Regional Integration and Ceramic Consumption in the Border Region of Bolivia and Argentina (ca. AD 1000–1450)

Abstract

This article investigates the mechanisms by which different communities were articulated during the Late Intermediate period (ca. AD 1000–1450) in the Río Grande de San Juan Basin, also called the Chicha Region, located in the border region of Bolivia and Argentina. Through analyses of systems of pottery production, circulation, and consumption, we examine interaction networks, social integration, and alliance building at a regional level. Yavi-Chicha pottery from two sites in the Chicha Region—Chipihuayco, in the Talina Valley (Bolivia), and Finispatria, in San Juan Mayo (Argentina)—provide key insights into regional integration and constellations of practice through their localized technological style and shared consumption strategies. This study reveals that people of Finispatria incorporated the entire Yavi-Chicha-style household assemblage—partly produced in Chipihuayco, partly in Finispatria, or partly at some unknown location—into their everyday lives. We argue that the entire household ceramic repertoire of the study region played a fundamental and socially integrative role as it circulated across the region.

The Community of Practice: An Essential and Elegant Framework for Archaeological Interpretation

“…Meanwhile, research on the consumption of non-food items (i.e., the acquisition and display of glass beads) in the American Southeast as the anchoring activity for communities of practice (and constellations of practices) has highlighted the complex social interactions represented and conditioned by material culture [27]. Additionally, in South American archaeology, communities and constellations of practice related to the consumption (i.e., acquisition and use) of ceramics can be seen to have played a critical role in the integration of regional political entities [28].…”

A Review of Archaeological and Paleoecological Radiocarbon Dating in Bolivia

“…In collaboration with Sergio Calla Maldonado, they have investigated dozen sites that range from the Archaic to the Inca, but with a stronger focus on the pre-Inca regional cultural dynamics (Rivera Casanovas, 2011;Rivera Casanovas & Calla Maldonado, 2011). More recently, research in Chipihuayco, Bilcapara and other sites of the upper drainage of the Pilcomayo River provide a glimpse into the complexity of early community formation and integration of the southern inter-Andean valleys (Ávila, 2011;Echenique, 2019;Nielsen et al, 2015).…”

Regional Integration and Ceramic Consumption in the Border Region of Bolivia and Argentina (ca. AD 1000–1450) – CORRIGENDUM

“…Figure 7 in this article (Echenique et al 2020) was incorrect as originally published. Following is the correct figure.…”