Sources of Archaeological Obsidian in Peru: Descriptions and Geochemistry

Abstract

Use of obsidian in South America has been documented from about 13,000 years B.P. through the beginning of the Spanish Conquest. Several of the most archaeologically important sources of obsidian in South America are located in the Andes mountain region of southern Peru. Due to the difficult terrain and volatile political environment, the locations for many of these sources were unknown to archaeologists until quite recently. Neutron activation analysis and X-ray fluorescence have been used to measure the compositional patterns for individual sources. The comprehensive source database established by this work enables definitive and cost-effective assignments of provenance to obsidian artifacts from archaeological sites in Peru and northern Bolivia.