Managing Mayhem: Conflict, Environment, and Subsistence in the Andean Late Intermediate Period, Puno, Peru

Abstract

Warfare profoundly shaped the trajectory of life in the Lake Titicaca Basin, Peru, during the Late Intermediate Period (1100–1450 C.E.). A long drought and new social tensions amplified subsistence stresses for LIP peoples. Recent archaeological research at Ayawiri, one of the largest fortresses in the western Titicaca Basin, has allowed us to investigate different strategies for mitigating risk prioritized during the LIP. Integrating paleoethnobotanical data, spatial analysis, and other archaeological findings, we elicit risk management strategies employed by agropastoral residents of Ayawiri during the Late Intermediate Period. Our preliminary results indicate that the threat of attack was an overriding concern to the people of Ayawiri, influencing their decisions to prioritize safety at the expense of increasing environmental risks and local social stress. Finally, we offer general insight into the context of trade-offs people made between social and environmental risks in their production and consumption of food.