Continuity and Interaction along the Eastern Edge of the Andes during the Central Andean Early Intermediate Period

Abstract

The centuries following the decline of the Chavín and Chorrera cultures are thought to represent a period of balkanization and (eventual) regionalization throughout much of the Central and Northern Andean coastal and highland valleys as previously established interregional exchange networks were discarded in favor of localized self-sufficiency. However, recent archaeological data from the site of Huayurco in the Jaén region of the northeastern Peruvian Andes suggests that certain areas of the ceja de selva avoided this cultural disruption, experiencing only gradual changes in material culture while continuing to engage in long-distance interaction with the coast and highlands throughout the Central Andean Early Intermediate Period (EIP). Through a diachronic comparison of the Huayurco data to artifact assemblages from the ceja de selva and Ecuadorian highlands, this chapter examines the nature of EIP cultural developments in the ceja de selva and their relationship to contemporary processes in the Transitional Zone between Peru and Ecuador.