Abstract
Andeanist archaeologists have the opportunity to participate in the development of an historical anthropology (Lightfoot 1995) in which archaeological research on the post-conquest era connects the prehispanic past with the present. This essay seeks to contribute to this type of archeology by examining data produced by the Archaeological Project Porco - Potosi in investigating Porco, a mining center in Bolivia, 35 km southwest of Potosi, whose main objective is to investigate the organization of silver production under the different political and economic systems that have characterized the region. Mining has been important in Porco since the Inka era, when it provided silver to adorn the Koricancha in Cusco. It continues today in the form of zinc mining carried out by an international company, Sinchi Wayra, and several local cooperatives. The archaeological record in Porco can thus inform us of continuities and changes in mining activities over the past 500 years. In addition to the Spanish conquest, another important historical rupture in Porco’s mining industry occurred in the late nineteenth century, when tin and zinc mining funded by foreign enterprises replaced the former system of silver extraction by forced labor. Despite fundamental differences between the two forms of production, archaeological survey and excavations carried out by the project indicate that both systems were characterized by k’aqcheo – the “theft” of high quality ore - associated with small-scale silver production using technology such as the native huayrachina. In contrast to mining in the United States and other wealthy countries, the ongoing process of development in Bolivia in the mining sector is not a unilinear march towards “modern” industry, but a series of complicated interactions between companies and miners involving both competition and interdependence.
Highlights
MARY VAN BUREN the past 500 years
In addition to the Spanish conquest, another important historical rupture in Porco’s mining industry occurred in the late nineteenth century, when tin and zinc mining funded by foreign enterprises replaced the former system of silver extraction by forced labor
Despite fundamental differences between the two forms of production, archaeological survey and excavations carried out by the project indicate that both systems were characterized by k’aqcheo - the “theft” of high quality ore - associated with small-scale silver production using technology such as the native huayrachina
Summary
La arqueología histórica se encuentra en el umbral de emerger como una importante subcategoría dentro de la arqueología andina, tal como lo demuestran claramente los capítulos de este volumen. Espero que una consecuencia de este naciente interés en la arqueología de la región se traduzca en el desarrollo de una antropología histórica multidisciplinaria, que promueva un entendimiento holístico del cambio social a largo plazo, un entendimiento que conecte el pasado con el presente. Este capítulo empieza considerando el potencial especial que la arqueología histórica tiene en los Andes, así como algunos retos que se asocian a ella. Partiendo de mi investigación sobre la producción de metal en Porco (Bolivia), proporciono luego un ejemplo de cómo la investigación del cambio a largo plazo puede dilucidar las condiciones actuales, en este caso, el cisma económico y político entre los productores de gran y pequeña escala. El capítulo finaliza con una muy breve discusión sobre la utilidad de hacer comparaciones transculturales de las trayectorias específicas analizadas por los arqueólogos históricos
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