Late Intermediate Period Research Articles

Life History and Origin of the Camelids Provisioning a Mass Killing Sacrifice During the Chimú Period: Insight from Stable Isotopes

ABSTRACT The site of Huanchaquito-Las Llamas, situated in the Moche Valley, Peru, dated to the Late Intermediate Period (AD 1100-1470), represents a single event mass killing of children and domestic camelids of the Chimu society. Reconstruction of the life histories of 82 camelid individuals based on stable isotope analysis of bone collagen indicates that they originated from the lowlands. Isotopic inter-individual variability indicates diversity in dietary sources, consisting of wild plants and cultigens, grown in water-limited and non-water-limited conditions, as well as a large proportion of C4 plants, suggesting that the animals originated from various herds that were differently managed. In contrast, uniformity in terms of restricted coat colour and young age could suggest that the animals derived from specialised herds. It is possible that the requirement in a short period of time for a massive number of animals meeting certain criteria exceeded the capacity of these herds. This study presents the largest isotopic dataset measured at a single pre-Hispanic site so far and the first to record herding practices for the Chimú society. Comparison with previous isotopic datasets shows differences between ritual and non-ritual groups, as well as diversity in pastoralism practises through time in the Central Andes.

Pucarani: Building a Pukara in the Peruvian Lake Titicaca Basin (ad 1400-1490)

Fortifications are special kinds of public construction projects because they must be erected before enemies attack. Thus, their design and construction reflect the coordination and cooperation of multiple segments of society under time pressure. In this article, we analyze the fortifications at Pucarani, a large hillfort in the Northern Titicaca Basin, to help understand the specifics of how fortifications were built in this region during the Late Intermediate Period.

Building ecological resistance: Late intermediate period farming in the south-central highland Andes (CE 1100–1450)

In southern Peru near Lake Titicaca, at the Colla hillfort town of Ayawiri, archaeological data indicate that the construction of a large terrace complex and the production of agricultural staples were managed in a decentralized manner. The layout and engineering qualities of the terraces surrounding Ayawiri reveal that the construction, maintenance, and cultivation of these systems was managed through household labor rather than a central political authority. This agrarian landscape and labor regime provided households with what I term ecological resistance—human modifications to ecosystems that provide individuals with the capacity to resist the establishment of hierarchical authority and subjugation by imperial powers. The built agricultural landscape and accompanying agrarian labor regimes made the Colla difficult to subjugate by neighboring enemies and in the 15th century, when Inka forces attempted to conquer and incorporate the Colla into their empire. The Colla were only successfully integrated into the Inka Empire after the Inka employed their own ecological tactics. This case study provides key insights into the ways that humans modify their environment to build and perpetuate ecological resistance.

Prehistoric polydactylism: Biological evidence and rock art representation from the Atacama Desert in northern Chile

A review of the bioarchaeological collections from the site Morro de Arica in northern Chile allowed the identification of two cases of human polydactyly. Both cases are from the Chinchorro culture, hunters, fishers, and gatherers with a maritime orientation who inhabited the coast of the Atacama Desert (9000–3400 BP). Additionally, the analyses of 75 rock art sites in the area, from the Formative to Late Intermediate Periods (3000–550 BP), allowed the identification of hands and feet with six digits. Given the bioarchaeological record of polydactyly, it is highly probable that the rock art images were based on real individuals with polydactyly. However, the Sr chemical signal in a juvenile with polydactyly is the same as the Sr chemical signal in the rest of the individuals buried in the same site, proving that all the individuals were born and lived on the coast. We discuss the idea that, although these anomalies could have been the result of genetic mutations, endogamy and exposition to ecotoxic environments could also be at play within the Chinchorro groups.

Open sepulchers and closed boundaries? Biodistance analysis of cemetery structure and postmarital residence in the late prehispanic Andes.

