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Articles 1 - 8 of 8
Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences
Long-Term Human Occupation Of The Upper Río Caracha, Ayacucho, Peru, Daniel A. Contreras, Nicholas Tripcevich
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 …
Geologic Constraints On Rain-Fed Qocha Reservoir Agricultural Infrastructure, Northern Lake Titicaca Basin, Peru, Nathan M. Craig, Mark Aldenderfer, Paul Baker, Catherine Rigsby, :Luis Flores Blanco
Geologic Constraints On Rain-Fed Qocha Reservoir Agricultural Infrastructure, Northern Lake Titicaca Basin, Peru, Nathan M. Craig, Mark Aldenderfer, Paul Baker, Catherine Rigsby, :Luis Flores Blanco
Nathan M Craig
This paper reports new data on qocha ponds from the Rio PucaraeAzángaro interfluvial zone, northern Lake Titicaca Basin, Peru. Qocha are a little known form of Andean agriculture that developed around 800e500 B.C. and remain in use today. Prior estimates suggested that in the study area, there were more than 25,000 qocha. While most Andean sunken beds are excavated to reach groundwater, qocha are rain- fed ponds. How these rain-fed ponds functioned has been an open question, but one that is answered in part by research presented in this paper.We suggest that a thick impermeable stratum of clay that was …
Ground Truthing Of Remotely Identified Fortifications On The Central Coast Of Perú, Margaret Brown Vega, Nathan M. Craig, Gerbert Asencios Lindo
Ground Truthing Of Remotely Identified Fortifications On The Central Coast Of Perú, Margaret Brown Vega, Nathan M. Craig, Gerbert Asencios Lindo
Nathan M Craig
Remote imagery, including freely available satellite images viewed in Google Earth_ and historic aerial photographs, was used to identify anomalies in a 25,000 km2 macroregion encompassing 13 river valleys along the Peruvian coast. These anomalies, located atop hills and mountains, were hypothesized prehispanic fortifications. A sample of remotely identified anomalies was ground truthed in the Huaura and Fortaleza Valleys on the Central Coast of Perú. 140 positive anomalies were documented and assessed using a simple defensibility index. Our results significantly increase the number of fortifications identified in both valleys. We demonstrate the efficacy of this method for locating fortifications in …
Geologic Constraints On Rain-Fed Qocha Reservoir Agricultural Infrastructure,Northern Lake Titicaca Basin, Peru, Nathan Craig, Mark Aldenderfer, Catherine Rigsby, Paul Baker, Luis A. Flores
Geologic Constraints On Rain-Fed Qocha Reservoir Agricultural Infrastructure,Northern Lake Titicaca Basin, Peru, Nathan Craig, Mark Aldenderfer, Catherine Rigsby, Paul Baker, Luis A. Flores
Luis FLORES
This paper reports new data on qocha ponds from the Rio PucaraeAzángaro interfluvial zone, northern Lake Titicaca Basin, Peru. Qocha are a little known form of Andean agriculture that developed around 800e500 B.C. and remain in use today. Prior estimates suggested that in the study area, there were more than 25,000 qocha. While most Andean sunken beds are excavated to reach groundwater, qocha are rainfed ponds. How these rain-fed ponds functioned has been an open question, but one that is answered in part by research presented in this paper. We suggest that a thick impermeable stratum of clay that was …
Advancing Theory?: Landscape Archaeology And Geographical Information Systems, Di Hu
Advancing Theory?: Landscape Archaeology And Geographical Information Systems, Di Hu
Di Hu
This paper will focus on how Geographical Information Systems (GIS) have been applied in Landscape Archaeology from the late 1980s to the present. GIS, a tool for organising and analysing spatial information, has exploded in popularity, but we still lack a systematic overview of how it has contributed to archaeological theory, specifically Landscape Archaeology. This paper will examine whether and how GIS has advanced archaeological theory through a historical review of its application in archaeology.
Gis: A Rising Tool In The Geoarchaeologist's Toolbox, Erin Wayman
Gis: A Rising Tool In The Geoarchaeologist's Toolbox, Erin Wayman
Daniel A. Contreras
Researchers use GIS to see ancient landscapes, trace historical water use and preserve archaeological sites.
Reconstructing Landscape At Chavin De Huantar, Peru : A Gis-Based Approach, Daniel A. Contreras
Reconstructing Landscape At Chavin De Huantar, Peru : A Gis-Based Approach, Daniel A. Contreras
Daniel A. Contreras
The landscape around the prehistoric Peruvian ceremonial center of Chavin de Huantar has undergone extensive geomorphic and anthropogenic change since the beginning of monumental construction at the site in approximately 1200 BCE. Archaeological and geomorphic stratigraphy from the site and its near periphery provide the data necessary to characterize these changes in detail. This paper reports on the use of GIS-based interpolation tools to approximate a complex prehistoric land surface using unevenly scattered point data. Such an interpolated surface serves as the basis for the reconstruction of the pre- Chavin landscape and assessment of landscape change contemporary with the site.
Multivariate Visualization And Analysis Of Photomapped Artifact Scatters, Nathan M. Craig, Aldenderfer Mark
Multivariate Visualization And Analysis Of Photomapped Artifact Scatters, Nathan M. Craig, Aldenderfer Mark
Nathan M Craig
Simultaneous analysis of relationships between multiple artifact classes is required for characterization of many types of activity areas. This paper illustrates improved forms of multivariate visualization, spatial analysis and integration of experimental results that are possible with GIS based photomapping. Techniques are demonstrated through analysis of a hearth associated artifact scatter exposed during excavations of a Late Archaic pithouse at Jiskairumoko, Peru. A multivariate density raster is created and additive color visualization is used for simultaneous display of three artifact distributions. Performing unconstrained clustering in a GIS, space is classified by simultaneous relative density relationships between multiple object types.