South America (Geographic Keyword)
501-525 (1,326 Records)
Long-Term Coupled Socioecological Change in the American Southwest and Northern Mexico: Each generation transforms an inherited social and environmental world and leaves it as a legacy to succeeding generations. Long-term interactions among social and ecological processes give rise to complex dynamics on multiple temporal and spatial scales – cycles of change followed by relative stasis, followed by change. Within the cycles are understandable patterns and irreducible uncertainties; neither...
Genetic Structure of a Tribal Population: the Yaonmamo Indians (1974)
This resource is a citation record only, the Center for Digital Antiquity does not have a copy of this document. The information in this record has been migrated into tDAR from the National Archaeological Database Reports Module (NADB-R) and updated. Most NADB-R records consist of a document citation and other metadata but do not have the documents themselves uploaded. If you have a digital copy of the document and would like to have it curated in tDAR, please contact us at comments@tdar.org.
Geoarchaeological approaches: Assessing the formation and preservation of a Late Pleistocene Drowned terrestrial site on the Pacific coast of South America (Chile) (2015)
GNL Quintero 1 (GNLQ1) is a Late Pleistocene paleontological submerged site located in Quintero Bay (32º46’S), ~50 km north of Valparaíso, on the Pacific coast of Central Chile. We describe the geoarchaeological approach applied by combining geomorphological, bathymetrical, sedimentological and paleontological data with a digital simulation model. The resulting evidence indicates that the unit containing the extinct bone assemblage (Unit 2) was deposited in a low-energy fluvial sedimentary...
Geochemical Characterization and Archaeological Utilization of the Cerro Kaskio Obsidian Source in Southwestern Bolivia (2017)
Obsidian is not only an excellent raw material for the manufacture of stone tools but because of its compositional homogeneity, it can also be related to specific geographic sources. The geochemical characterization of obsidian sources can help to determine the geographic origin of different stone tools as well as aid to infer patterns of resource utilization and exchange. Although some of the most important obsidian sources in the Andes have been identified and adequately characterized, many...
A Geochemical Database for Indigeneous Ceramics from South America (2017)
The indigenous peoples of South America have been producing pottery for more than 7,500 years. Pottery was made into vessels for the cooking and storage of foods, funerary urns, toys, sculptures, and a wide range of art forms. Due to the regional differences in the composition of raw materials used to manufacture and decorate pottery, geochemical investigations of pottery have proven successful for studying trade and exchange, changes in technology, provenance, etc. Some of the methods used to...
Geochemical Evidence for Pigment Sources from El Purgatorio, Peru (2016)
Portable X-ray fluorescence was used to analyze raw pigments as well as paints on ceramics and adobes found at El Purgatorio, the capital city of the Casma state. This analysis showed that, in addition to the common red ochre found in the area, cinnabar was also present. This mercurial compound has a distinctive fluorescence and is not common to area, supporting Casma participation in long distance exchange networks. Further analyses showed manganese present in black paints and calcium in the...
Geographic origin of sacrificed camelids at Huanchaquito (Chimú period, northern coast of Peru): insight from stable isotopic analysis (2017)
Excavations at the Chimú site of Huanchaquito located in the Moche Valley (northern coast of Peru) leaded to the discovery of an exceptional sacrificial deposit of more than 200 domestic camelid skeletons. This finding adds to the many testimonies of the presence of camelids on the Peruvian coast during the pre-Hispanic era. The abundant presence of animals suggests - but does not bring definitive evidence - that breeding took place locally in an unfavorable arid environment. Measurements of...
The geographical distribution of the Amazonian Dark Earths in the Lower Amazon (2016)
The geographical distribution of the Amazonian Dark Earths (ADE) in the Amazon region presents interpretive gaps. Understanding their distribution patterns might reveal the dynamics of indigenous settlements during pre-colonial times, as well as landscape management practices, and chronology. In the Upper Xingu, the distribution of ADE indicates that the smaller satellite villages were interconnected by roads to a larger village center. Santarém and Belterra regions, in the Lower Amazon, ADE...
