Stones to Build a World: Circulation and Value of Materials in Pre-Columbian Northwestern Argentina

Abstract

This article presents a contextual analysis of stone materials from northwestern Argentina, produced at a time when sedentary life was unfolding throughout the region. It examines the circulation and use practices of everyday obsidian tools, as well as the technical and semantic relationships they established within the wider field of materials and artefacts that characterized the period. Arguing for a sensitive approach to the classificatory logic of past societies, it is proposed here that a particular hierarchy of stone artefacts of regional significance emerged during this period. After discussing anthropological value perspectives and their relevance to Andean archaeology, the article explores Andean conceptualizations of stone that can provide a culturally specific framework for understanding ancient stone materials. The final sections examine the technical and contextual practices involving with domestic stone tools, as well as how these were embedded in a wider landscape of physical and semantic relationships. It is hoped that this article will contribute to ongoing discussions on non-Western models of value and their relevance for understanding social interaction and complexity, both in the south-central Andes and beyond.

Technology, Use and Reuse of Gold during the Middle Period: The Case of Casa Parroquial, Atacama Desert, Chile

“…These items actively participated in the construction of gender or social identities and, in many cases, the value of these artefacts resides in their ability to signify multi-ethnic and multi-ecological integration (Nielsen 2007, 407). These items, regarding their quality, can also carry stories and memories of people and places that participate in people's daily life (Lazzari 2016, 4), as well as transferring sacredness from their place of origin (Ogburn 2004). This may be the case for the more ‘humble’ gold objects found in CP, where value does not seem to be in the object style or technical mastery, but most likely in the symbolism of the material itself, the life-histories behind each item including its origins, its transport, its use (or not) and its physical change in local hands—all potentially adding layers of meaning and value (Gosden & Marshall 1999; Helms 1993; Horta 2012; Joyce & Gillespie 2015; Kopytoff 1986; Lazzari 2016; Spielmann 1998).…”

“…These items, regarding their quality, can also carry stories and memories of people and places that participate in people's daily life (Lazzari 2016, 4), as well as transferring sacredness from their place of origin (Ogburn 2004). This may be the case for the more ‘humble’ gold objects found in CP, where value does not seem to be in the object style or technical mastery, but most likely in the symbolism of the material itself, the life-histories behind each item including its origins, its transport, its use (or not) and its physical change in local hands—all potentially adding layers of meaning and value (Gosden & Marshall 1999; Helms 1993; Horta 2012; Joyce & Gillespie 2015; Kopytoff 1986; Lazzari 2016; Spielmann 1998). Similar notions have been used to interpret the presence of foreign pottery in SPA (Stovel 2008) and the circulation of lithics (Lazzari 2016; Ogburn 2004) or spondylus (Glowacki & Malpass 2003; Paulsen 1974) in the Andes.…”

Actualidad Y Potencial De La Arqueología Internodal Surandina

“…Los riesgos que esto suponía también dejan claro que el yeso era un recurso clave para los pueblos de la costa, pero curiosamente los autores encuentran dificultades para decidir cuál pudo ser el uso o significado que tuvo esta substancia, a pesar de contar con interesantes alternativas etnográficas (no excluyentes), desde la geofagia hasta la pintura corporal. Más allá de la respuesta que futuros estudios puedan dar a esta interrogante, el caso nos advierte sobre la conveniencia de desechar las dicotomías modernas que habitualmente se usan en arqueología para discutir el valor de los bienes y sus consecuencias prácticas, p.e., subsistencia-prestigio/riqueza, materialsimbólico, etcétera (Gallardo y Cabello 2015;Lazzari 2016;Nielsen 2007). En todo caso, las limitaciones de su tecnología de transporte -aun teniendo en cuenta la eventual introducción del portacargas 5 -y la falta de apoyo logístico pusieron coto a la escala de las explotaciones internodales encaradas por los grupos costeros.…”

Ocupaciones prehispánicas en el abrigo Abra del Toro, Valle de Yocavil, Catamarca, Argentina (circa 2200 años AP)

“…Dentro del abanico temático de las líneas de investigación se pueden encontrar las que se ocupan de una materialidad específica (ej. cerámica, lítico, arqueofauna) (Scattolin y Lazzari 1997;Lazzari 2005Lazzari , 2016Miguez et al 2009;Carbonelli 2011;Spano 2011; Pereyra Domingorena y Bugliani 2019, entre otros) o las que indagan sobre las distintas modalidades de ocupaciones, los contextos funerarios o domésticos (Cortés 2013;Salazar y Franco Salvi 2015;Álvarez Larrain et al 2017;Parolin et al 2019).…”