In the Late Intermediate Period Andes (AD 1100-1450), the proliferation of above-ground sepulchers reconfigured social boundaries within and between communities engaged in protracted conflict. However, the biosocial dimensions of these mortuary practices, and their implications for conflict and alliance formation, remain unexplored. This study examines patterns of phenotypic variation to: (1) evaluate if open sepulchers were organized on the basis of biological relatedness, and (2) explore if sex-specific phenotypic variability conforms to models of postmarital residence. Cranial nonmetric traits were recorded in five skeletal samples from two cemeteries in the Colca Valley, Peru. Biological distances between burial groups were calculated using the Mean Measure of Divergence (MMD) statistic. Postmarital residence was explored by calculating and bootstrapping the ratio of male-to-female mean pairwise differences (MPD) at the within-group level. The MMD analysis yields greater than expected between-group distances for burial groups with a minimum sample size of 20 individuals. In contrast, a prevailing pattern of sex-specific, within-group phenotypic variability is not apparent from the analysis of MPD. The use of 12 or 24 dichotomous traits produces similar results. Greater than expected biological distances suggest that above-ground mortuary practices reinforced biosocial boundaries between corporate household groups. Intracemetery heterogeneity persisted even as cranial vault modification, a correlate of social identity, became more homogenous, revealing how corporate group organization was negotiated at multiple scales. Sex-specific variation does not conform to traditional migration models. If migration occurred, it did not have a homogenizing effect on phenotypic variation. These results should be viewed with caution in light of the smaller sample sizes of sex-specific groupings.

Mobility in the Atacama Desert, northern Chile, in the Late Intermediate Period (AD 900–1450): A re-evaluation using stable isotope analysis

Research on the Late Intermediate Period (AD 900–1450) in northern Chile has been strongly influenced by two mobility models: John Murra's classic vertical ecological archipelago model, with highland colonies in the lowlands; and the gyratory mobility model, with pastoralists and their llama caravans controlling trade. The widespread application of these two models, however, suffers from a lack of supporting archaeological evidence. Stable isotope analysis provides a more direct approach for studying both diet and mobility patterns, complementing material culture studies. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the presence of colonies and/or specialised highland caravans in the lowlands of northern Chile through the application of δ13C, δ15N and δ18O to human tooth enamel, bone collagen and bone apatite. The results show strong local traditions in terms of diet and mobility associated with the Loa-San Pedro, Antofagasta and Pica-Tarapacá cultural groups. Our results suggest a non-local origin for some individuals in Pica-Tarapacá and Loa-San Pedro, but provide little evidence to support either the presence of ‘colonies’ or of specialised ‘caravans’. Mobility patterns were, instead, diverse and flexible, including female and male individuals that moved at different moments of their lives.

Doubts about How the Middle Horizon Collapsed (ca. A.D. 1000) and Other Insights from the Looted Cemeteries of the Lower Ica Valley, South Coast of Peru

ABSTRACTThis paper presents new information from funerary contexts in the lower Ica Valley, on the south coast of Peru, spanning two millennia from the end of the Early Horizon to the Late Intermediate Period. Although severely looted, these sites can still yield valuable information. We discuss their architecture and material culture in the context of radiocarbon dates. Among other findings, these cast new light on the poorly understood transition from the Middle Horizon to the Late Intermediate Period, for which a paucity of archaeological data from ca. a.d. 1000–1250 has long been taken as evidence of an environmentally- or socially-induced demographic collapse. Yet the data we present here suggest that the basins of the lower Ica Valley were likely occupied continuously over this period, and that the echoes of Wari influence here may have lasted longer than previously thought.

Morphological analysis of Late Pre-Hispanic Peruvian Chenopodium spp.

Archaeologists measure features in archaeological seeds primarily to document domestication during the Neolithic period. These same methods are less frequently used to study morphological changes associated with cultural selection of landraces later in time. For example, researchers have documented domesticated forms of chenopods during the Formative period in the Andes, yet there remains very little research on postliminary chenopod morphology. In this study, I use techniques developed to understand domestication, including scanning electron microscopy, to analyse charred archaeological Chenopodium spp. seeds recovered from the site Ayawiri located near Puno, Peru and dated to the Late Intermediate period (ad 1100–1450), almost 4,000 years after incipient domestication of quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa). I found that this assemblage of chenopod seeds does not morphologically conform to modern varieties. Rather, these seeds are smaller than their modern counterparts. These findings indicate there was appreciable cultural selection of larger chenopod seed stock over the last 550 years.

A multidirectional model for studying mobility affordance of past landscapes

This paper presents an approach to modeling human mobility across regional landscapes that considers all possible directions of travel in order to generate a continuous surface of movement probability. The approach improves upon models of human movement that rely on calculating travel costs between discrete points on the landscape by providing a way to examine how landscape features shape the potential for movement. I show how this method can be used to examine questions of mobility affordance, and the consequences for understanding how humans experienced past landscapes. To demonstrate the usefulness of this approach, I apply the methodology to examine the use of hilltop fortifications for controlling mobility during the Late Intermediate Period (1000–1450 CE) in the Colca Valley of the southern Peruvian highlands.

