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Mi 48106-1346 USA ‘313/761-4700 800/521-0600Order Number 8906138 Subsistence strategies in the Supe Valley of the Peruvian Central coast during the Complex Preceramic and Initial Periods Zechenter, Elibieta M., Ph.D. University of California, Les Angeles, 1988 UM I 300N. Zeeb Rd. ‘Ann Arbor, MI 48106UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA Los Angeles Subsistence Strategies in the Supe Valley of the Peruvian Central Coast During the Complex Preceramic and Initial Periods A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy in Anthropology by Blébieta M. Zechenter 1988‘The dissertation of Elzbieta M. Zechenter is approved. ‘Aitony Neath Kenneth Sokoloff Dwight W. Read, Committee Chair University of California, Los Angeles 1988 ii© Copyright by Blébieta M. Zechenter 1988‘To my father Jan Zechenter who has always believed in the pursuit of knowledge.Contents 1 Introduction 2 2 The Peruvian Central Coast and the Emergence of Socio-Economic Complexity 2.1 Previous Research on Early Coastal Societies ........... 2.1.1 Development of Chronological Sequences.......... 2.1.2 The Maritime Theory ........ eee dos 2.1.3, Challenges to the Maritime Theory............. 2.1.4 Interaction Between the Coast and Highlands... ... . 2.2 Complex Preceramic and Initial Periods: The Current State of Knowledge of Their Subsistence Patterns... . 2.2.1 Coastal Area ........... eee ee 2.2.2 Highland Area .......... dpcosoododguau 3 The Contemporary and The Prehistoric Environment of the Supe-Pativilea Area 3.1 Present Climatic Conditions in the Peruvian Central Coast . . . 3.1.1 Seasonality ......... sees oe eee ‘The Winter Season (May/June-October)..... . ‘The Summer Season (January-May) ........ ee 3.2 Modern Climatic Data From the Supe-Pativilea Area... ... . 15 15 16 18 22 28 32 32 34 35 38 39 41 41 42 433.3 34 3.5 3.6 3.21 Precipitation ©... . 0.0.6.0 eee eee eee ee 99.3) Tempero ee $2.3 Humidity .......... eee eee ee 324 Sunshine .............00. eed 3.2.5 Hydrography and Sweet Water Availability ........ 3.2.6 Soilsand Drainage ............0.0.00. 900 The el Nifio Phenomenon .. . . Effect Upon Mollusks and Crustaceans... . . . Effect On Fisheries... . Effect On Marine Mammals and Reptiles ........ . Summary of Effects of 1982-83 Nifio ............ A Reconstruction of the Climatic History of the Area... 3.4.1 Holocene Climate... .... bogconSada a 3.4.2 Human Impact Versus Microclimatic Changes . Holocene Geomorphology and Landscape Reconstruction . 3.5.1 The Fluvial Environment .... . 3.5.2 The Coastal Environment ..... . eee an 3.5.3 Holocene Tectonic Movements ............. a Vegetation Zones and Plant and Animal Resources in the Supe Area... .. ere ones eee ee 3.6.1 General Characteristics of Vegetation ........... 3.6.2 Non-Mountainous Desert (Desierto Pre-Montano) ... . iEittorall Zone ete oe ee ee Plant Life in Lomas . . . 72 72 4Animal Populations in Lomas. ........ qocogga ©4 Monte Riberefio. 6.6. ee eee eee eee eee BF Dry Pampas and Arid Hills ................. 90 3.6.3 Dry Dessert Shrubs of Lower Hills (Matorrai De Pre-Montano). . . 3.6.4 Lower Mountain Thorn Steppe (Estepa Espinosa Montano Bajo) .........200 paeeonosupobeeen (i 3.6.5 Thorn Steppe of The Upper Mountains (Estepa Montano) 93 3.6.6 eee eee 2 8.7 Valley Zones of Economic Importance to Human Groups... . 94 3.7.1 Coastal Valley... 0.6... ee eee e eee 94 8.7.2 Lower Valley .......... 97 3.7.8 Middle Valley... 0.2.0... 005 ee + 98 ‘3.74 Upper Valley... 1... ee eee ee 98 4 Productivity, Seasonality, and Food Procurement Strategies in the Supe Area 101 4.1 Marine Fishing... ..........04 . . 103 4.1.1 Archaeological and Historical Evidence for Varied Fishing Methods... 00.005 Sco oe 08 4.1.2 Modern Fishing Methods... ............... 107 4.1.3 Experimental Fishing Returns ......... seeee. HO Artesanal Fishing ........ beeen sees 10 Playeros se eee ee eee ee ee LIS ‘Net Fishing . onc 4.14 Seasonality Effects in Fishing . . . 4.1.5 Random Seasonal Variation . . . . 4.1.6 Occasional Events... 4.1.7 Fish Preparation Techniques ... . vi42 43 44 45 46 47 48 Seaweed Gathering ............ « 123 Marine Hunting. ©... 6.0... ee. eee ee eee ee IM 4.3.1 Sez Lions... 2... eee eee eee eee eee 12h 4.3.2 Marine Turtles 2... 2... eee eee eee ee 126 Molluskan Gathering»... 6.66.6... eee cece eee 17 44.1 Gathering from Rocky Outerops ........ aes Seasonality ............. wee vee 135 44.2 Gathering From Sandy Beaches... 2... ....... 138 44.3 Preparation of Mollusks for Food ...... 2... ses 138 Terrestrial Hunting... .......0.5 eo 4.5.1 Evidence for Varied Hunting Practices... . . eee ee 100 45.2 Deer............0. sees eee 141 4.5.3 Guanaco...... nae ee eee eee ‘143 45.4 SmallGame..............00000005 sees Md River Fishing ©. 00... ee eee eee eee eee Ms Wild Plant Procurement... 0... 00.00.00 eee soe 16 4.7.1 Wild Plants And Their Use in Prehistoric Times .... . 146 4.7.2 Costs of Plant Procurement ....... oe 48 4.7.3 Reconstruction of the Original Wild Plant Productivity . 150 Cultivated Plant Procurement.......... 4.8.1 Major Fruit Trees... .. 4.8.2 158 48.3 160 48.4 + 162 4.8.5 Estimates of the Cost of Agricultural Crops... .... 163 4.8.6 Estimates of the Arable Area in the Supe Valley .... . 168 4.8.7 Irrigation Versus Floodwater Farming ......... vii5 Models of Subsistence and Resource Utilization 51 5.2 5.3 54 Introduction.......... 5.1.1 Modelling of Subsistence Problems in Anthropology . . . 5.1.2 Limitations and Drawbacks of Subsistence Modelling . . . 5.1.3 Previous Efforts in Modelling of Subsistence Behavior . . Microeconomic Models . . . . . Optimal Foraging Theory ...... Linear Programming... ..... . 5 Simmleuion| fe ee Integer Programming............. 5.21 5.2.2 IP as an Extension of LP . . Complexity and Computability . . . 