A geometric morphometric analysis of cranial vault modification in Ancash, Peru (2016)
Cranial vault modification is a cultural practice used throughout much of the Andes and study of body modifications is a powerful tool for understanding group identity, social structure, and status. Different modification types have been found in the prehistoric Ancash region of north-central Peru, although the significance of this practice has yet to be further explored in the area. As cranial modifications are variable by nature, quantitative assessment of different vault shapes allows for the...
Geospatial archaeology and architecture in the Andes (2015)
Emerging geospatial technologies have been applied to archaeological research problems in the Andean region by many researchers and this paper will provide a regional review of these contributions to architectural studies. Aerial remote sensing, both at regional and local scales, geophysical sensing, and mapping technologies like laser scanners and photogrammetry have enabled Andeanists to document architecture and construction features with new precision. Advances in geospatial software has...
Getting Creative with Photogrammetry: Adventures in Dos Mangas, Ecuador (2024)
This is an abstract from the "SAA 2024: Individual Abstracts" session, at the 89th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. Photogrammetry, the science of converting two-dimensional images into immersive 3D models, traditionally adheres to a strict set of guidelines and specialized tools. However, this poster explores the spirited realm of photogrammetry with rule bending and limits to achieve success in Dos Mangas, Ecuador. In this resource-constrained setting, innovators...
Gifts of the Cayman: Some Thoughts On the Subsistence Basis of Chavin. in Variation In Anthropoology: Essays In Honor of John C. McGregor (1973)
This resource is a citation record only, the Center for Digital Antiquity does not have a copy of this document. The information in this record has been migrated into tDAR from the National Archaeological Database Reports Module (NADB-R) and updated. Most NADB-R records consist of a document citation and other metadata but do not have the documents themselves uploaded. If you have a digital copy of the document and would like to have it curated in tDAR, please contact us at comments@tdar.org.
A GIS Analysis of Production Areas, Ritual Spaces, and Socioeconomics at the Mixed Inka-Local Administrative Center of Turi, Northern Chile (2017)
While anthropologists are often concerned with profiling the socioeconomic character of the cultures they study, this task can be challenging for archaeological researchers investigating long-abandoned settlements. Intrasite socioeconomic reconstructions in particular may depend upon such factors as the accurate detection of specific production activities and the partitioning of architectural features into socially informative categories. This paper presents a case study on this topic wherein...
GIS and Drones in the Middle Moche Valley: an Analysis of Huaca Menocucho (2017)
Huaca Menocucho is a prehistoric monumental center located in the middle Moche Valley on the northern coast of Peru. The site shows evidence of several construction and occupation phases of the Moche Valley cultural sequence (Prieto & Maquera, 2015). Huaca Menocucho and the surrounding area have faced looting and destruction from several sources. In July 2016, MOCHE, Inc. conducted a drone survey combined with a systematic surface artifact survey to record information about activities and...
A GIS of Movement and Sensory Experience at a Planned Colonial Town in Highland Peru (2016)
GIS in archaeology has diversified beyond its origins as a map-and-database and predictive modeling tool to explore multidimensional views of human experience in the past. This paper combines models of movement and visibility at the scale of a single settlement to render an approximation of sensory experience within the built environment of a planned colonial town in highland Peru. In the 1570s, some 1.5 million native Andeans were forcibly resettled to “reduction towns” (reducciones) based on a...
A Glance at Camata: GIS Analyses of Camata Valley, Bolivia (2015)
Although significant research has been accomplished on the Inka Empire, there are still questions about how the Inka integrated diverse people and lands, especially those regions near their imperial frontier, such as the Camata Valley. Understanding how the valley became part of the Inka imperial frontier will shed light into studies of colonialism, borderlands, landscapes, and imperialism. The goal of this poster is to explore patterns across the landscape of the Camata Valley. More...
A Glimpse of Domestic Space at Tenahaha from the Cotahuasi Valley, Peru (2016)
In the field seasons of 2004-2007 Justin Jennings and his field crew conducted archaeological excavations at the Middle Horizon (600-1100A.D.) site of Tenahaha in the Cothuasi Valley of the Peruvian Andes. During 2013-2014 floatation samples from the site were analyzed in the Archaeology Laboratory at the University of South Dakota. The Tenahaha site contained five domestic areas from which macrobotanical data was collected and interpreted. It is believed that the Tenahaha necropolis was only...
