Bebel Ibarra

The archaeological study of mortuary variability is an important component of the examination of ancient sociopolitical organization. Tombs were spaces of negotiation, kinship formation and rituality. In the Central Andes of Peru, investigations of mortuary variation have focused on the study of cults of the dead, and ancestor veneration.

This presentation will show the results of my ongoing research at the site of Huamparán located 25 km north of Chavín de Huantar.  At Huamparán, several rhomboidal hearths were found in large rectangular enclosures that surround patio spaces. Ceramic and radiocarbon dating place their construction between the Early Intermediate Period and Middle Horizon. Comparisons with the Recuay occupation of Chavín de Huántar and Pashash indicate that this type of hearth is common at Recuay settlements in the north-central highlands.
The use of hearths has a long history in the central Andes (i.e.  Mito or Kotosh Religious Tradition).  Rhomboidal hearths like those from Huamparán are also present at Chavin de Huantar. Their presence at Huamparan raises the question: where did the Recuay people get this tradition?, Was it replicated in  from much earlier versions (i.e. Mito) and later used by people from Huamparán, or was it a local Recuay expression that spread to different parts of the north-central highlands??

Strontium isotope (87Sr/86Sr) analysis of human skeletal remains is an important method in archaeology to examine past human mobility and landscape use. 87Sr/86Sr signatures of a given location are largely determined by the underlying bedrock, and these geology specific isotope signatures are incorporated into skeletal tissue through food and water, often permitting the differentiation of local and non-local individuals in past human populations. This study presents the results of a systematic survey of modern flora and fauna (n = 100) from 14 locations to map the bioavailable 87Sr/86Sr signatures of the Conchucos region, an area where the extent of geologic variability was previously unknown. We illustrate the necessity to examine the variation in 87Sr/86Sr values of the different geological formations available to human land use to document the range of possible local 87Sr/86Sr values. Within the Conchucos region we found significant variation in environmental 87Sr/86Sr values (0....

Se desarrolla el concepto de identidad espiritual en los Andes centrales de comienzos del siglo XVII, el que surge a partir de la relación que se genera entre una comunidad y su ser protector, y de cómo dicha identidad espiritual constituye la base de la organización social al interior de una comunidad, así como a la vez, genera los principios de articula-ción de las etnicidades. Como una forma metodológica de abordar el tema, se proponen distintos niveles de identidad espiritual, dependiendo de la amplitud del grupo social involucrado, situación que conlleva a un proceso de identidades múltiples, inclusivas y complementarias.