0-1 Integer Programming ...... ‘Modelling Capability of IPs... . Fixed Costs... boo Diversity and Taste ......... Model Description ......... eee 5.3.1 Model Implementation... ... . 5.4.1 ‘The Modelling Framework... ... The Formulation ........... The Decision Variables. ........ The Cost Function . . The Constraints ........... Estimation of the Model Parameters 173 173 174 175 179 179 + 181 183 = 185 187 188 188 189 + 190 191 196 - 200 201 203 - 204 205Other Constraints . 5.5 Computational Results . . . 5.5.1 Pre-Agriculture Period . . . Coastal Ecozone . Inland Valley Ecozones Pre-Agriculture Period: Summary . . 5.5.2 Incipient Agriculture Period Coastal Ecozone . Inland Valley Eco Incipient Agriculture Period: Summary . 246 5.5.3 Early Agriculture 246 Coastal Ecozone 247 Inland Valley Ecozones 252 Early Agriculture Period: Summary 255 5.5.4 Lomas Exploitation in Early Preceramic 256 6 Archaeology of the Complex Preceramic and Initial Periods of the Supe-Pativilea Area 258 6.1 Previous Work in the Supe Area... . - 259 6.2 Archaeological Survey + 262 6.2.1 Methods of Surveying 263 6.2.2 Methods of Site Analysis 264 6.2.3 Supe Lomas ‘Transect . 267 6.2.4 Caleta Vidal Transect .............., + 270 6.2.5 Lower, Middle, and Upper Valley 271 6.3 Types and Location of Sites... 0... eee eee eee ee 273 63.1 U-Shaped Complexes... . 2.0... 0. eee eee ee 24 6.3.2 Sites with Ceremonial Pozos ..........0.0.05 2796.3.3 Other Types of Early Sites 64 Chronology of the Supe Sites . . . 6.5 Distribution of Sites within the Supe Valley . 285 6.6 Ethnobotanical Analysis of the Selected Sites . . . 289 6.6.1 Introduction «289 6.6.2 General Discussion of Plant Remains . + 290 6.6.3 Occurrence of Plant Remains at the Selected Sites + 204 Percentage Presence Data . . 294 Presence Data 295 6.6.4 Evaluation of the Ethnobotanical Remains from the Supe Sites . . aa og : pegogdoogus 298 6.7 Archaeological Data and Testing of the Subsistence Model... . 300 6.7.1 Site Distribution Data . 6.7.2 Ethnobotanical Data. . ‘The Economic Foundations of Early Andean Civilization 306 7.1 Subsistence Economy of the Preceramic and Initial Periods: A Reevaluation Based on the IP Model. ............... 307 7.2, Evolution of the Subsistence Economies 7.2.1 Pre-Agricuture 7.2.2 Incipient Agriculture . . teas) Barly Agriculture ere ery ee ee 313 7.2.4 A Reconstructed Sequence of Subsistence Changes in the Supe Valley... eee eee ee eee eee ee 315 7.3 The Maritime Hypothesis—A Reevaluation ............ 317 7.3.1 Assessment of the Resource Availability and Environmen- tal Reconstruction 7.4 Models Versus Reality ........... 74.1 The Generality, Robustness, and Validity of the IP Model 3247.4.3 Extensions to the IP Model ........... 7.5 Concluding Remarks ........, Results of The Integer Programs A.1 Pre-Agriculture Period; Coastal Ecozone....... . A2 A.3 Incipient Agriculture Period; Coastal Ecozone .. . . . Ad AS Early Agriculture Period; Coastal Ecozone...... . Early Agriculture Period; Inland Ecozone . . Early Preceramic Period; Lomas . AS AT Nutritional Requirements B.l Introduction. .............00- pete B.2 Calories ....... oo ee ee: B.3 Nutrients A Catalog of Major Plant Resources Geology and Geomorphology of the Supe Region D.2. Geologic Samples from the Supe Region... ... . ‘D.3 Radiocarbon Dates From the Supe Valley ...... . D.4 Geologic Description of Specific Localities . Pre-Agriculture Period; Inland Ecozone ......... Incipient Agriculture Period; Inland Ecozone ..... . - 826 328 330 331 - 332 345 + 358 - 371 + 384 307 410 412 412 + 415 - 415 427 487 470 + 493 + 495 Catalog of the Preceramic and Initial Periods Sites of the Supe Valley E.1 Catalog of Early Sites in the Supe Valley E.1.1 Supe Lomas Transect Eile) Caleta Vidal Lomas) eye ees 497 + 498 sees 498 - 503E.1.3 Jaiva-Mungette Transect . + 505 E.14 Inland Valley Sites . . - 507 E.2 Radiocarbon Dates from the Supe Valley Sites + 518 E.3. Maps and Sketches of the Early Sites Within the Supe Valley... 524 Ethnobotanical Remains from the Supe Sites 536 F.1_ Methods of Analysis + 536 F.2 Data Tables... . = 539 References 560 xiiList of Tables 21 3.1 3.2 3.3 41 42 4.3 44 45 46 47 48 49 BL 52 5.3 54 5.5 Standard Chronological Framework for the Peruvian Prehistory. Annual Fish Catch in Tons... 2.2... eee ee eee o Annual Precipitation in Lomas .. . . : Lomas Vegetation... .........0..000005 pec Fish Catches in kgs: Artesanal Boats, 1985 ............ Average Monthly Return Per Person: Artesanal Boats, Puerto Chico eee ddgubebcugdendaden Common Resources from Rocky Outerops ....... « oe Efficiency of Tools Used for Procurement of Rock-Perching Shell- fish... ., Resources Common to Sandy Beaches ..... Percentage Edible of Animal Resources Based on Experiments Edible Percentage of Plant Foods: Based on Experiments ... . Wild Plant Resources ........ Domesticated Plant Resources... 0.2.0... 0.00000 ee 5 Summary of the Model Runs ....... Animal Procurement Costs—Cost Set 2... . Procurement Costs for Wild Plant Foods ..... . oo Plant Procurement Costs for Cultigens....... . ee ee Average Round Trip Distances Between Ecozones and Patches xiii 27 83 86 112 113 129 209 - 214 215 216 . 21756 57 58 5.9 5.10 5.1L 5.12 5.13 61 Ba B2 Ba Average Speed of Travel Between Ecozones and Patches... .. 218 Fixed Costs of Resource Procurem Patch Selection: Pre-Agriculture Period, Coastal Valley Ecozone 231 Patch Selection: Pre-Agriculture Period, Inland Valley Ecozone . 235 Patch Selecti Incipient Agriculture Period, Coastal Valley Eco- zone . . Patch Selection: Early Agriculture Period, Inland Valley Ecozone 253 Summary of the Radiocarbon Dates for Archaeological Sites in the Supe Valley... 6... eee eee eee cece eee 286 A.1.1-1.12 Outputs of IP Runs: Pre-Agriculture Period; Coastal Ecozone ... 