Submitted and Approved Abstracts

Recent research along the southernmost Andes has incorporated new data regarding terminal Pleistocene/early Holocene human settlement. In Chile, below 30? S, two independent semiarid regions stand out: the northern semiarid zone and the Patagonian steppe. Even though both share similar environmental settings (controlled by different climatic factors) first settlement trends seem different. Results are presented for both areas, hoping they will be useful for the current understanding of the early settlement of the southern cone. Archaeological studies in each area are significantly different. While a thorough regional long-term study has been conducted at Los Vilos locality on the northern semiarid coast, only exploratory surface surveys and excavations have been performed at Cisnes river basin, on the extra-Andean Patagonian plains. For the former, we present results of Quebrada Santa Julia, an open air site with evidence of multiple activities, radiocarbon-dated to 13000 calendar yr bp. Bifacial and expedient lithic technology, native horse remains and several distinctive features were excavated from a high resolution lacustrean deposit. For the latter area, although early human presence was suggested by surface finds, only test pits at El Chueco cave site have yielded definite, although scarce, evidence around 11400 calendar years bp. While in Los Vilos, early human settlement appears as a residential mobility pattern associated with other lake basin sites along the western slope of the Andes, Cisnes evidence follows Patagonian trends, rooted in the eastern extra Andean steppe.

There is currently no evidence of use of the Lake Titicaca region prior to the Early Preceramic (ca. 10,000-8,000 rcybp), but is this when the area was first colonized? The problem of negative evidence can be avoided by modeling colonization as a process with phases that involve different kinds of environmental knowledge and land use strategies. I examine patterns of lithic raw material exploitation, based on projectile points surface collected in the Rio Huenque-Ilave drainage, to assess changes in landscape familiarity and mobility patterns in order to assess how the Early Preceramic fits within the proposed colonization model.

Archaeological excavations in the 1970s at Los Morteros in the Salinas de Chau of northern coastal Peru identified a pre-ceramic-age site dating to ca. 4000 radiocarbon years BP., containing the remains of small, rock-walled structures, marine fauna, numerous groundstone mortars, and evidence of human burials. The archaeological material was found at the top of a large geomorphic feature, identified by the excavator as a sand dune, located on a raised marine terrace, 4.7 km [2.81 mi] from the present day shoreline. At present, the landform is the largest, non-bedrock feature in the area. Smaller barchan dunes are common below the raised marine terrace. In July 2006, the University of Maine field party conducted a reconnaissance ground-penetrating radar survey of the landform in an effort to understand the formation processes associated with this anomalous feature. This work produced evidence of large, highly reflective material inconsistent with the fine-grained, aeolian deposits associated with sand dunes, and not related to an underlying bedrock feature. The placement and orientation of these reflectors is consistent with walls and stairs that are characteristic of other pre-ceramic monumental structures identified in coastal Peru. This work suggests that the Los Morteros site is located on the apex of a large, human-constructed mound, not a sand dune or bedrock-cored feature. Construction of the mound pre-dates the age of the archaeological material sampled from the mound surface, placing the building of this feature at the very beginning of monumental architecture in Peru.

Fieldwork in the Casma Valley by the authors has explored the complex Sechin Alto Initial Period (2150-1000 cal B.C.) polity that built the largest mounds in the New World at that time. A key architectural element, often constructed on the tops of these mounds, is the square-room-unit, a modular architectural form with wall niches, rounded corners, and bar closures and pilasters to limit access. The square-room-unit is not limited to monumental architecture. It also consistently defines administrative presence in varying contexts both within and between sites. The form and context of the square-room-units are so consistent within the Sechin Alto polity that the authors believe this modular architectural form also functioned more abstractly as an emblem of administrative authority.

The Initial Period is not well documented in the Lower Santa Valley and the site of San Juanito, although known as a multi-component site, provided us with the opportunity of documenting this segment of North Coast prehistory. In the fall 2005 we found a decorated temple built at the base of the eastern slope of a low hill, looking toward the valley. The 2006 field season has confirmed its ìaceramicî nature, and four radiocarbon dates support its placement between 1800 and 1600 BC. A review of the major artifacts will be presented as well as the burial of an old woman located below the main staircase. Burial offerings are diversified, well preserved, and a glimpse at fiber baskets, textiles, and headdresses indicate strong relationships with Huaca Prieta of the Late Preceramic. Motifs sculpted on the plastered clay walls and a stone mortar deposited in front of the upper set of stairs clearly suggest that the inhabitants of San Juanito were already actively participating in the development of the SechÌn style of religious representations.

