Izumi Shimada

An Integrated Analysis of Pre-Hispanic Mortuary Practices: A Middle Sicán Case Study

Recent debate has raised serious questions about the viability of the social and ideological reconstruction of prehistoric culture on the basis of mortuary analysis. In recent years bioarchaeology has gained considerable prominence, underscoring the fact that death, burials, and associated mortuary practices are multifaceted phenomena shaped by biological, social, ideological, and taphonomic factors. Few studies attempting social reconstruction through mortuary analysis, including those of a bioarchaeological character, have adequately addressed this multidimensionality. This study shows that social, ideological, and bioarchaeological reconstruction can be productively pursued through tight integration of a multitude of approaches and perspectives set within a longterm regional study. Focusing on two large 1,000yearold Middle Sicn shaft tombs on the north coast of Peru, it integrates analyses of mitochondrial DNA, inherited dental traits, developmental health, diet, placement of interred individuals and associated grave goods, and data from groundpenetrating radar surveys. Overall it shows that these tombs reflected the broader social organization and were part of a planned elite cemetery and that the overlying monumental adobe mound served as the physical focus of ancestor worship.Recent debate has raised serious questions about the viability of the social and ideological reconstruction of prehistoric culture on the basis of mortuary analysis. In recent years bioarchaeology has gained considerable prominence, underscoring the fact that death, burials, and associated mortuary practices are multifaceted phenomena shaped by biological, social, ideological, and taphonomic factors. Few studies attempting social reconstruction through mortuary analysis, including those of a bioarchaeological character, have adequately addressed this multidimensionality. This study shows that social, ideological, and bioarchaeological reconstruction can be productively pursued through tight integration of a multitude of approaches and perspectives set within a longterm regional study. Focusing on two large 1,000yearold Middle Sicn shaft tombs on the north coast of Peru, it integrates analyses of mitochondrial DNA, inherited dental traits, developmental health, diet, placement of interred individuals and a...

Reducing firing of an early pottery making kiln at Batán Grande, Peru: A Mössbauer study

Material from field firing experiments using a 2,700-year old Formative kiln at Batán Grande, Peru, was studied by X-ray diffraction and Mössbauer spectroscopy. The experiments explore the technology involved in producing the gray and black reduced ware for which Cupisnique and other Formative ceramics are justly known. During firing, the iron-bearing compounds in clays undergo characteristic changes which depend on kiln temperature and atmosphere. These changes can be observed in the Mössbauer spectra. By comparing spectra of an appropriate clay fired in field experiments and in the laboratory with the spectra of ancient ceramics, a description of Formative firing techniques in a reducing environment is attempted.

Early Pottery Making in Northern Coastal Peru. Part I: Mössbauer Study of Clays

We report on an investigation of several ancient clays which were used for pottery making in northern coastal Peru at a kiln site from the Formative period (ca. 2000–800 BC) in the Poma Canal and at a Middle Sicán pottery workshop in use between ca. AD 950 and 1050 at Huaca Sialupe in the lower La Leche valley. Neutron activation analysis, 57Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction were used for the characterisation of the clays. The changes that occur in iron-bearing compounds in the clays depending on the kiln atmosphere and on the maximum firing temperature were studied by Mössbauer spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction. Laboratory firing series under varying controlled conditions were performed to obtain a basic understanding of the different reactions taking place in the clays during firing. The results can be used as models in the interpretation of the Mössbauer spectra observed in ancient ceramics from the same context.

Clay: An important raw material for prehistoric man

Early techniques of making pottery can be investigated by 57Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy. Iron is generally present in unpurified clays in concentrations of several percent. During firing, the iron undergoes characteristic changes of its chemical and physical state, depending on the kiln atmosphere and on the maximum firing temperature reached. These changes can be followed by Mössbauer spectroscopy. Firing techniques can often be reconstructed when spectra of laboratory and field fired samples are compared with those observed in ancient sherds.

The use of Mössbauer Spectroscopy in studies of archaeological ceramics

The primary information that can be derived from Mossbauer spectra is mainly on the hyperfine interactions between the Mossbauer nuclei and their solid state environments. Mossbauer spectroscopy thus primarily provides information on the chemical state of the iron, for instance on its oxidation state and on the magnetic properties of the iron bearing compounds. This enables one to tell which iron bearing compounds or minerals are present in the ceramics. Even though iron is only a minor constituent of ceramics, the physical and chemical transformations of the iron during the firing are manifold and depend strongly on the firing conditions. Knowledge of the state of the iron in fired ceramics therefore often permits conclusions as to the conditions under which the ceramics were fired, like the firing temperature, the oxidizing or reducing character of the kiln atmosphere, and even the sequence of reducing and oxidizing firing periods. Such knowledge is frequently of interest from the point of view of archaeology or anthropology, since it permits an assessment of the technical skills of ancient potters and hence on the cultural achievements of ancient civilizations.

Formative ceramics from the Andes and their production: A Mössbauer study

The potential of Mössbauer spectroscopy in the reconstruction of production techniques of early ceramics is demonstrated by the results of a study of a Formative kiln site at the Archaeological Park at Batán Grande, Perú, and of ceramics from the nearby settlement of Huaca Chólope.

