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Long-Term Human Occupation Of The Upper Río Caracha, Ayacucho, Peru, Daniel A. Contreras, Nicholas Tripcevich

Daniel A. Contreras

Regional consumption patterns of obsidian in Peru testify to the significance of the Quispisisa source; by 500 BCE this obsidian was reaching sites 1000 km distant. The source area thus provides both an opportunity to investigate quarrying and an case study in the long‐term occupation of a regionally important highland valley. Using satellite imagery and results of preliminary field prospection, we examine the upper Caracha drainage, where Quispisisa‐type obsidian is found. The valley is extensively terraced, and contains several large sites downstream of the source area. Our data on the settlement system and anthropogenic landscape of this regionally‐significant highland valley …