People of the Coastal Atacama Desert - IEB

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Veth / Desert Peoples Final Proof 19.10.2004 12:01pm page 252Santoro,Arriaza,Standen,MarquetFigure 13.4 Shell midden at Punta Pichalo in central Atacama Desert, which demonstratesthe permanent and intense occupation of the coast based on a hunting-gathering marineeconomy, during the Holocene (picture taken by Junius Birds in 1939; reproduced courtesyof the American Museum of Natural History). Grete Mostny, fomer Director of the MuseoNacional de Historia Natural, is shown in the right corner.The lack of terrestrial animals appears to be ‘‘compensated’’ by the hunting ofsea lions which were hunted with harpoons while asleep on rocky foreshores(Standen 2003). Molluscs were another source of protein, principally loco (Concholepasconcholepas), lapas (Fissurella spp.), and chorito maico (Perumytilus purpuratus)(Luis Briones pers. comm.). The size of these species corresponds toindividuals normally found in the intertidal and supratidal zones of rocky beaches.The evidence for watercraft at this time is still uncertain and seems to have been alater technological development.Sites in the inland basin of Pampa del Tamarugal such as Tiliviche and Aragón(see Figure 13.1), located 40 km from the littoral and about 950 m asl, appear tohave served as transitory logistical camps. It is thought that groups traveled there togather raw material for lithic artifacts, to collect reed fiber, to gather scantyterrestrial plants, and to hunt small game. These camps were occupied from9,000–4,500 bp when this region experienced wetter conditions (Latorre at al. inpress). At Tiliviche there is evidence for domestic structures consisting of simplecircular and shallow depressions surrounded by post-holes dug into the hardground of the terrace (Núñez 1983; see Figure 13.5). These kinds of wind shelterswere possibly covered with reed mats, fur, and branches. Domestic refuse wasdispersed around these enclosures, and after their abandonment, they were covered_ 252_
Veth / Desert Peoples Final Proof 19.10.2004 12:01pm page 253People of the Coastal Atacama DesertFigure 13.5 Open camp of Tiliviche, an inland oasis around 40 km from the coast. Postholescorrespond to an early Holocene wind breaker (photo courtesy of Lautaro Núñez).Note the shallow midden deposit compared with Punta Pichalo (Figure 13.3).by refuse from nearby dwellings (see also Quiani 9, a middle Archaic camp, locatedin the south of Arica; cf. Muñoz 1993).Social and Ideological Complexity in the Atacama Desert CoastAccording to Arriaza and Standen (2002), one of the most remarkable aspects ofcoastal Atacama Desert people were the processes they used to mummify theirdead. This cultural trait is labeled ‘‘Chinchorro’’ after the name of a beach, north ofArica, where the first evidence was found by Max Uhle, early in the twentiethcentury (Uhle 1919). Geographically this phenomenon has a rather narrow distributionfrom Ilo in southern Peru, to Patillo south of Iquique, approximately300 km in length (see Figure 13.1); to date there is no evidence of artificialmummification away from the coast. The earliest evidence to date for mummificationwas located at the mouth of the valley of Camarones (see Figures 13.1 and13.3), where Virgilio Schiappacasse y Hans Niemeyer established the association ofdomestic debris and Chinchorro inhumation. These findings in the Atacamarepresent the most ancient (ca. 8,000–7,000 bp and 3,500 bp) artificial mummificationknown in the world, a typical trait of the northern and central Atacama_ 253_
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People of the Coastal Atacama Desert - IEB

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