Palabras Andantes: Collaborative Story Mapping of Community Memories Using QField at Chupacoto in Huaylas, Peru

Summary

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2024: Individual Abstracts" session, at the 89th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

In 1970 a 7.9 magnitude earthquake destroyed many towns in the Callejón de Huaylas and displaced many families. Following the earthquake, elevated monumental archaeological sites in the region, such as Chupacoto in Huaylas, were occupied by families who continue living there today. As a result of these occurrences, tensions between various stakeholders arise. However, while Chupacoto appears to be a remnant of the past, it is a vibrant and active part of the Huaylas landscape today. In 2022, I documented memories and interpretations of Chupacoto with local community members using the QField phone application. QField allowed me to walk around Chupacoto with participants to map stories and memories in place around the archaeological site. The mapping was coupled with sit-down interviews with participants and highlighted Chupacoto as a place in the making with value and vitality in the present.

After documenting stories using QField, the Kawsay Pacha team conducted archaeological excavations at Chupacoto in 2023 to understand the relationship between architectural changes to the site and the broader landscape. Ultimately, this project intends to braid present-day local knowledge and memories of Chupacoto with archaeological and scientific findings about Chupacoto’s role as a ceremonial center in an environmentally active landscape.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• SAA 2024: Individual Abstracts   •
• Society for American Archaeology 89th Annual Meeting, New Orleans, LA (2024)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 40385.0