2... eee eos as A.2.1-2.12 Outputs of IP Runs: Pro-Agriculture Period; Inland Ecozone A3.1-3.12 Outputs of IP Runs: Incipient Agriculture Period; Coastal Ecozone - 332 345 358 371 A.5.1-5.12 Outputs of IP Runs: Early Agriculture Period; Coastal Ecozone . 384 4.6.1-6.12 Outputs of P Runs Barly Agriculture Period; Inland Ecozone . . we 397 Nutrient Composition of Cultivated Plant Foods Per 100 ons Edible Portion. 0.00.0... eee ee ~ 424 Nutrient Composition of Wild Plant Foods Per 100 gms Edible Portion. . . eee wee eee eee ee ee ee 425 Nutrient Composition of Animal Foods Per 100 gms Edible Por- on 426 xivEl E2 Fal F2 Fs Fa FS Summary Table: “Barly? Sites from the Supe Valley, 7 ‘Transects A,B, and C. - 516 Summary Table: “Early” Sites from the Supe Valley, Inland Val- ley . 517 Weights and Volumes of Analyzed Samples. ............ 540 Wood, Stems, Fruits, and Other Large Remains. ........ . 541 Seed Occurrence (Counts), ... 6.0.20. 0 eee eee 549 Percentage Presence cf Plant Taxa. ................ 558 Seed Breqpency 559List of Figures 1a 31 32 3.3 41 42 5.1 5.2 53. 54 55 61 6.2 63 Da D2 ‘The Location of the Study Area in the Central Coast of Peru... 10 General Map of the Supe-Pativilea Area, ............. 45 ‘Major Plant Formations within the Supe Valley. ......... 8 Location of Four Ecozones of Major Economic Importance Within the Supe Valley. 2.0... cece eee eee eee ee Seasonal Variation in Catch: Artesanal Boats, Puerto Chico. . . 117 Efficiency of Tools Used for Procurement of Rock-Perching Shell- fe ee 132 ‘Total Cost Function: With and Without a Fixed Cost»... .. 192 Monthwise Availability of Animal Resources............ 220 Monthwise Availability of Cultigens ................ 220 Monthwise Availability of Wild Plant Resources.......... 223 Shallowness of the Cost Function (Coastal Ecozone, Incipient Agriculture Period, January to June). + 227 Location of Main Survey Transects Within the Supe Valley. . . . 265 Location of Early Archaeoiogical Sites Within the Supe Lomas ‘Transect. Location of Major Early Sites Within the Supe Valley... ... . 278 ‘Sketches of the Pativilca Fan Exposure. - 458 Schematic Cross-Section of Geologic Units in the Supe Region. . 459D.3. Sketch of the Coastline 2t Quitacalzon. D4 Sketch of the Tributary Valley South of La Empedrada, .... . D.5 Sketch of the Tributary Canyon at Peflico...... ee D.6 Stages of River Aggradation. ..... . D.1 Stages of River Filling After a Sea Level Rise. .......... D.8 La Empedrada Region: Sketch of Geologic Formations. .... . D.9 Aspero Cross-Section. .... . D.10 Aspero Cross-Section: Interpretation. ........ D.11 Hacienda San Nicolas Cross-Section. . . . 467 D.12 Hacienda San Nicolas Cross-Section: Interpretation. ...... . D.13 Key to the Column Description... .... . D.14 Stratigraphic Section: Locality A11786. D.15 Stratigraphic Section: Locality B11786. ‘D.16 Stratigraphic Section: Locality C1786. D.17 Stratigraphic Section: Locality D11786, D.18 Stratigraphic Section: Locality A11986. D.19 Stratigraphic Section: Locality B11986, D.20 Stratigraphic Section: Locality C11986. D.21 Stratigraphic Section: Locality D11986. ‘D.22 Stratigraphic Section: Locality A12086. D.23 Stratigraphic Section: Locality B12086. D.24 Stratigraphic Section: Locality €12086. D.25 Stratigraphic Section: Locality D12086. D.26 Stratigraphic Section: Locality A12186. D.27 Stratigraphic Section: Locality B12186. D.28 Stratigraphic Section: Locality C12186. 1.29 Stratigraphic Section: Locality DA12186. 461 462 463 464 465 466 468 469 an 472 - 473 414 - 415 416 4aqT + 418 . 479 480 481 482 483 + 484 485 486 487D.80 Stratigraphic Section: Locality E12186. .............. 488 D.31 Stratigraphic Section: Locality F12186. .............. 489 D.82 Stratigraphic Section: Locality A12986. .............. 490 ‘D.33 Stratigraphic Section: Locality B12386. .............. 491 34 Stratigraphic Section: Locality C12386. .............. 492 E.L_ Map of El Chirimoyo (E1-1). . - 525 E.2 Map of El Molino (E1-2). . . . = 526 E.3. Map of La Empedrada (E1-3). . . 827 EA Sketch of Bra de Pando (E1-5). » 528 E.5 Sketch of Chupacigaro Grande (E1-8). + 529 E.6 Sketch of Alpacoto (E1-10). . . + 630 ELT Sketch of Cerro Colorado (E1-11). . . » 531 EB Sketch of Chupacigaro Oeste (E1-13).. - 582 E.9 Sketch of Chupacigaro Chico (El-14). + 533 E.10 Sketch: Site E1-15. » 534 E.11 Sketch of Cerro Blanco Sites (C2-2 and C2-3). » 535ACKNOWLEDGMENTS: Thave been extremely fortunate to receive an excellent graduate education in the United States, initially at Emory University under the guidance of Pro- fessor Thomas Burns and subsequently at UCLA where I had the opportunity to study with several inspiring people whose breadth and knowledge has con- tributed greatly to my education, My deepest thanks go to my chair, Dwight Read, who not only provided @ constant intellectual stimulation and served as a sounding board throughout my studies, but also showed great kindness and true understanding in my most difficult moments. He has given me several invaluable insights and suggestions for new and creative ways to approach research problems. To Allen Johnson I owe a stimulating introduction to the methodology of anthropological research and the importance of fieldwork as well as an exposure to the complexity and diversity of anthropology. Both he and Timothy Earle guided my education in — forming my research orientation. I want to also thank Timothy Earle for his support and guidance especially during the early years of my graduate education. I must also thank Kenneth Sokoloff and Antony Orme for their critical input in my work. would also like to express my gratitude to Ann Walters and Ilene Swartz for their kindness and generous help in guiding me through numerous university regulations. ‘My graduate education has been greatly enriched through numerous interac- tions with several other faculty members at UCLA including B.J. Williams who stimulated my interest in evolutionary