This paper examines the presence of the Gallinazo culture in the lower Santa Valley on the north coast of Peru. A recent excavation program by the Santa Valley Project of the UniversitÈ de MontrÈal has specifically sought to further document this poorly understood period of this regionís prehistory. San Nicolas, excavated in 2006, was the first Gallinazo site to be systematically investigated in the region. This small elite center surrounded by habitation terraces provided fresh evidence on the nature of the Gallinazo occupation in the lower Santa valley. Furthermore, the ceramic data collected at San Nicolas is complemented by the assemblage from the San Juanito site excavated the year before. This new data, when combined with the information previously gathered at El Castillo, allows a new and broader perspective on the presence of the Gallinazo culture in the region. More specifically, the Gallinazo occupation of the lower Santa Valley will be discussed in terms of its place within the cultural dynamics of the Peruvian north coast. Notably, the cultural affiliation with the populations of the Vir? valley will be addressed. The data now available also sheds new light on the relationships with other contemporaneous cultures. In this respect, material evidence suggests only limited contacts with the Moche neighbours while the discovery of a significant collection of fine Recuay ceramics at San Nicolas implies the existence of connections with groups from the adjacent highlands.

Excavations at different sites in the Viru Valley have led to the discovery of a number of cases of sacrifice of immature llamas, a common practice in the Andean region in Pre-Columbian times. Interestingly, those were often found in association with the remains of children, also believed to have been sacrificed. These sacrifices are dated to the Early Intermediate Periods and Middle Horizon and are believed to have been associated with the reclamation of previously abandoned sites. A recent osteological analysis of the bones of both the children and llamas showed that they were dispatch through stabbing in the chest as there was evidence of cut marks on the ribs but further analyses showed that while the children were cut from the front the llamas were cut from the side. This difference in stabbing patterns begat several questions and this presentation will explore a number of hypotheses to explain why there was a difference between the stabbing patterns of the llamas and children. Hypotheses that will be explored include ritual motivations and practical methods.

Andean communities are often comprised of more than one settlement with production strategies determined by ecological variations that correspond roughly to elevation. This system is not thought of only in terms of economic necessity. Rather is tied into a sacred conceptualization of the landscape. Data from recent excavations at the village of Yuthu and systematic survey of the surrounding Xaquixaguana Plain indicate that vertical integration and ceremonialism played important roles in the process of political centralization in Cusco, Peru during the Formative period (600 BC ñ AD 200).

The site of Pirque Alto, located outside of Cochabamba, Bolivia was excavated in the summer of 2007 as part of the ongoing Prehistoric Parotani Settlement Project. The project aims to evaluate Formative and Early Intermediate adaptations as well as investigate the Tiwanaku presence in the Parotani region. Research headed by Dr. Timothy McAndrews of the University of Wisconsin ñ La Crosse has revealed the site of Pirque Alto to be a multicomponent site occupied from the Formative Period through the Middle Horizon and beyond. Aided by the results of a 2005 surface collection, the excavations in 2007 targeted known areas of Formative, Early Intermediate and Middle Horizon ceramic distributions. Excavations confirmed that Pirque Alto has extensive and intact stratified subsurface remains, giving the site remarkable potential in terms of contributions to understanding the long term cultural evolutionary developments of the area. In this presentation, preliminary results of the 2007 excavations are discussed, most notably information on a Middle Horizon domestic structure which was discovered.

Sometime around 800 AD, revolutionary change swept through the Cotahuasi Valley of southern Peru. New sites were founded, terracing was likely introduced, and a wide swath of the valleyís material culture was drastically transformed. These changes, similar to those being experienced in other valleys of highland Arequipa, were at least in part the result of influence from the Wari state (600-1000 AD). Despite this influence, there is little evidence for the flow of goods and people between the valley and the Wari heartland. This paper draws from eight seasons of surveys and excavations in order to discus the relationship between the Wari state and the people of the Cotahuasi. In particular, this paper focuses on excavation data from Tenahaha, an important Middle Horizon residential, ritual and funerary site. Analysis of these data begins to reveal a turbulent period of identity politics, emerging class divides, and increasing intra-regional exchange of goods. By evaluating the nature of Wari influence within this local context, we can take a further step forward in understanding the Wari state and its pervasive influence over Cotahuasi and other areas in Peru.

Middle Horizon iconography is characterized by anthropomorphic beings holding staffs as symbols of authority. From the Pucara culture through Provincial Pucara style textiles and Qeya style ceramics, the contemporary Lic·n Antai (formerly AtacameÒo) shamans packaged the icons with the mind-altering practice of snuffing hallucinogens. After AD 800, Tiwanaku artisans applied the icons to monolithic stone carvings as a declarative investment in their ancestorsí mythical identity. The religion arrived in the Huari area in Epoch 1B as documented by ceramic effigy jars depicting agents who wore short tunics with the imagery of paired profile animals. The profile animal icons are a pan-Andean theme documented from earlier Recuay to later Inca art though my recent analysis shows counterparts from the Argentinean Aguada and Peruvian Nasca cultures. Below the tunics, the jar body provided the ìmessage boardî space that depicts a frontal deity and several rows of profile deity icons all grasping staffs. The frontal deity icon has a stone-carved counterpart on the back of Tiwanakuís Ponce Statue. The iconography was most likely developed and transmitted in textile art in both areas prior to its immutable dedication on ceramics and stone. Rather than believing both empires embraced the altiplano religion, Huari agents are depicted with deities in conflict as battle-ready warriors and captives. In spite of the possible religious barriers, later stylization on tunics indicates a development of ethnically diverse, political allegiances to Huari authority.

