Peopling the Cañete valley circa AD 600: A view from Cerro de Oro

Abstract

Recent archaeological research in the lower Cañete valley shows that most of its current irrigation system may have been constructed circa AD 600, in relationship to the a series of small settlements along the valley and particularly, with a large urban settlement located at the far north end of the valley, 13 km from the Cañete River. Evidence from this settlement – Cerro de Oro – shows that a large population migrated to the site around AD 600 and started a large construction project that developed into a complex urban settlement in less than 50 years. This study follows several lines of evidence, mainly archaeological and ethnohistorical, in order to shed light on the construction of Cerro de Oro, its population and how they procured and processed their food, as well as its relationship to the development of the valley irrigation system. As a secondary objective, this study uses this information to explore whether climatological events such as floods may have played a role in the migration to the site.