issues, Robert Boyd whose fascinatingresearch aroused my interest in cultural transmission processes, Allen Johnson. who gave me an opportunity to work on his time-allocation project, Nicholas Blurton-Jones who provided a thorough introduction to evolutionary ecology, James Hill, Rainer Burger, and James Sackett who introduced me to American. archaeology, Christopher Donnan who led a fascinating seminar on the Moche culture, and Cliff Behrens, Robert Bailey, and Nadine Peacock with whom I had many interesting conversations and discussions. T have special words of gratitude for Andrzej Korbosiski who has been my close friend throughout all these years and a true ally during the most difficult moments, The same thanks and appreciation go to Betsy Korbofski who always treated me as a friend and a family member. Ican only hope that they are aware of my enduring indebtedness to both of them. My fieldwork in Peru was made possible, productive, and enjoyable thanks to many people. I would like to thank Dr. Robert Feldman for sending me his aerial photo set which enabled me to plan my surveys while still in Los Angeles, and for permission to use his Aspero materials. Special thanks go to Dr. Ramon Ferreyra who visited my project in Barranca, guided me through the local lomae and identified some of my plant samples. Carlos Williams was very kind and lent me his maps from his Supe surveys. To Anna Maria Escobar and her family I owe a warm welcome in Lima and help in getting acquainted with the place. My special thanks go to Maria and Henk Thissen who introduced me to Barranca and lent their help during all these month of work. Their friendship and encouragement was invaluable during these several months in Barranca. I must also thank Keese de Bont for driving with me to all those remote areas of the Peruvian coast and to the inland parts of the Supe valley, thus allowing meto conduct my experiments, My special thanks go also to Mariela and Alberto Hague for opening their house to me and accompanying me in some of my trips to the remote areas of the Supe region. My special thanks go to Toto for his friendship and hard work and to Tom and Cindy for their assistence, I would also like to thank numerous people from Barranca, Supe, Chorillos, and Lima whom it is impossible to acknowledge individually by name but who made my field season possible. Lisa Wells conducted the geomorphological analysis that is reported in this dissertation and she has also been a good friend and valuable field companion. I would also like to acknowledge the contribution of Dr. Deborah Pearsall who analyzed the ethnobotanical material from my sites and whose report is incor- porated in my dissertation. I would also like to thank Drs. Minze Stuiver and Harold Krueger for their generous help in providing free radiocarbon dating for my samples. ‘My doctoral research has been made possible through numerous grants and I would like to gratefully acknowledge support from the American Association of University Women, the Inter-American Foundation, Friends of Archaeology, Phi Beta Kappa, and the Graduate Division at UCLA. I would also like to acknowledge the Instituto Nacional de Cultura in Lima, Peru for issuing me the required permits. I would also like to express my thanks to the Decision Sciences Department at the Wharton School for letting me use their computer facilities. Although these few words will be truly inadequate to express my feelings and gratitude, I would like to thank Thomas Burns for bringing me to the United States and becoming not oaly an inspiring academic advisor but a true friend. Both he and Carol have given me their full support and became my familyabroad. I feel truly touched by their friendship and the true greatness of their hearts, and I feel honored that they consider me their “adopted” daughter. I must also thank Tom for motivating me during these last few months of work and for reading the early versions of my thesis. Words are also truly inadequate to express my feelings to Anjani Jain to whom goes the ultimate credit for years of support, encouragement, and love, as well as sound, scientific advise throughout my studies and during the writing of this dissertation. Anjani has assisted me with almost all aspects of my research, data analysis, and especially modelling. Without him my life would not have been nearly as fulfilling and joyous, and it is his unending love that has made the biggest difference in my life. This dissertation belongs to him as much as to me. ‘My love, gratitude, and thoughts also go to my parents who created a uniquely intellectual and artistic house and who were my first teachers. Even though I was not able to see my parents during all these years of studies, my mother and father, my sister Katarzyna, and my brother Pawel have given me their fullest support in all my endeavors and helped me during my stay in the United States through their warm and encouraging letters. It is impossible to ‘express my feelings of gratitude to them.1977-80 1981 1982 1982-84 1985 1984-87 1985-86 1985-86 1985-86 1985-86 1983 1983 1982 1982 VITA Born, Krakéw, Poland Jagiellonian University, Krakéw, Poland Prehistoric Archaeology Master of Arts, Emory University Atlanta, GA Research Staff Associate Center for the Study of Evaluation, UCLA Research Assistant, UCLA Postgraduate Research Assistant, UCLA Teaching Assistant and Consultant Social Sciences Computing Facility, UCLA Project Director, Proyecto Supe, Peru. Inter-American Foundation Fellowship Phi Beta Kappa Scholarship American Association of University Women Fellowship Hortense Fishbaugh Scholarship Kosciuszko Foundation Fellowship IREX Research Grant MacLean Prize, Best Graduate Student, Emory University. Publications and Presentations Hunting and Gathering in Tropical Rain Forest: Is it Possible? with R. Bailey et al. UCLA, Department of Anthropology. 