Tropical America (Archaeology)

Our recent data, collected using remotely sensed imagery and unmanned aerial vehicle surveys, reveal the extremely well-defined patterning of archaeological plaza villages in the Brazilian Acre state in terms of size, layout, chronology, and material culture. The villages comprise various earthen mounds arranged around central plazas and roads that radiate outward from, or converge on, the sites. The roads connected the villages situated 2-10 km from each other in eastern Acre. Our study attests to the existence of large, sedentary, interfluvial populations sharing the same sociocultural identities, as well as structured patterns of movement and spatial planning in relation to operative road networks during the late precolonial period. The plaza villages of Acre show similarity with the well-documented communities organized by road networks in the regions of the Upper Xingu and Llanos de Mojos. Taking into consideration ethnohistorical and ethnographic evidence, as well as the presence of comparable archaeological sites and earthwork features along the southern margin of Amazonia, we suggest that the plaza villages of Acre were linked by an interregional road network to other neighboring territories situated along the southern Amazonian rim and that movement along roads was the primary mode of human transport in Amazonian interfluves. Los recientes datos, recopilados por nosotros a través de prospecciones utilizando imágenes de sensores remotos y vehículos aéreos no tripulados (VANT), revelaron aldeas arqueológicas con plazas en el estado brasileño de Acre que destacan por pre-sentar patrones bien definidos en términos de tamaño, diseño, cronología y cultura material. Las aldeas comprenden varios mon-tículos de tierra dispuestos alrededor de plazas centrales y caminos que se proyectan o convergen desde o hacia los sitios. Los caminos conectaban las aldeas situadas a una distancia de 2 a 10 km entre sí en el este de Acre. Nuestro estudio atestigua la existencia de grandes poblaciones interfluviales sedentarias que comparten las mismas identidades socioculturales, así como patrones estructurados de movimiento y planificación espacial en relación con los sistemas operativos de redes viales durante el período pre-Colonial Tardío. Las aldeas con plazas de Acre muestran una similitud con comunidades bien documentadas orga-nizadas por redes de caminos en las regiones del Alto Xingu y los Llanos de Mojos. Teniendo en cuenta la evidencia etnohistórica y etnográfica, así como la presencia de sitios arqueológicos comparables, y características de movimiento de tierras a lo largo del margen sur de la Amazonía, sugerimos que las aldeas con plazas de Acre estaban conectadas a los territorios vecinos por una red de caminos interregionales situados a lo largo del borde sur de la Amazonía, y ese movimiento a lo largo de las caminos fue el principal modo de transporte humano en las zonas interfluviales amazónicas. Palabras clave: Amazonia interfluvial, prospección con VANT, movimiento de tierras, redes de caminos, plazas

Ancient anthrosols known as Amazonian dark earths or terra preta are part of the human built landscape and often represent valuable landscape capital for modern Amazonian populations in the form of fertile agricultural soils. The fertility, resilience, and large stocks of carbon in terra preta have inspired research on their possible role in soil fertility management and also serve as an example for a growing biochar industry it is claimed will sequester carbon for climate change mitigation. Although there is considerable scientific and public interest in terra preta, there is still much debate and little concrete knowledge of the specific processes and contexts of its formation. Research indicates that the formation of terra preta occurred mainly in midden deposits, themselves patterned around habitation areas, public areas, and routes of movement. Data from topographic mapping, soil analyses, and excavations in three regions of Amazonia demonstrate a widespread pattern of anthrosol formation in ring-shaped mounds surrounding flat terraces that extend across large areas of prehistoric settlements. It is hypothesized that there is a widespread type or types of occupation where the terraces were domestic areas (houses or yards) surrounded by refuse disposal areas in middens which built up into mounds over time, forming large deposits of terra preta and creating what could be called a ‘middenscape.’ Initial results support the hypotheses, showing the interrelationship of residential and public areas, anthrosols, routes of movement, and natural resources. The patterning of anthrosols in ancient settlements indicates the use of space and can therefore serve as a basis for comparison of community spatial organization between sites and regions.

This study uses carbon (δ 13 C), nitrogen (δ 15 N), oxygen (δ 18 O), and strontium (87 Sr/ 86 Sr) isotopes to infer the diets and mobility patterns of pre-Columbian humans from seven archaeological sites in Panama: Cerro Mangote, Sitio Sierra, and Cerro Juan Díaz in central Pacific Panama; Cerro Brujo and Sitio Drago along Panama's northwest Caribbean coast; Jicarita Island in the Gulf of Chiriquí; and Pedro González Island in the Gulf of Panama. Our initial hypotheses were 1) individuals from island and coastal settlements relied more heavily on marine food than those from inland settlements, 2) dietary dependency on maize increased over time, and 3) little or no evidence exists for mobility. Generally, the results did not support these hypotheses: 1) the ecotonal community of Cerro Juan Díaz consumed large quantities of marine food, 2) maize consumption varied over time at different sites, and 3) non-local individuals appeared at multiple sites, including one possible case of an individual who had been moved after death. While this study is intended to be a preliminary analysis of human diet and mobility patterns among pre-Columbian Panamanians, it highlights the complex nature of human activities and the value of incorporating multiple lines of archaeological, osteological, geochemical, and ecological evidence for interpreting bioarchaeological data.