Monumentality and Social Complexity in the Ecuadorian Upper Amazon: Mound Builders in the Upano Valley, Ecuador

Summary

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2019: General Sessions" session, at the 84th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

The Upper amazon frequently was conceived as a transitional area where social development was limited for the scarce resources and the harsh environmental conditions. In the last decades studies in the ceja de selva, pie de monte and the upper amazon reveal that this region hosted an intense cultural development. Wide discussions in the academic forums contribute with new data to understand the emergence of complexity in this area. Precisely, the Upano Valley, in the upper Amazon of Ecuador, present archaeological evidence of a unique systematic space organization and landscaping strategies. Between 400 BC and 400 AD the valley was drastically modified by Upano culture, demonstrating that, the region can support the development of complex, densely populated, and highly organized settlements. This paper discuss the emergence of a complex socio-political system and the tangible effects of the landscape modification in the upper amazon of Ecuador.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 84th Annual Meeting, Albuquerque, NM (2019)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 25483