In this paper I report on the initial phase of a survey project in the Rio Huenque drainage designed to investigate the process of initial human settlement of the southern Peruvian Altiplano. The strategic geographic position of the Rio Huenque between the Lake Titicaca shore and the Pacific-draining highland valleys, however, make the region potentially useful for the investigation of a range of research questions. Preliminary findings fuel several speculations about prehistoric use of the area. First, initial settlement of the region appears delayed relative to other portions of the Andes. Ephemeral use of the region begins during the Early Archaic Period, with residential occupation developing perhaps as late as the Middle Archaic. Second, a notable settlement change that may signal the shift to a more intensive hearding economy takes place during the Formative period. Intensive occupation of cave and rockshelter complexes, indicated by features such as dense middens, clay floors, human burials, rock art and possible corral walls, apparently begins at this time. Finally, there are notable differences between the Inca and Tiwanaku presence, suggesting that each polity used very different strategies to integrate local pastoral communites and control movement of people and goods across the region.



Wednesday February 19, 1997, at 1 p.m.
HSSB 2001A, The Anthropology Conference Room

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