Enduring Traditions, Material Transformations: Understanding Wari State Influence in Highland Ancash, Peru

Summary

Scholars have debated the nature of Wari state expansion during the Middle Horizon in north-central Peru for decades, suggesting both top-down imperialism and local resistance. While our paper does not aim to resolve this issue, we put previously reported datasets into conversation to examine both social change and cultural resilience in the Middle Horizon (MH). We draw on ceramic and mortuary evidence from the Callejón de Huaylas region of highland Ancash and identify the incorporation of a "Wari international identity" into local practices, embedded in previously developed Recuay (Early Intermediate Period) traditions. Specifically, we question the nature of Wari statecraft and extent of ideological influence by contextualizing changes in material culture within traditions and practices that endured during the MH. We end our discussion with an overview of findings from the 2017 excavation season at the Recuay site of Jecosh, situating results within a broader regional context. Jecosh offers an ideal case study to examine Wari presence in the region due to its strategic location along important trade routes. Although the Recuay kaolin ceramic tradition faded during the MH, certain cultural practices continued, suggesting resilience via syncretism and the development of new social and economic relationships with foreign groups.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 83rd Annual Meeting, Washington, DC (2018)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 20534