San Pedro de Atacama

Este artículo analiza los efectos del colonialismo sobre las maneras en que las poblaciones subalternizadas plantean relaciones de alteridad con sus ancestros y con los vestigios arqueológicos de sus entornos. Desde una perspectiva que cuestiona la interpretación dicotómica y estructural dominante, que concebía estas lógicas de alteridad como producto de dinámicas comunitarias intrínsecas, este estudio visibiliza el rol central de las relaciones de poder históricamente específicas en su articulación. Para ello se comparan los casos del noroeste de la península ibérica, el altiplano boliviano y la región atacameña chilena, donde existen creencias animistas en mouros, chullpas, gentiles o abuelos, siempre asociados a vestigios arqueológicos, cuya existencia deriva de lógicas similares. Partiendo del proceso de despaganización en Europa y la extirpación de idolatrías en América, con la ruptura de la relación con los ancestros que implicaron, este artículo muestra cómo la modernidad ilustrada, el nacionalismo y el multiculturalismo contemporáneo han incidido en distintas configuraciones identitarias y nociones de ancestralidad en cada caso. La arqueología ha tenido un rol destacado en estos procesos, al subalternizar las construcciones locales de alteridad e intervenir en su patrimonialización. Abstract This paper analyzes the impact of colonialism on the ways in which subaltern populations establish relations of sameness and otherness with their ancestors and with archaeological vestiges in their surroundings. From a perspective that questions the dominant dichotomous and structural interpretation that conceived the logic of otherness as a product of intrinsic community dynamics, this study reveals the central role of historically specific power relations in the articulation of identity configurations. This is revealed in the comparative analysis of the northwest region of the Iberian Peninsula, the Bolivian highlands, and the Chilean Atacama region. The populations of the three regions present animistic beliefs in mouros, chullpas, gentiles and abuelos, which they associate with archaeological remains under a common logic. Starting with the Christian struggle against paganism in Europe and the extirpation of idolatry in America, this article demonstrates how enlightened modernity, nationalism and contemporary multiculturalism have led to different configurations of patterns of identity and alterity, as well as alternative notions of ancestry in each case. Archaeology has played a prominent role in these processes, subordinating local conceptions of otherness and partaking in their heritagisation.

The life-histories of gold artefacts can provide rich insight into technology and culture, but so far the potential of this research approach has not been exploited in the south central Andes. Here we present the analysis of 34 gold and silver objects from the Middle Period cemetery of Casa Parroquial (San Pedro de Atacama, northern Chile), using pXRF, SEM-EDS, PIXE and digital microscopy. Chemical analyses detected variable compositions (2.4-73.1 per cent Ag and 0.2-3.4 per cent Cu) suggesting that artisans used both native gold and artificial gold-silver-copper alloys. Based on their manufacturing techniques, quality and designs, we identify two working styles, one technically more 'careful' than the other. Given their elemental and technological variety, together with the lack of local production evidence, we propose that these artefacts were imported as finished objects from Tiwanaku or Cochabamba and northwest Argentina. However, we identify a series of objects that were modified or reshaped as they entered a new cultural context, revealing complex life-histories. Modifications used relatively simple mechanical means: punching, cutting and folding, most likely made in multi-craft contexts by non-metallurgists from San Pedro.

This paper critically analyses the traditional approaches for explaining the origins and development of Formative Period societies in the San Pedro de Atacama oasis. We evaluate the local formative process in the axes of the oases with Calar and Puripica, following the course of the Vilama River. We then propose an explanation that allows us to understand the Formative societies of the Puna Salada as well as their articulation to the intra- and inter- regional traffic of goods, which characterized the development of these societies' social complexity in the following periods. To build this model we establish a sequence for the Formative Period occupations, their absolute dates, and determine their nature as well as their incorporation into the caravan practices typical of San Pedro de Atacama.

Para los doctrineros, la asidua asistencia de los indios a las fiestas patronales, las dedicadas a otros santos y las demás funciones de iglesia, que se celebraban en las iglesias de las parroquias y anejos de los curatos de Atacama, fueron motivadas por el comercio más que por la devoción. Pero esta aproximación no permite comprender la proliferación de los lugares de culto que, junto a las iglesias, incluía a capillas y adoratorios (privados, públicos y clandestinos), altares improvisados, devociones, entre otros, que paliaron, en gran medida, la irregularidad que los feligreses tuvieron en el acceso al pasto espiritual.

Here we evaluate Bhattacharya et al.’s (2018) recent paper “Whole-genome sequencing of Atacama skeleton shows novel mutations linked with dysplasia” published in Genome Research. In this short report, we examine the hypothesis that the so-called “Atacama skeleton” has skeletal abnormalities indicative of dysplasia, critique the validity of the interpretations of disease based on genomic analyses, and comment on the ethics of research on this partially mummified human foetus. The current paper acts as a case study of the importance of using an anthropological approach for aDNA research on human remains. A critical evaluation of the ethically controversial paper by Bhattacharya et al. highlights how an understanding of skeletal biological processes, including normal and abnormal growth and development, taphonomic processes, environmental context, and close attention to ethical issues of dealing with human remains, is vital to scientific interpretations. To this end, close collaboration with palaeopathologists and local archaeologists through appropriate peer-reviewed journals will add to the rigour of scientific interpretation and circumvent misinterpretation.

From San Pedro de Atacama, Chile we examine the alleged relationship with Tiwanaku. Our investigation focuses on elaborate and plain textiles with associated ceramics and recent bio-archaeological data that allow us to question this relationship. We see a heterogeneous and unequal society in San Pedro rather than one that responds to a superior political entity and a culture born from a strong tension between dominant and subordinate groups. Discussing the funeral bundles discovered in Solcor-3 we characterize individuals who wear Tiwanaku textiles with their contextual associations and compare them to others who do not wear such textiles. Solcor-3 presents contexts with textiles of the styles of both Tiwanaku Provincial and Tiwanaku where stylish clothes indicate prestige goods within a local context. It appears that some individuals constitute a privileged group who maintain special relationships with others who moved these objects. The conclusions have lead us to understand that San Pedro society was living with strong tension and internal conflicts that emerged through some members who had long distance contacts and access to foreign resources. These data suggest two expressions of the same male power of shamans and caravanners, expressions that gestated for centuries creating what we know archaeologically as Culture San Pedro, but that says little about their daily lives. This vision denied the participation of other actors, such as women and people without exceptional offerings, all those who disappear in statistical calculations. The recognition of all actors who participated in the history of San Pedro will improve our understanding of local society and will help us to explain the change that occurred at the end of the Middle Period around 900 AD, which led to the Late Intermediate Period.