Rock art in the construction of social space in the Parguaza River, Venezuela

Summary

The rock paintings of the Parguaza River form part of a tradition that extends back thousands of years. We can only speculate on why the paintings were made, who made them, or what their original meaning may have been. However, rock art provides an excellent index of the symbolic world of the peoples who settled the area, as manifested in different traditions. Local belief systems refer to ancestral territorial ties, and the mythical and ritual significance of mountains, caves, and rock art manifestations. These ethnographic sources can be used to advance ideas about the significance of rock art, as they illustrate the role of rock paintings in ritual activities used to mark the territory of an exclusive and potentially endogamous network of communities. In an attempt to understand the role of rock art in the production of social space, we will examine local toponyms, ceremonies, and myths, referring to different natural and cultural features of the territory including accounts of the elaboration of rock art. Panels painted in superimposed layers and styles may have served to establish cultural ties to the landscape; these were reinforced through re-utilization by successive populations prior to and beyond the time of European contact.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 81st Annual Meeting, Orlando, FL (2016)   •
• Rock Art and Sacred Spaces: Recent Approaches to the Study of Ritual Landscapes

Keywords

Spatial Coverage