We examine the archaeological evidence at each of these sites to characterize the production, consumption, and distribution of this fermented beverage by the Wari. By comparing this practice to the more well-known traditions of beverage consumption of the Tiwanaku and the Inka, we discern an overall pre-Hispanic paradigm of consumption. We then explore how the Wari diverged from the Andean model by consuming molle beer instead of maize beer and the possible reasons for this unique cultural preference.

El mítico relato de las luchas ancestrales entre Vichama y Pachacamac parece evidenciar una larga y difícil tradición de conflictos y supremacías desde tiempos inmemoriales en los extensos valles costeños aledaños a la actual Ciudad de Lima, en Perú.  Este relato, recogido por Fray Antonio de la Calancha en 1638, alude directamente a sucesos ocurridos tanto en el Valle de Huaura, aproximadamente a 160 kilómetros al norte de la actual capital peruana como en el Valle de Lurín, a 30 kilómetros al sur de Lima.

The geographic information system (GIS) has become a very popular and useful tool to aggregate and process spatial data. In this paper, the implementation of data obtained during survey seasons at the El Fuerte de Samaipata (Bolivia) archaeological site and results of data analysis on the GIS platform are presented. In addition to the thematic layers, a description of the sectors and archaeological relics was added to the whole system. The implemented layers are related to orthoimages created from terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) and from close range photogrammetry (in visual, spectral, and infrared light), raw photos of petroglyphs, a highly detailed vector plan of the site, conservation risk maps, new spatial divisions, description layers, and a digital terrain model (DTM) based on the results of TLS. Such a system, with an implemented DTM, allows rainwater runoff and its impact on the archaeological site to be analysed. Thus, the paper presents a study on some hydrological condit...

During the Late Holocene, important changes can be identified in the social dynamics of hunter-gatherer populations in different regions of the southern Andes. These transformations are associated with processes of demographic growth, territoriality, increased social complexity, technological innovations, and intensified exploitation of the environment. One of the technological transformations associated with these processes is the popularization of bone instruments. In this study, we discuss the functions of bone tools made by Late Holocene coastal hunters-gatherers of North-Central Chile, by carrying out a morphological characterization and identifying use-wear patterns on their surfaces. Our results show that bone technology was used for hunting, fishing, and gathering activities, from flint working to processing vegetal fibres and hide. A reduce number of artefacts had an ornamental use as well. These results suggest a varied and intensive exploitation of the surrounding space by coastal groups, where bones of land animals constituted an important part of the raw materials used in bone industry. Also, we argue that some bone artefacts were elements structuring social relations, as they participated in flows of information and social networks. We conclude by arguing that the popularization of bone industry reflects the dynamics of social complexity, as well as how bone was integrated as a productive, economic, and social resource in the process of coastal hunters and gatherers who inhabited the area.

On Wednesday, Dec. 21, nations in the Northern Hemisphere will mark the winter solstice – the shortest day and longest night of the year. For thousands of years people have marked this event with rituals and celebrations to signal the rebirth of the sun and its victory over darkness.

At hundreds, and perhaps thousands, of missions stretching from northern California to Peru, the winter solstice sun triggers an extraordinarily rare and fascinating event – something that I discovered by accident and first documented in one California church nearly 20 years ago.  See article at On Wednesday, Dec. 21, nations in the Northern Hemisphere will mark the winter solstice – the shortest day and longest night of the year. For thousands of years people have marked this event with rituals and celebrations to signal the rebirth of the sun and its victory over darkness. See link to online magazine at https://theconversation.com/a-sacred-light-in-the-darkness-winter-solstice-illuminations-at-spanish-missions-70250

ABSTRACT During the Middle Archaic period, agriculture -that later played an important role- was established in the Central Andes. Pernil Alto was a permanent settlement of this period, dating to 5800-5000 cal BP and located in Southern Peru. The economy was already based on horticulture and was independent from the marine resources of the Pacific Ocean. Nevertheless, some foraging, especially plant collection, was conducted. Currently, the area is one of the driest in the world, but was -based on palaeoclimatic information-much more favourable during the Middle Archaic. These conditions certainly influenced the emergence of horticulture in the region.

"Earlier provisional title was "Archaeology, Tourism, Museum...."

"This chapter is divided into two distinct sections that are positioned in a point-counterpoint structure of dialogue. These two position statements invoke the etymological meanings of the word essay, to attempt, put to the test, trial, to act out, to explore, travel, and travail. The first is an historical analysis written in the third person by an anthropologist whose expertise includes the ethnography of archaeology and the anthropology of tourism. The second is a counterpoint commentary written in the first person by an anthropologist whose specializations include Pre-Columbian and historical archaeology. Both of us have significant research experience in same area of the Maya world in Yucatán, México. From these two differing vantage points, we chart our perspectives on the relationship between archaeology and tourism in terms of the problems of exploration, protection, and exploitation.
In the first section, Castañeda takes an historical approach to the emergence of archaeology in the institutional context of the modern museum. He essays an analytical and theoretical manifesto about the deep, intimate interconnections between tourism and archaeology as revealed through an understanding of the museum. In his historical analysis of the role of archaeological representation in the museum, he identifies the sociological creation of universal heritage. He theorizes a notion of the universal citizen-heir as the implied benefactor of this universal heritage. In the second section, Mathews elaborates a commentary on this historical analysis of archaeology, tourism, heritage and the museum. Specifically, she counter-argues and assesses Castañeda theoretical and analytical claims through the use of archaeology and tourism at sites that are not postcard worthy. Together these two “attempts” grapple with the historical and contemporary interconnections between archaeology and tourism. Together we put to the test our typical assumptions about the ethics of archaeologists, tourists, and tourism promoters in the contemporary contexts in which we are now beginning to ask how and why archaeology and tourism are interwoven phenomena in today’s world.""