1987. To be published in American Anthropologist. Differentiated Subsistence Modes of the Peruvian Cotton Preceramic Period. Paper presented at the Ilrd Northeastern Conference of Andean Archaeology and Ethnohistory, October 1984, University of Massachusetts, Amherst. xxiiABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION Subsistence Strategies in the Supe Valley of the Peruvian Central Coast During the Complex Preceramic and Initial Periods by Elébieta M. Zechenter Doctor of Philosophy in Anthropology University of California, Los Angeles, 1987 Professor Dwight W. Read, Chair This dissertation is focused on the analysis of socio-economic development and resource utilization in the Peruvian Central coast during the later part of Preceramic (Complex Preceramic) and Initial Periods, with particular empha- sis on the relative importance of marine versus agricultural resources in the development of coastal societies, and the relationship between intensification of the subsistence economy and development of social complexity. The thesis introduces and implements a series of mathematical models known as integer Programs which investigate the subsistence behavior of the Complex Preceramic and Initial Periods populations inhabiting the Supe valley. ‘The thesis provides a reconstruction of the climatic conditions and ecological zonation within the Supe valley, and provides a detailed analysis of the subsis- tence strategies that could have been pursued within each ecozone, their yields, costs, labor requirements, and the associated risks. radvThis issue of subsistence change is investigated within the formal frame- work of an integer programming model. To capture the dynamic, time-variant nature of the complex interactions between population changes and resource exploitation in the ecological environment, the integer programing models are implemented in a disaggregate manner by partitioning the situation spatially ‘as well temporally. The basic temporal disaggregation involves a series of three distinct chronological periods (Pre-Agriculture, Incipient Agriculture, and Early Agriculture Periods), and each of these is spatially disaggregated for two major ecozones of the Supe valley (Coastal and Inland). The maritime hypothesis is not supported by any quantitative estimates of resource availability, nor by the predictions of the subsistence model. Further- more, the evolutionary sequence that emerges from the model indicates that the foundations of Andean complex societies are based on use of monte rather than ‘marine resources. According to the model, maritime resources were never the exclusive basis for human subsistence, and were exploited only in the absence of adequate terrestrial foods. The coastal location of sites, which was beneficial during the earliest period of human habitation (Pre-Agriculture Period), proved to be comparatively disadvantageous when the societies grew more complex (Jn- cipient Agriculture and Early Agriculture).‘The composition of vast books is a laborious and impoverishing extravagance. To go on for five +hundred pages developing an idea whose perfect, oral exposition is possible in a few minutes! A better course of procedure is to pretend that these books already exist, and then to offer a résumé, a commentary. — JorcE Luis BorcEs, Ficciones (1962)Chapter 1 Introduction ‘The Cotton Preceramic Period in coastal Peru has long been described in terms of a maritime subsistence economy. The most recent field evidence, however, demonstrates that the so-called Complex Preceramic and Initial Periods (2500 BC-900 BC) were characterized by diversified subsistence patterns in the coastal area. This thesis is focused on the analysis of socio-economic development and resource utilization in the Peruvian Central coast during the later part of Prece- ramic (Complex Preceramic) and Initial Periods, with particular emphasis on the relative importance of marine versus agricultural resources in the development of coastal societies, and the relationship between intensification of the subsistence economy and development of social complexity. The thesis introduces a series of mathematical models known as integer programs and demonstrates how integer programming allows for greater generality in analyzing resource use than the existing methods. Models are implemented for several scenarios to investigate the subsistence behavior of the populations inhabiting the Supe valley during The results produced by the model lead the Preceramic and Initial Period:to a reinterpretation of the subsistence behavior of coastal societies during the Preceramic and Initial Periods. The thesis starts by addressing the basic question of how adequate the mar- itime resources were as compared to the terrestrial ones obtained by gathering, ‘hunting and/or small-scale planting in the coastal, lower, middle, and the upper ecozones of the Supe valley. The integer programs are implemented for three different chronological periods in order to investigate the evolutionary aspect of the subsistence changes within different valley ecozones. Despite many chal Ienges to and arguments over the maritime theory in the recent years, there is no substantive verification of whether or not it was possible to support population levels beyond those found in simple hunting/gathering bands on resources from the different parts of the valley. As it is discussed in the subsequent chapters, neither the proponents nor the opponents of the maritime theory have provided quantification of the basic resources or attempted to reconstruct the prehistoric environment, Tt has been adequately demonstrated that agriculture was known, if not practised, during the Preceramic Period (see, for instance, Cohen, 1971, Martins, 1976, Pozorski, 1976, Bonavia, 1982, Ugent et