Kevin J. Vaughn

Households, Crafts, and Feasting in the Ancient Andes: The Village Context of Early Nasca Craft Consumption

Craft consumption in Early Nasca (ca. A.D. 1-450) society is explored by evaluating the use of polychrome pottery within the context of a residential village. Data are presented from the Early Nasca village, Marcaya, where excavations utilizing a household archaeology approach revealed that most polychromes were consumed by households with high and low status alike, while certain vessel shapes were reservedfor high-status households. These findings challenge the common assumption that highly valued crafts were monopolized by elites in middle-range societies, and show instead that there is a potential demand for crafts by both elites and commoners. It is argued that polychrome pottery was broadly used in Nasca because it was integral to ritual consumption that first took place in feasting ceremonies at the regional center Cahuachi, while certain vessel types were restricted to high-status households that acted as intermediaries between Cahuachi and the village.

Moving Beyond Iconography: Neutron Activation Analysis of Ceramics from Marcaya, Peru, an Early Nasca Domestic Site

Abstract Fineware polychrome ceramics of the Nasca culture (A.C. 1–750), renowned for their elaborate iconography and artistic and technical quality, have only recently been examined for the social and economic contexts of their production. We present the results from a pilot study of instrumental neutron activation of a sample of excavated ceramics from the Early Nasca domestic site of Marcaya, Peru. The study indicates variability in the chemical composition of plainware ceramics, while painted vessels and panpipes from the site form a single compositional group. These results are evaluated in light of existing models of Nasca pottery production and exchange. Since excavations did not reveal evidence for pottery production at Marcaya, we suggest that the results of the compositional analysis indicate that the fineware ceramics at Marcaya were produced elsewhere. This pilot study demonstrates that compositional analyses of Nasca ceramics can make a significant contribution to the study of Nasca pottery production, and it provides a valuable comparative dataset for future analyses.

3,000 Years of Occupation in Upper Valley Nasca: Excavations at Upanca

We report recent excavations undertaken at the residential village Upanca located 1,600 m above sea level in the Nasca region of Peru in the Central Andes. Although fieldwork was initiated to evaluate the sites participation in the Early Nasca craft economy, excavations revealed a long occupation beginning in the Late Archaic (ca. 3000-1800 B.C.) and extending into the Early Intermediate period (ca. A.D. 1-750), with a principal component dating to the Early Nasca period (ca. A.D. 1-450). The Early Nasca component revealed high polychrome consumption, confirming previous assessments of Early Nasca s craft economy, and association with extensive agricultural terracing, suggesting surplus production beginning in the Early Intermediate period.

Pre-Inca mining in the Southern Nasca Region, Peru

Guided by modern miners of the region the authors track down pre-Inca mining sites in the Southern Nasca Region of Peru. In the hinterlands away from both modern and ancient roads they find a surprising number of small sites serving the pre-Inca industry, principally in the Nasca period. Drawing analogies from modern practice they are able to distinguish the ancient sites dedicated to exploration, extraction or production.

MINERÍA DE HEMATITA EN LA COSTA SUR DEL PERÚ: INVESTIGACIONES ARQUEOLÓGICAS EN MINA PRIMAVERA

espanolA pesar que la mineria es una actividad critica para obtener materiales primas, se reconoce poco sobre la mineria en los Andes prehispanicos. En este articulo presentamos evidencia de actividad minera antigua desde Mina Primavera, una mina antigua bien preservada de Nasca, costa sur de Peru, con fechas de explotacion principalmente entre el periodo Intermedio Temprano (1-750 d.C.) y el Horizonte Medio (750-1.000 d.C.). Nuestras excavaciones proveen evidencia de extraccion y proceso de hematita �usada en ofrendas y como pigmentos�, pero tambien evidencia de rituales que occurieron en la mina. Discutimos las excavaciones y nuestras interpretaciones de los artefactos y hallazgos que se han encontrado EnglishDespite the fact that mining is a critical activity to obtain raw materials, very little is known about mining in the prehispanic Andes. In this paper we present evidence of ancient mining activities from Mina Primavera, a well-preserved hematite mine from Nasca, south coast of Peru dating primarily to the Early Intermediate Period (ca. A.D. 1-750) and to the Middle Horizon (ca. A.D. 750-1,000). Our excavations provide evidence not only for the extraction and processing of hematite �used in offerings and as pigments� but also provide evidence for rituals that took place in the mine. We discuss excavations conducted within the mine over several seasons, as well as our interpretations of artifacts and features found