Se presenta el reconocimiento preliminar de los restos arquitectónicos de un tramo de 4 km del Qhapaq Ñan existente en el cerro Indio Muerto, El Salvador, Región de Atacama. Asimismo, se expone ampliamente el marco teórico que se está utilizando para estudiar las manifestaciones arquitectónicas del camino, comenzado por las distinciones sintácticas y algunas consideraciones semánticas iniciales. Se procuran distinguir aportes vernáculos y del Inka *** , como las posibles significaciones sociales y culturales durante el domino del Tawantinsuyu en la localidad. Palabras claves: Qhapaq Ñan, arqueoarquitectura, restos arquitectónicos vernáculos y del Inka, El Salvador.

Desde los años 1970, las imponentes estructuras fortifi cadas del valle del río Cuyes –si-tuado al sur del Ecuador, en la frontera entre Andes y Amazonia correspondiente a la provincia de Morona Santiago–, han llamado la atención de antropólogos y arqueólogos: ¿fueron estas construcciones levantadas y habitadas por poblaciones andinas? ¿amazó-nicas? ¿en qué época y en qué contexto? La investigación doctoral cuyos resultados se presentan en la siguiente síntesis apunta a alimentar la discusión, gracias a la aplicación de un método de análisis cerámico novedoso en la arqueología de la región, basado en el concepto de cadena operativa así como en una lectura antropológica del material. Palabras clave: tecnología cerámica, arqueología ecuatoriana, arqueología cañari, arqueología jíbara, alfarería contemporánea del austro ecuatoriano, arqueología de las estribaciones andinas.

Abstract: Since the 1970's, the impressive fortifi ed structures of the Cuyes river valley-located in the south of Ecuador, at the border between the Andes and the Amazonian lowlands-, have caught the interest of anthropologists and archaeologists: were these structures built and inhabited by Andean populations? Amazonian? when and in what kind of context? The PhD dissertation whose results are presented in the following synthesis aims at bringing new data to the debate through the use of a methodology of analysis of ancient ceramics totally new for the archaeology of the region, based on the concept of " chaîne opératoire " and on an anthropological interpretation of the material.

RESUMEN:
Se entregan los resultados de sucesivas intervenciones tendientes a revalorizar uno de los siete conjuntos arquitectónicos Inka investigados en forma intensiva en El Shincal de Quimivíl con la aplicación de las normas internacionales que rigen este tipo de actividad. El diagnóstico de los rasgos arquitectónicos Inka que conforman el conjunto urbano, los "componentes de contextos de derrumbe " y la aplicación de la técnica de anastilosis bajo el principio de reversibilidad son los temas básicos de esta entrega. Paralelamente explicaremos los mecanismos arqueológicos desarrollados en la intervención de la kallanka 1 (K 1) inicialmente diseñados para examinar los locus de actividad contenidos en su interior, el proceso de formación del sitio desde su fundación hasta su abandono, los eventos postdeposicionales, y su revalorización arquitectónica.
Las estrategias aplicadas en este caso pueden ser predictivas para otros asentamientos con arquitectura en piedra del Noroeste argentino y no excluyentes del período Inka. Es ostensible que el caso de la K 1 plantea perspectivas de análisis y respuestas técnicas para proteger el patrimonio arqueológico que hasta el momento no fueron tenidos en cuenta en la arqueología de Argentina. Estas falencias han sido frecuentes entre los arqueólogos, acostumbrados a privilegiar la información estrictamente científica, usualmente para beneficio personal (vg. curricular) por sobre la protección, conservación y revalorización del patrimonio.

ABSTRACT:
The paper presents the results of a sequence of interventions geared towards giving new value to one of the seven Inka arquitectural groups investigated intensely at the Shincal of Quimivil, during which international norms regulating this activity were applied. The basic topics of this paper are the diagnosis of the Inka architectural features make up the urban assemblage, the "context of collapse components" and the application of anastilosis technics based on the principle of reversibility. At the same time we will explain the archaeological mechanisms developed during the intervention on the kallanka 1 (K 1), designed to examine the locus of activity within it, the formation process of the site since its founding until it was abandoned, the postdepositional events, and their architectural revaluation.
The strategies used in this case could be taken as predictive for other settlements with stone architecture in the Argentine North West and do not exclude the Inka period. It is obvious that the K 1 case sets up perspectives of analysis and technical answers for protecting the archaeological patrimony that, until now, have not been taken into account in Argentine archaeology. Archaeologist shave frequently disregarded these issues and usually give priority to strictly scientific information, which generally benefits their personal goals (e.g. curriculum) rather than the protection, conservation and revaluation of the patrimony.