Form is Emptiness, Emptiness is Form: Reimagining the Pyramids at Cochasquí, Ecuador

Summary

The archaeological site of Cochasquí, located north of Quito in the Ecuadorean highlands, has long been defined by its massive quadrangular pyramids with extended entry ramps. When Max Uhle arrived on site in 1932 he focused his excavations on the largest of the fifteen known pyramids. Uhle’s work laid the foundations for the interpretations and the chronology of the site, which are still applied today. Archaeologist Udo Oberem conducted the most extensive excavations on site between 1964 and 1965, dating the occupation of the site from 950 AD to 1500 AD. Oberem’s publications over his work have been considered the authoritative source on the composition of the pyramids at Cochasquí. Until recently, no excavations or reinterpretations of the site had taken place since the time of Oberem. In 2016, the Proyecto Arqueológico Cochasquí-Mojanda was created to place the archaeological site within a regional context and reexamine the deep-rooted conceptions of the site. While the pyramids are often thought of as being constructed in a uniform architectural style, recent analysis has indicated evidence of differing forms, construction techniques, and cultural associations which may hint at the intended function of the site’s most dominating and well-known structures.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Northern South America II: Mobility, Landscapes, and Socialscapes   •
• Society for American Archaeology 82nd Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC (2017)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 16653