Temporalities of the Formative Period Taraco Peninsula, Bolivia

Abstract

Within the last 15 years archaeologists have developed a ‘dwelling’ perspective in studies of prehistoric landscapes. This research takes a critical approach to time, highlighting the temporality of practices in both daily life and longer-term processes. In this article I investigate temporalities of the Middle (800–200 BC) and Late Formative (200 BC–AD 500) periods on the Taraco Peninsula (Bolivia), drawing on data produced by the Taraco Archaeological Project. Particular attention is paid to long-term landscape tempos, place-making and the intertwined rhythms of technical practice. I end with a brief discussion of the temporal changes that correspond with the urbanization processes seen at the Middle Horizon (AD 500–950) center of Tiwanaku.