The Chilchos/La Meseta region of northeastern Peru is about three days journey by foot or mule from the town of Liemebamba. This area is home to a number of unique pre-Columbian constructions including: an Incan red ashlar building and bath, a magnificent Chachapoya cliffside chullpa, and an This season I made my third trip to this remote region in order to map the area with GPS data for these dissimilar sites. The month long project was a success and I want to present this information in order to convey a spatial perspective for these pre-Columbian ruins and this area. This presentation will incorporate the Google Earth program in conjunction with the new GPS data. Google Earth will enable me to show a detailed overview of the ruins in relation to the ceja del selva terrain and each other. From this discussion I will revisit past conclusions about the Inca structure, called by the name Puca Huaca (Lerche 1996, and Inca Llacta, Schjellerup 2002). New information will be presented about the previously mentioned chullpa Yaku Wasi and the platform construction called by the name Pennitenciaria and Huaca de la Meseta (Muscutt, 2006)

The aim of this research is to address how Inca imperial policies influenced populations at the genetic level. Considerable attention has been paid to the material consequences of Inca imperialism, clearly demonstrating that they influenced local economics, demographics, agricultural production, and sociopolitical infrastructure. Additionally, previous bioarchaeological research has examined changes in diet, health, activity patterns, and trauma following Inca conquest. Using craniometric data as a proxy for genetic information, we examined patterns in sex-specific phenotypic variation in order to understand how Inca imperial policies influenced social organization and postmarital residence in the Chachapoya region. During the Late Chachapoya period (A.D. 1100-1470) based on evidence of greater male within-group variance and greater female between-group variance, it is suggested that males were the more mobile sex. While other social processes exist that could explain this result, including differential burial practices, greater male within-group variance could be due to a matrilocal residence pattern. Following Inca conquest (ca A.D. 1470) region-wide phenotypic variation decreased while female within-group variance increased. This overall loss of phenotypic variation may have resulted from population loss either through warfare or the exportation of laborers. In contrast, the greater female within-group variance may reflect the combined effects of forced population aggregation or the importation of females as part of Inca imperial policies.

Five field seasons at the Pambamarca Fortress Complex in Ecuador have documented Inka military settlement and warfare practices, indigenous fortress constructions, and a contested pre-Columbian borderland on the northern frontier. Excavations within a sample of the Inka fortresses have uncovered weaponry caches as well as clear residential assemblages. Continued exposure of indigenous fortress architecture suggests they were also strongly defended and occupied for long periods. Research in 2007 highlights the resistance to Inka domination, with new evidence suggesting the sacking and rebuilding of some forts. Landscape data on roadways is also discussed in an attempt to understand the regional context of this well-known standoff.

San Jacinto 1, currently the earliest archaeological site with fiber-tempered pottery in the western hemisphere, offers a unique opportunity for understanding the relationship between sedentism, the origin of food production, territoriality, and early pottery in a markedly seasonal environment. High resolution archaeological contexts at San Jacinto 1 are windows for examining intensive plant processing, scheduled procurement of animal resources, and social mobility in the seasonal savannas of northern Caribbean Colombia. It is hypothesized that the Archaic foragers of San Jacinto 1 were engaged in a form of logistic mobility which included the focused capture of small, easily procured or seasonally available/concentrated animal prey that could be used as a potentially storable product. Faunal analysis and archaeological context suggest that vertebrate and invertebrate resource procurement was characterized by: 1. the systematic and repeated exploitation of specific taxa in each dry season; 2. the uneven domination of these taxa in the archaeofaunal profile, along with lesser amounts of seasonally available faunal resources; and, 3. a focus on resources that could be processed into potentially storable items, either as penned animals, eggs, and or through drying/smoking meat.