al., 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1986). Since most of the crops known at that time seem non-coastal in their origin, it appears that the process of domestification, possibly with a few exceptions, did not take place in the coastal setting. Rather, there are reasous to believe that domesticated plants were introduced from the outside areas (Gade, 1975, Smith, 1977). Therefore, it seems that in the case of coastal Peru we are dealing not with the question of plant domestification but rather with an issue of when and how full scale agriculture came to be practiced. Moreover, even if some plantswere domesticated in the coastal area, their domestification took place before the Complex Preceramic Period and therefore it is not domestification per se that interests us but rather the reason for the increased use of domesticated plants in the coastal economies, as well as the impact that this subsistence intensification had upon the development of social complexity in the area. The other major issue that concerns us is the role of various subsistence strategies in the growth of coastal groups and the subsequent emergence of complex social organi ‘Most previous studies have: poorer of the ex. cavated faunal and floral assemblages from various coastal sites, and inferred on that basis the resource procurement strategies. Unfortunately, there are many inherent problems with this approach. First, the quantification and meaningful interpretation of faunal and floral remains presents a technical problem (Den- nell, 1979). Most field excavations have been conducted in a manner that makes them virtually incomparable to others and, moreover, the analysis of purely ar- chaeological remains tends to distort the picture of aciual diet due to differential preservation of certain plants and animals (for example, most tubers even in the dry areas such as the coast of Peru do not preserve nearly as well as shells and fish bones do). Second, there are immense difficulties in comparing the contri- bution of animal resources versus plant remains to the diet. This poses another Problem in reconstruction of the actual diet from the archaeological record. Fi- nally, based on archaeological data it is hard to evaluate the intensification in food procurement sirategies. Incontrast, a large number of recent studies have taken an economic-ecological Point of view (see for example Joachim, 1976, Keene, 1981, and Flannery, 1976, 1986. Also see bibliography in Orlove, 1980). Using the assumption that theprimary subsistence goal of most human groups is to meet basic food require- ments while at the same time minimizing the labor costs, studies of the changes in socio-economic evolution can be made in a more systematic way. Several studies have demonstrated that there is a significant relationship between the economic adaptation of a human group on the one hand, and the type of envi- ronment and especially the distribution, availability and seasonality of resources, on the other (Chisholm, 1962, Boserup, 1965, Higgs and Finzi, 1972, Carneiro, 1974, Cohen, 1978, Joachim, 1981, Gilman and Thornes, 1985. See also reviews of ecologically oriented literature in Orlove, 1980 and Winterhalter, 1980). ‘This thesis takes, fundamentally, an ecological point of view but one that is informed by ethnographic, geomorphological, and anthropological considera tions. It begins by providing a reconstruction of the ecological zonation within the Supe valley and investigates the availability and distribution of the valley resources particularly with respect to their seasonality, storability, and potential for intensification. The Supe valley is divided into ecologically meaningful seg- ments called ecozones. Within each segment, food procurement strategies are evaluated and the procurement costs of the different types of food resources are examined to determine whether a maritime or a valley-oriented diet, or perhaps a mix of the two, may have been the most efficient way of meeting the caloric and nutritional requirements of populations at the beginning of the Preceramic, during the Preceramic and during the Initial Period. This issue is investigated within the formal framework of an integer pro- gramming model. To capture the dynamic, time-variant nature of the complex interactions between population changes and resource exploitation in the ecolog- ical environment, the integer programing model is implemented in the followingmanner. The subsistence economy is broken down temporally and spatially into small and tractable subsets which allow for 2 more plausible and accu- rate estimation of the average behavior in several specific situations. The basic temporal disaggregation involves a series of three distinct chronological periods (referred to in this thesis as the Pre-Agriculture, Incipient Agriculture, and Early Agriculture Periods), and each of these is spatially disaggregated for two major ‘ecozones of the Supe valley (Coastal and Inland). Each of the six sub-problems is investigated individually for every month of the year in order to account for ‘seasonal variations in resource availability, costs, and risk factors. The resulting 72 subsistence scenarios constitute the basic vehicle for the analysis. Each one is designed to specifically address the subsistence issue during a different period of time and within a different environment. The issue of subsistence intensification in the valley is investigated by exam- ining whether the human settlers in the different ceozones of the valley regions would have been able to maintain a sedentary way of life based on the available wild resources. Agriculture and cultivated plants are introduced into the model to examine the process of subsistence intensification for each of the different valley populations and to see which group would be best suited