"Good to Eat and Good to Think": Interpreting the Role of Plants in the Tiwanaku Temple of Omo M10, Moquegua, Peru (2015)
Much is known nowadays about the role of plants in Tiwanaku households and political economy, yet, their function in ceremonial contexts is still unclear. Unlike the state's heartland in the Bolivian altiplano, where preservation conditions are not always favorable for the systematic recovery of paleobotanical remains, excavations of Tiwanaku sites in the hyper-arid environment of the Moquegua valley in southern Peru have resulted in the recovery of a wide array of ancient organic finds,...
Goods that moved between the forest and the highland Andes in the Inca state.The eastern valleys of north Argentina (2015)
The eastern valleys of the Cordillera Oriental, in north Salta, Argentina, were a sector of the eastern frontier of Tawantinsuyu. We proposed that the Inca created a state enclave with mining-metallurgical goals in that sector. To accomplish this, populations (mitmaqkuna) were moved from other parts of the empire, which required the implementation of a significant agrarian system to support them. These valleys may have been producing goods of great value that might have comprised a single...
Ground-Penetrating Radar and Topographic Correction Using Ground-Based Photogrammetry at the Late Archaic Ceremonial Site of Caballete (Fortaleza Valley, Peru) (2016)
Caballete is a Late Archaic (3000-1800 B.C.) ceremonial site located in the Fortaleza Valley of Peru. In 2015, a focused archaeo-geophysical survey was conducted as a pilot effort to determine the utility of ground-penetrating radar (GPR) and magnetometry in locating subsurface features at the site. The Caballete survey included approximately 1.5 ha of targeted GPR and a smaller magnetometry survey across the 400 ha site. The site features six platform mounds ranging from approximately 5 to 17 m...
Guaporé River: Shell mounds, earthworks and the explanation of the archaeological record (2015)
Localized in the Amazon Southwest, the Guaporé River defines the border between Brazil and Bolívia, being a significant route of movement of goods, values and ideas since ancient times. This is attested by the occurrence of diferent archaeological sites (shell monds, geogliphs, ceramics associated to terra preta, rock art) that occurs since 8,000 BP to colonial times, historical evidence from colonial documents, linguistic and ethnological information, and hypotheses raised by anthropology. In...
Harbor Archaeology in Sergipe: Initial Results and Considerations (2016)
In this poster, we intend to discuss some results achieved by the project Harbor Archaeology in Sergipe: inventory and contextualization of structures, developed in the Federal University of Sergipe. We will highlight the remnants and structures identified along the Sergipe River, as well as shipwrecks that have been found in Real and in São Francisco Rivers, both bordering the state of Sergipe. The main goal of this project is to stablish the foundations for the development of a systematic...
he Inca Incorporation of the Canete Valley, Part 2: Strategies and Responses, excavations at Huaca Daris (2015)
Field research by the Canete Archaeological Project (CAP) has begun to unveil rich data regarding the Inca incorporation of the Middle and Lower Canete Valley. Utilizing both systematic survey and excavations, our work suggests a complex but intensive interaction between the Inca and those who occupied the valley before them. In this paper, we begin to tease out the imperial strategies of incorporation and local responses to them. SAA 2015 abstracts made available in tDAR courtesy of the...
The Head as the Seat of the Soul: A Medium for Spiritual Reciprocity in the Early Andes (2016)
There are many visual representations spanning the different time periods of the ancient Andes, and corroborated by historic accounts, that point to man’s spiritual essence as residing in the head, and more specifically, head hair. These examples suggest that this power was transferable and maintained the reciprocal balance between men, and the earthly and supernatural realm. This presentation briefly discusses the human head and hair in Andean belief as a conduit for the flow of spiritual power...
Head Motifs on Cupisnique Style Ceramics: Emblems of Cultural Identity in Early Andean Art (2015)
The term "Cupisnique" is applied to the culture and artifacts found in the Cupisnique ravine located between the Jequetepeque and Chicama valleys of northern Peru. Most Cupisnique-style ceramics were created between approximately 1200 and 200 BCE. These artifacts are characterized by stirrup spouts, dark black or brown hues, and engraved head motifs on well-polished surfaces. Previous scholars have emphasized religious interpretations of these ceramics, arguing that Cupisnique head motifs depict...