Las antiguas relaciones culturales entre poblaciones de lo que es hoy Ecuador, muchos siglos antes de la llegada de los Inkas, fueron basadas en la apropiación de variados paisajes durante el tercer milenio antes de Cristo. Los asentamientos y pueblos antiguos de lo que hoy es el cantón Gualaquiza, piedemonte ¨céja de montaña¨ en la Cordillera Oriental de los Andes, fueron claves en el desarrollo cultural y explotación de recursos naturales de la región en América prehispánica. Los conquistadores Inkas siguieron las anteriores rutas naturales que por miles de años usaron los mismos caminos por los que luego guiaron a los españoles y eventualmente por allí llegaron el siglo pasado los colonos azuayos. Las relaciones culturales tempranas van más allá de sus fronteras. Nosotros nos limitaremos a presentar una pequeña parte de un trabajo interdisciplinario sobre la prospección arqueológica y examen estratigráfico en áreas geográficas diversas del cantón, que muestran las diferencias y similitudes en los procesos culturales a través del tiempo y el espacio, y sus relaciones inter y extra regionales, dentro de un sistema interconectado cultural-ecológico. Los sitios en el cantón Gualaquiza son sitios espectaculares, organizados en estructuras con muros de piedra, tiene una ubicación ideal para controlar los paisajes al estar desde el tope de cerros hasta las riberas de los rios. Las similitudes y diferencias del material contextual, son la base para definir las entidades culturales representadas y para evaluar las relaciones entre poblaciones de medio ambientes diferentes en un medio neo-tropical muy húmedo, con una de las zonas con mayor biodiversidad de la Tierra. Intentaremos contestar tres preguntas: ¿Cuáles son los sistemas humanos de adaptación y apropiación de paisajes, reflejados en la cultura material? ¿Por que se inicial los primeros poblados? ¿Qué evidencias muestran intercambios a corta, mediana y larga distancia? \"El cantón está alejado de las grandes ciudades del Ecuador, siendo no atractivo para la mayoría de arqueólogos, pero si eje central para las poblaciones prehistóricas, como sugieren los importantes vestigios culturales demostrados en nuestra investigacion (Ledergerber 1991-2007). El origen del primer caserío de una sociedad agrícola del cantón está datado hace 4.600 años, desde entonces Gualaquiza está en la encrucijada de las culturas andinas y amazónicas.

The Pasto comprised a late prehispanic chiefdom located the northern Andean highlands of Ecuador and southern Colombia from the 14th to the mid-16th century. Information drawn from ethnohistorical and archaeological research indicates that political power was centered in the highlands and that there was a regular movement of both Pasto peoples and trade goods between this zone and both the western and eastern lowlands. I initiated a program of archaeological research in the Pasto region in 2006. The primary aims of the first seasonís survey and excavation work at the site of Chilm·, located near the modern town of Maldonado on the western slopes of the Cordillera Occidental near the Ecuadorian-Colombian border, were to determine the extent of the Pasto incursion into, and the degree of influence exerted upon the western piedmont zone. A variety of archaeological remains, including habitation sites, terraces, and agricultural systems with associated Pasto architectural patterns, pottery, and petroglyphs, were recorded during a systematic survey of this region. The present paper focuses on Pasto-associated petroglyphs and considers how a social role found on these may be used to help determine the extent of ideological frontiers and extra-regional economies of Intermediate Area complex societies.

Atmospheric pollution is caused by various anthropogenic activities including smelting. During smelting, trace elements are volatilized into the atmosphere and are subsequently deposited onto the surrounding landscape, including lakes. The accumulation of metals in lake sediments therefore preserves a geochemical archive of past smelting and other metallurgical activities. Here, we present trace-metal profiles from lake-sediment cores collected near three pre-Columbian metallurgical centers in the South American Andes: Morococha (Peru), the Altiplano, and PotosÌ (Bolivia). The earliest evidence for trace-metal enrichment from smelting on the Altiplano is ~400 AD, coincident with the rise of the Tiwanaku culture. After ~1000 AD, there is a dramatic decrease in trace-metal pollution on the Altiplano, suggesting metallurgical activity was closely tied to the declining Tiwanaku state. In contrast, trace-metal pollution near Morococha and PotosÌ does not begin until ~1000-1200 AD, likely emerging from the diasporas generated by the collapse of the Tiwanaku and Wari. Following Inca conquest of the Andes, strong increases in trace-metals suggest an increase in silver production to meet Inca imperial demand. With Hispanic conquest, large increases in trace-metal pollution are noted at Morococha and PotosÌ, only to be superseded by industrial development. The records presented here have implications for the reconstruction of Andean pre-history, and demonstrate the sensitivity of lake-sediment geochemistry to pre-Colonial smelting activity. The technique has much potential for exploring the timing and magnitude of pr-industrial metallurgy in the New World.

New technology has facilitated the study of ancient architecture. Paradoxically, it is a traditional model and sketches that provide fresh insights about Preceramic ceremonial construction in the highlands. This paper discusses the need to studying architecture in its three dimensions, by using either traditional or computer-assisted modeling, because Xs and Ys are not enough to convey full information about architectural objects which have by definition an important Z dimension. At Kotosh Mito, the rendering of volume reveals that the sanctuary was built following a structural step-motif design. Incorporating attention to other early sites, issues of monumentality, scale and construction techniques will be discussed in relationship with built forms.

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