for maintaining the growing numbers of people. Since risks factors, climate, and resource avail- ability differ between the selected segments of the valley, I demonstrate that the evolutionary trajectory of each of these groups would have been different, and that some would have run into the limits of their subsistence strategies much faster than others and thus be forced to intensify by adding new and more costly methods of food procurement. It is clear that intensification of subsistence and growth of social complexityare complex processes. On the one hand, they involve human intent which is usually culture-bound and therefore difficult to deal with archaeologically. On the other hand, all human groups live within specific environments which im- Pose on them certain economic and ecological constraints. It is accepted in the Titerature that certain factors such as population growth and climatic fluctua- ial role in the selection and introduction of new subsistence tions play an es techniques (see Cohen, 1978). Studies which look at the selection processes and/or optimization aspects of subsistence are founded on the ecological and economic principles that underlie that human behavior and seem to character- ine well the universal aspects of that. process. They point to the importance of economic and ecological variables such as population growth, intensification of subsistence, and the growth of economic complexity in the understanding of human cultural variation (Boserup, 1965, Johnson and Earle, 1987). ‘There is, however, another aspect of the intensification process which has to do with the more idiosyncratic aspects of the situation (see, for instance, Flannery, 1986). In any specific location and specific socio-cultural context period, we deal with the idiosyncrasies of that place, and need to look at several factors which are peculiar to a given situation and can be reconstructed only by studying the local cultural patterns. Moreover, several elusive factors such as intentionality and cultural history play an essential role in determining the economic and subsistence decision making by social groups (see for instance Read, 1986). For these reasons cultural evolution can not be reduced easily to ecological /economic models alone. That should explain why there has been so little success in finding universal reasons for the origins of social complexity or subsistence intensification.‘My goal is to investigate the subsistence intensification in the Supe valley within a theoretical framework which deals not only with the underlying univer- sal processes, but also accounts for the specific ecological and cultural events in coastal Peru. For this reason, even though the evolutionary questions addressed in this thesis are general and I try to elucidate a set of underlying principles, I focus on one locality and its socio-economic transformation during a particular period, and pay special attention to the reconstruction and modelling of the local environment and resource availability. It is unlikely that we will ever know more than the outline of socio-economic growth sequence in the Central Coast of Peru or in the Supe valley for that mat- ter. There are only a few well-preserved Preceramic sites, and a somewhat larger number of Initial Period ones. Moreover, most research indicated that several habitational sites have, most likely, been covered by river deposits, plowed over by intensive agriculture, or otherwise destroyed during the last few thousand years. Among those that survive, only a few have been excavated in any de- tail. Thus our reconstruction of settlement patterns is based on a few extant sites which may have been subject to differential preservation. Furthermore, the faunal and floral remains are likely to be preserved in an equally undetermined manner. Modelling of subsistence presents us with an opportunity to investi- gate those subsistence strategies that could have been practiced in the Supe area. It gives us a possibility to study which of various possible strategies of economic development were most likely adopted in the Supe valley, while, at the same time, permitting to investigate which ones were infeasible and could not have been taken. Actual archacological data are used to evaluate which of these Paths are most likely to have been followed and the thesis provides a scenarioof development of the area. The fieldwork on which this thesis is based was carried out within the Supe- Pativilca area of the Central Coast (see Figure 1.1). The Supe valley was selected due to the existence of several Preceramic and Initial Period sites, previous ar- chaeological fieldwork, the manageable size of the area, and the presence of diverse ecological habitats that allow for the analysis of the indigenous methods of resource procurement. The Supe-Pativilca area is also relatively undevel- oped compared to other parts of the Central Coast, and many native plants and habitats are still present within this area—conditions which enable us to conduct studies of the indigenous subsistence strategies. The coastal strip in the Supe-Pativilca area also contains fishing villages where several traditional Pre- Colonial and Pre-Incaic methods of fish procurement are still employed (Hammel and Haase, 1962, Rostworowski, 1977, 1981). This facilitates an analysis of the maritime subsistence strategies and their comparison with traditional agricul- tural practices which are still employed by small scale farmers within the valley. ‘Three major lines of fieldwork were pursued: © Regional analysis of Preceramic and Initial Period archaeological sites in the Supe Valley by means of site survey in the selected valley zones, coring, and on-site analysis of sampled sites. © Analysis of the geomorphology of Supe Valley with a view to reconstructing environmental and ecological