Early Pottery Making in Northern Coastal Peru. Part II: Field Firing Experiments

We present data from three seasons of experimental field work designed to recreate ancient Andean coastal ceramic firing techniques. Based on the recent discovery of two different archaeological ceramic production sites in the La Leche river valley of northern coastal Peru, the opportunity arose to apply Mössbauer spectroscopy and other analytical methods to reconstruct ancient firing procedures. Two sets of firings took place in 1993 and 1997 in Batán Grande using a partially restored Formative kiln from about 800 BC, local hardwood and cow dung as fuel. A third experiment followed in 2000 after the discovery of a Middle Sicán ceramics workshop in use between ca. AD 950 and 1050 at Huaca Sialupe, where an exact replica of an ancient kiln was built from local clay, and fired with local wood and cow dung. Additionally, inverted urns found at Huaca Sialupe were tested for their potential use as furnaces for metal working. Mössbauer spectroscopy was used to compare the physical and chemical state of specimens produced in the field experiments with ancient ceramics and with specimens produced in controlled laboratory experiments.

Peruvian Archaeology: Its Growth, Characteristics, Practice, and Challenge

Peruvian archaeology is undeniably a synergetic product of Peruvian and Peruvianist practitioners and we strive to present and balance their perspectives and accomplishments since the late nineteenth century. The relationship between them has had its moments of difficulty, but its continuing development hinges on mutual respect and collaboration. Peruvian archaeology has come to be characterized by a number of important features such as an emphasis on archaeology-ethnohistory dialectics, provincial studies that focus on intrusive state–local relationships, culture–environment interaction along altitudinal and latitudinal dimensions, paleoenvironmental reconstruction and its social ramifications, and iconographic/stylistic and gravelot analysis. The Peruvian theoretical stance has been strongly tied to political ideology; the notion of the mother culture bears a strong imprint of the indigenista (pronative) movement, while the more recent “social archaeology” a Marxian ideological foundation. Today, beside a curious mixture of cultural, historical, and social archaeological concerns, there is an abiding interest in the earliest, the largest, and the most spectacular that seems to explain the focus on selected monumental sites. On the Peruvianist side, reflecting its diverse intellectual backgrounds, culture-historical, processual (strong ecological emphasis), and postprocessual schools coexist, although there has been a definite rise in the application of the last (e.g., concepts of agency, practice, and memory). The most significant recent development in Peruvian archaeology has been the rapid expansion of culture management and tourism-oriented archaeology and related changes in the training and employment of Peruvian archaeologists. Factors that shaped current trends and foci in the practice of archaeology are explicated within the context of the social, political, and economic transformations that have taken place over the last two decades. The paper concludes with a discussion of future tasks for and directions of Peruvian archaeology.

Neutron Activation Analysis of Microgram Samples from 364 Gold Objects from a Sican Burial Site in Peru

872 metal rubbings, each weighing about 10 micrograms, were taken from 364 gold objects from an unlooted Middle Sicin (ca. 1000 A.D.) Peruvian burial site and the gold, silver, and copper contents were determined by neutron activation analysis. Almost all objects have contents that are in the range: 35-65% gold, 25-45% silver, and 10-30% copper. Objects of similar style were more uniform in content; for example, the 28 bangles and 90 feathers from the main headdress have gold contents that range only from 46-56% and 37-45%, respectively. Some objects have contents markedly different from the rest of the objects; ear-spools, for example, have very low copper (1-6%) and high gold (56-75%). A high degree of control of the alloy content is evident, with each alloy mixture probably being chosen to have desired color and mechanical properties. The data indicate that very consistent 1.0-1.1 mixtures of gold:silver were used for 136 of the 142 feathers whereas gold:silver mixtures closer to 1.3-1.9 were used for most of the 96 bangles.

THE STYLE, TECHNOLOGY AND ORGANIZATION OF SICÁN MINING AND METALLURGY, NORTHERN PERU: INSIGHTS FROM HOLISTIC STUDY

This paper explains what Shimada has termed a holistic approach to craft production and illustrates its value by discussing insights gained into the style, technology, and organization of Middle and Late Sican (ca. AD 900-1,375) mining and copper-arsenic metallurgy. After a brief characterization of the geographical and cultural settings of pertinent research by the Sican Archaeological Project (1978-present) and the holistic approach, we discuss specific methods and strategies for locating and dating pre-Hispanic mines. Based on our examination of eight mines in the study area that supplied copper oxides and/or arsenic-bearing ores, we offer a general characterization of Sican mining, emphasizing the integral character of local mining and autochthonous copper-arsenic alloy (also called arsenical bronze) production at nearby smelting sites (six excavated to date). Our analyses of primary context samples of ore and smelting products and by-products recovered at smelting sites show that copper-arsenic was deliberately and locally smelted and that arsenic was derived from scorodite (oxide form of arsenopyrite) and/or weathered sulfide ores available near the surface of local mines. Additionally, we discuss insights gained into careful and sustainable charcoal fuel management and the �modular organization� of metallurgical and other productive activities