Understanding the Past Through Indigenous Knowledge and Archaeological Research

This article is the product of an intercultural archaeological project which main goal and praxis is to promote and empower indigenous voices and knowledge in contemporary Argentina, in a context of re-emergence of indigenous identities and organizations after decades of invisibilization and denial. Here we explore the past by combining two sources of knowledge: the archaeological one (with its theories and methods) and the indigenous knowledge (based on a non-Western ontology and informed by oral traditions, cosmological observations, practical know-hows, and the experience acquired by dwelling in the indigenous territory). To accomplish this task, the graphic representations that the Diaguita communities of the North Calchaqui Valley (Argentina) painted on their pots and engraved on rocks during the late intermediate period (AD 1000-1450) is examined and discussed. We claim that analysing prehistoric material culture from these two perspectives and sources of knowledge allows the production of richer, plural, and better-informed narratives of the past.

Pica 8: Refining dietary reconstruction through amino acid δ13C analysis of tendon collagen and hair keratin

Stable isotope analysis of archaeological human remains is routinely applied to explore dietary habits and mobility patterns. The isotope information pertaining to the period prior to death may help in identifying locals and non-locals, especially when investigating individuals from the same funerary context but believed to have been highly mobile across the landscape.Based on the variety of the funerary goods in graves and what it is believed their diets comprised, it is thought that both local and non-local individuals were buried at the inland funerary site of Pica 8 (northern Chile, Late Intermediate Period, ∼1050–500 BP); however, uncertainties over the dietary intakes and mobility histories of these individuals still persist. The aim of this study is to refine the dietary characterization of a subset of Pica 8 individuals by increasing the temporal resolution of their dietary reconstructions, specifically throughout the last period of their life, and by identifying the multiple sources of food in their overall diets. This is achieved by analysing the amino acid carbon isotope composition of hair keratin and, for the first time, that of tendon collagen.This study proposes a new method for identifying the predominant food source (terrestrial or marine) in a mixed diet using phenylalanine, valine and leucine δ13C values measured in collagenous tissues. Herein, tendon is proven to be an ideal tissue for isotopically characterising the final year of an individual's life. Our results show that individuals previously identified as non-locals, based on long-term food consumption, had in reality abandoned their original dietary habits typical of distant regions many months before death, and hence had presumably relocated to the locality of Pica.

Genetic ancestry of families of putative Inka descent

This study focuses on the descendants of the royal Inka family. The Inkas ruled Tawantinsuyu, the largest pre-Columbian empire in South America, which extended from southern Colombia to central Chile. The origin of the royal Inkas is currently unknown. While the mummies of the Inka rulers could have been informative, most were destroyed by Spaniards and the few remaining disappeared without a trace. Moreover, no genetic studies have been conducted on present-day descendants of the Inka rulers. In the present study, we analysed uniparental DNA markers in 18 individuals predominantly from the districts of San Sebastian and San Jerónimo in Cusco (Peru), who belong to 12 families of putative patrilineal descent of Inka rulers, according to documented registries. We used single-nucleotide polymorphisms and short tandem repeat (STR) markers of the Y chromosome (Y-STRs), as well as mitochondrial DNA D-loop sequences, to investigate the paternal and maternal descent of the 18 alleged Inka descendants. Two Q-M3* Y-STR clusters descending from different male founders were identified. The first cluster, named AWKI-1, was associated with five families (eight individuals). By contrast, the second cluster, named AWKI-2, was represented by a single individual; AWKI-2 was part of the Q-Z19483 sub-lineage that was likely associated with a recent male expansion in the Andes, which probably occurred during the Late Intermediate Period (1000–1450 AD), overlapping the Inka period. Concerning the maternal descent, different mtDNA lineages associated with each family were identified, suggesting a high maternal gene flow among Andean populations, probably due to changes in the last 1000 years.