Iron isotope analysis of red and black pigments on pottery in Nasca, Peru

The Nasca culture of the south coast of Peru developed during the first millennium ad and is known internationally for its elaborately decorated polychrome pots. Despite decades of iconographic analysis, little is known about the more technological aspects of Nasca pigment production and application. We present results from a pilot study on iron isotopes as a potential line of inquiry into the differences between red and black pigments in Nasca pigments. As well, we conduct a small firing experiment to examine potential changes in isotope composition. Our analyses show three significant results. First, firing does not change the isotopic ratios of Fe in pigments. Second, red and black pigments show differences in their iron isotope composition, which relate to differences in the minerals used to make the different colors. Third, naturally available hematite samples show greater isotopic variation than pigment samples, suggesting that people selected a limited range of iron oxides to produce pigments.

The Organization of Mining in Nasca During the Early Intermediate Period: Recent Evidence from Mina Primavera

This paper considers mining in Nasca, south coast of Peru from the perspective of Mina Primavera, a prehispanic hematite mine located in the Ingenio Valley and exploited predominantly during the Early Intermediate period. Our work at the site has revealed the evolution and organization of mining in Nasca including its practice embedded within rituals most likely related to propitiation. Our principal conclusions are that (1) mining was an important activity for prehispanic south coast societies and it was embedded in other aspects of prehispanic life; (2) hematite mining at Mina Primavera was most active during the first few centuries of the first millennium ad coinciding with the Early Nasca phases of the Early Intermediate period; (3) we hypothesize that intensification during this time was due to the demand for high-quality hematite during Early Nasca.

It's about time? Testing the Dawson ceramic seriation using luminescence dating, Southern Nasca Region, Peru

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An Introduction to Mining and Quarrying in the Ancient Andes: Sociopolitical, Economic and Symbolic Dimensions

Geological resources have long contributed in significant ways to economic, social, political, and ritual life in Andean communities. From the first mobile forager groups to the vast Inca empire, raw materials from mineral resources such as architectural, lapidary, ornamental, and knappable stone; clay for pottery mineral ores for prized metals such as gold, silver, and copper; minerals for pigments such as hematite, cinnabar, and manganese; and salt have all had a profound—if sometimes unacknowledged—role in the Andean world. While archaeologists have used a number of analytical techniques on the materials that people have procured from the earth, these materials all have one thing in common: they were extracted from a mine or quarry, and despite their importance, comparative analyses of mines and quarries have been exceptionally rare in the New World, especially in the Andes. The papers in the current volume focus on archaeological research at primary deposits of raw materials extracted through mining or quarrying in the Andean region (Fig. 1.1).

Plazas and communal space in Nasca: changing patterns of public ritual through the Formative and Early Intermediate periods (800 B.C.– A.D. 650) on the south coast of Peru

Documented plaza use in the southern Nasca region (SNR) has demonstrated that communal spaces were absent at residential sites during the Early Nasca epoch. Indeed, communal rituals and performance were apparently limited to the pilgrimage center of Cahuachi and associated features of the built environment such as the Nasca geoglyphs. This pattern differs significantly from the pre and post-Cahuachi eras, when plazas, and the communal activities that took place in them, were central to many settlements. In this article, we build on previous work to evaluate the use of communal ritual space in the form of plazas and other aspects of the “built exterior” through time in the Nasca region. We employ data collected from multiple sites, from the SNR to the northern Nasca region (NNR) in Ica. We conclude that cycles of sociopolitical complexity, integration, and patterns of pilgrimage were factors in determining the amount, kind, and arrangement of public ritual space in the Nasca region during the Formative and Early Intermediate periods.