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

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 May 2021

María Teresa Plaza Open the ORCID record for María Teresa Plaza [Opens in a new window]  and
Marcos Martinón-Torres
María Teresa Plaza
Affiliation:
Escuela de Antropología Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile Av. Vicuña Mackenna 4860 Macul Santiago Chile Email: [email protected]
Marcos Martinón-Torres
Affiliation:
Department of Archaeology University of Cambridge Cambridge CB2 3EJ UK Email: [email protected]
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Abstract

The life-histories of gold artefacts can provide rich insight into technology and culture, but so far the potential of this research approach has not been exploited in the south central Andes. Here we present the analysis of 34 gold and silver objects from the Middle Period cemetery of Casa Parroquial (San Pedro de Atacama, northern Chile), using pXRF, SEM-EDS, PIXE and digital microscopy. Chemical analyses detected variable compositions (2.4–73.1 per cent Ag and 0.2–3.4 per cent Cu) suggesting that artisans used both native gold and artificial gold-silver-copper alloys. Based on their manufacturing techniques, quality and designs, we identify two working styles, one technically more ‘careful’ than the other. Given their elemental and technological variety, together with the lack of local production evidence, we propose that these artefacts were imported as finished objects from Tiwanaku or Cochabamba and northwest Argentina. However, we identify a series of objects that were modified or reshaped as they entered a new cultural context, revealing complex life-histories. Modifications used relatively simple mechanical means: punching, cutting and folding, most likely made in multi-craft contexts by non-metallurgists from San Pedro.

Type
Research Article
Information
Cambridge Archaeological Journal , Volume 31 , Issue 4 , November 2021 , pp. 613 - 637
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research

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Supplementary material: File

Plaza and Martinón-Torres supplementary material

Table S4

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Plaza and Martinón-Torres supplementary material

Table S1

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Plaza and Martinón-Torres supplementary material

Table S2

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Plaza and Martinón-Torres supplementary material

Table S3

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