Reconstructing diet and mobility using multi-isotopic analysis in Apurimac, Peru (~ AD 880–1260)

The unraveling of the Wari Empire circa AD 1000 is marked by violent political upheaval and climate change. Such social, economic, and environmental disruptions are often accompanied by significant shifts in human diet and mobility in affected populations. We examine diachronic change through isotopic analysis of human remains from an early burial site (Turpo; AD 880–990) and three later sites (Cachi, Ranracancha, and Pucullu; ~ AD 1100–1260), all from the Apurimac highlands of south central Peru. Carbon, oxygen, and strontium from tooth enamel are used to explore changes in diet and mobility in 43 sampled individuals. Due to the tumultuous transition and increased violence that occurred as Wari influence waned, we expect to see visible shifts in dietary and mobility patterns between individuals sampled from earlier and later sites. Specifically, we hypothesized that populations at later sites would exhibit a wider dietary spread, a more circumscribed use of water, and an increased degree of mobility as mechanisms for dealing with changing social, political, and environmental factors. These changes would also be reflected in individual isotope profiles, with the hypothesized changes at the later sites revealed through increased standard deviation of carbon isotope values, decreased standard deviation of oxygen isotope values, and the presence of outlier strontium isotope values, as compared with the values from the earlier site. Results support the argument that human diet and movement were affected by the political, social, and environmental upheavals that marked this key transition period in Andean history from the Middle Horizon (~ AD 600–1000) to the Late Intermediate Period (~ AD 1000–1450).

Ethnogenesis and Social Difference in the Andean Late Intermediate Period (AD 1100–1450): A Bioarchaeological Study of Cranial Modification in the Colca Valley, Peru

It has long been recognized that the Inka incorporated diverse peoples into their empire, but how these ethnic groups developed historically during the political upheaval of the preceding Late Intermediate Period (LIP; AD 1100–1450) is only now receiving commensurate attention. This study explores how changes in cranial modification, a correlate of embodied identity in the Andes, made possible new forms of political solidarity and social inequality in the late prehispanic Colca Valley. Bioarchaeological and radiometric data reveal a sharp rise in modification prevalence, from 39.2% (N = 97) during the early LIP (AD 1150–1300) to 73.7% (N = 114) during the late LIP (AD 1300–1450). Greater standardization of head-shaping practices echoes broader patterns of identity formation across the south-central highlands and may have provided a symbolic basis for the cooperation of elite groups during an era of intensive conflict. However, additional lines of archaeological and bioarchaeological data suggest that the ...

The Late Intermediate Period ceramic traditions of Ayacucho, Apurimac, and Huancavelica: current thoughts on the Chanca and other regional polities

This article serves to evaluate the Late Intermediate Period (LIP) and early Late Horizon Period (LH) ceramic traditions of Ayacucho, Apurimac, and Huancavelica, and provides an updated review of the pottery styles known across this area. It also provides a view of the implications of these data regarding the social, religious, and political structure of the polities active across this area. The article reviews the available ceramic data for the LIP Chanka tradition in Peru (AD 1000–1470) and develops a model for the development and interactions of the local ceramic styles from Ayacucho, Apurimac, and Huancavelica, and their temporal sequence. The Chancas and their allies were claimed by the Incas to have been instrumental in triggering the expansion of the Inca empire. The implications of the results of the research for current ethnohistoric models of the interactions between the Chanca polity and the Inca state have been examined and are presented.

Estudio del cálculo dental en poblaciones arqueológicas del extremo norte de Chile

Dental calculus and dental pathologies of 40 adults from 4 archaeological sites from the coastand valley of northern Chile were studied: MO 1/6, PLM-4, AZ-8 and CAM-9, analyzing 10individuals per site. In all of the dental calculus analyzed, phytolith and starches were found,except on the Late Archaic MO 1/6 site, which although did not present starch did presentphytoliths. These results are consistent with the macroscopical observation, where individualsbelonging to MO 1/6 site do not present dental cavities and generally have better dental healththan those individuals from the Late Intermediate and Late Period, both valley and the coastassociated with a mixed diet. Furthermore, a good concordance between grave goods plants andthe identified varieties in the dental calculus was observed in individuals from Late Intermediateand Late period sites.

