Results of Survey and Preliminary Analysis of Manteño Archaeological Sites with Stone Structures in the Las Tusas River Valley, Rio Blanco, Ecuador

Summary

This poster presents information on the Manteño occupation (1500 BP – 1532) of the cloud forest within the Chongón-Colonche Mountains of coastal Ecuador. Survey and data recovered from eight archaeological sites containing stone structures located alongside Las Tusas River drainage suggest a specific mode of adaptation and settlement pattern that left a particular landscape signature. The survey was conducted by the Florida Atlantic University Archaeological Fieldschool in Ecuador during the summer of 2015. The data reveals a pattern of maximized use of restricted living spaces in such rugged terrain. At least one of the investigated sites displays a concentration of twenty-two structures, indicating a semi-urban settlement design. Previous investigations suggest that the Manteño articulated a diversity of environments characterized by the presence of sustainable human settlements across the region. Therefore, results of this investigation will contribute to a larger discussion of Manteño socio-political organization.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 81st Annual Meeting, Orlando, FL (2016)

Keywords

Spatial Coverage