Historia arquitectónica de Tarapacá: estrategias residenciales y formación de asentamientos, Siglos X AC a XVII DC (Andes Centro Sur)

This paper presents a regional synthesis of settlements and residential building patterns inTarapaca region, between Xth BC and XVIIth AD centuries. Distribution, variability andtransformations on sites plans and domestic space design shows a long-term process, where theformal patterns of the domestic structures reveal gradual or radical changes in the organizationor social structure of local communities during the Formative, Late Intermediate and Inca-Colonial period. Theoretical framework and settlement analysis allow us an inter-site perspectiveof pre-Hispanic architecture in areas of excellent material preservation, using a standardizedmethodology. The research points out the potential of systematic reading of domesticarchitecture´s behaviour to understand long term regional history in South-Central Andes.

New paleoparasitological investigations from the pre-inca to hispanic contact period in northern Chile

Paleoparasitological studies have demonstrated that changes in environment or culture are reflected in the patterns of parasitic infection diseases in populations worldwide. The advent of agriculture and animal domestication, with its accompanying reduction in human mobility and expanding population involves changes in or emergence of, parasites, the so-called first epidemiological transition. Cultural processes related to territory occupation contribute to both loss and acquisition of parasites. The archaeological site Lluta 57 in the Lluta Valley, Chile, provides a chronology of the transition from the pre-Inca or Late Intermediate Period (LIP), through the Late or Inca Period (LP), to the Hispanic Contact Period (HCP), providing the possibility of evaluating this epidemiological transition. The aim of this study was to conduct a paleoparasitological investigation of to gain insight into the dynamics of parasitism in Lluta people throughout the Inca expansion. Fourteen human coprolites from the three periods were rehydrated, submitted to spontaneous sedimentation, and examined by light microscopy for the presence of intestinal parasite eggs, pollen grains, and micro-remains. Eggs of four parasites: Enterobius vermicularis, Trichostrongylus sp., Trichuris sp., and Eimeria macusaniensis were recovered. Frequency, diversity, and number of parasite eggs per sample increased over the studied time period. Trichostrongylus sp. and E. macusaniensis were recorded in the region for the first time. Enterobius vermicularis eggs, absent in the LIP, were present as a hyper-infection in LP. The presence of E. macusaniensis is likely related to exploitation of llamas, which were used for food and transport and as sacrificial offerings. The paleobotanical analysis revealed ten families of pollen grains, as well as phytoliths and floral remains. In contrast to parasitological results, a diachronic pattern was not detected. Evolution of the settlements, with the advent of larger, more densely populated, villages, could have influenced the emergence and intensification of transmission of parasites in the region. The study showed that the Inca expansion influenced host-parasite-environment relationships in the Lluta Valley.

Dating the Ascope Canal System: Competition for Water during the Late Intermediate Period in the Chicama Valley, North Coast of Peru

ABSTRACTHere we present the first 14C ages for the Ascope Canal System (ACS), a large prehispanic hydraulic network in the Chicama Valley on the north coast of Peru. Composed of multiple alignments that irrigated areas north of the river, our results indicate that the ACS was constructed and operated in the Late Intermediate Period, ca. a.d. 1000–1400. This overlaps in time with the Chicama-Moche Intervalley Canal that diverted water on the south side of the Chicama River and extended to the city of Chan Chan. Conservative estimates of discharge capacity indicate that the combined flow through the canals would have exceeded stream flow in the Chicama River during half of the year. The ACS appears to have functioned for several centuries and would have been in direct competition with the Intervalley Canal. There was, apparently, insufficient water for both systems and other Chicama Valley canals during most of the year. This study underscores the complexities of understanding the operations and histories of irrigation systems in complex societies.

Rituals and abandonment in Juella with the Inca conquest of Humahuaca, Jujuy, Argentina

ABSTRACTThe opening and closing of spaces have been extensively documented at an ethnographic level in the Andes. In an archaeological context, though I have numerous examples, there are not many examples that testify to the abandonment of a particular enclosure or settlement. However, with research and fieldwork undertaken in Juella, Quebrada de Humahuaca, Jujuy Province, I have made a significant archaeological discovery – that of Enclosure 94 (R94), which includes a door closure, the interment of a foetus in the occupation floor, and the intentional burial of some goods. I consider this activity as part of an occupation that is restricted to the Late Intermediate Period (ad 1250–1450), that the material found and analyzed here is related to ritual and ceremonial activity of the closure and also the symbolic ‘death’ of this space. Based on radiocarbon dates obtained from this particular enclosure and its relationship to the overall site, I believe that this deposition is not only associated with the abandonment of the structure, but it is closely linked to the site at a time of the Inca conquest of the region.