alterations in the area by means of aerial Photos, coring of sediments along and across the shoreline, and general valley reconnaissance.eearn weyjitte Figure 1.1: The Location of the Study Area in the Central Coast of Peru. 10© Analysis of the present-day resource use by means of experimentation, plant censuses, interviews with fishermen, peasants, and mariscadores, self- reports, and participant observation. This thesis is organized as follows: Chapter 2 offers a brief review of previous research on the Complex Preceramic and Initial Period sites in the area of Central Coast and discusses several sce- narios traditionally offered to explain their existence. Recent field data and modern theories dealing with the growth of social complexity, intensification and subsistence changes are discussed. In order to analyze the subsistence strategies of the Preceramic and Initial Periods and to implement the models of resource utilization during that pe- tiod, it is necessary to identify the environmental conditions present during that time, including the climate, topography and distribution of natural resources. Chapter 3 discusses contemporary and prehistoric climate and environment of the Supe area and provides a reconstruction of the natural environment which prevailed during the Preceramic and Initial Periods period. I begin with a detailed description of the current climatic conditions and discuss seasonality, water availability, and short- and long-term environmental stress. I then de- scribe the biological and oceanographic aspects of the phenomenon of el Nifio and its effects upon coastal habitats. Next, I examine the climatic history of the area and provide a climatic reconstruction of the Holocene period. Based upon 4 geological and geomorphological study carried out in the Supe area during the fieldwork a landscape reconstruction of the Preceramic and Initial Periods is provided. Next, the modern vegetation zones and resource availability in the Supe area are reviewed. The geographic extent of each major ecozone in the 1valley is reconstructed. Based on the evidence presented I assert that the eco- logical conditions are different in the coastal, lower, middle, and upper valley Tegions, and argue that the stress factors and risks associated with the resource availability are seasonally different within each of these areas. Chapter 4 focuses on the analysis of food resources and procurement strate- sies available to the Preceramic people in the Supe area. To implement the models of subsistence, it is necessary not only to identify the distributional and Productive characteristics of the natural environment (as was done in Chap- ter 3) but also to understand the methods of resource procurement. Different technologies used to procure the same type of natural resource may produce not, only different returns but may also require different locational, geographic, and climatic conditions to be effective. The chapter investigates several subsistence strategies that could have been pursued within each ecozone, their yields, costs, labor requirements, and associated risks. The basic edible plant and animal re- sources available within different parts of the Supe valley are described and the available procureinent technologies are analyzed. The results of my procurement experiments conducted during the field-trip are also reported and the costs and sussed. yields of each resource are Chapter 5 is concerned with the modelling of resource utilization and its relationship to population growth. ‘This chapter introduces and implements a series of integer programming models which investigate the subsistence behavior of the Preceramic and Initial Periods populations inhabiting the Supe. I begin with a short description of previous modeling efforts of subsistence in the field of anthropology and archaeology and introduce integer programming as a new and more realistic method of economic modelling for subsistence problems. The 12second part of the chapter presents a mathematical exposition of integer pro- gramming and demonstrates how it is more versatile than the previously applied techniques. The integer programming model is then described and implemented for the study area. I review the estimation of the various model parameters, describe the implementation scheme, and present extensive discussion of the model results. The chapter concludes with an analysis and reevaluation of the subsistence patterns within the Supe area. Chapter 6 is based upon fieldwork carried out in the Supe area devoted to the archaeology of the Complex Preceramic and Initial Periods in the Supe- Pativilea area. Early sites found during the surveys of the area are described and organized into chronological periods. Based upon radiocarbon dates obtained for selected sites and upon differences in the character of these sites a typology of settlements is generated. I discuss the distribution of sites its implications for understanding economic changes during that period, Section 6.6 describes the results of ethnobotanical analysis of plant remains procured from the Supe valley sites. The chapter concludes with an evaluation of the archaeological record, both location, types, and patterning of archaeological sites, as well as ethnobotanical evidence, and investigates the fit of these data to the model presented in the previous chapter. ‘The thesis concludes with Chapter 7 which reviews the results of the model and discusses the predicted subsistence and dietary patterns for the Preceramic and Initial Periods. The chapter discusses the possible evolutionary trajectories of the subsistence economies of the Supe area and offers a critical reevaluation of the maritime hypothesis. The final section of the chapter discusses the ro- bustness and validity of the integer programming model used in Chapter 5, and 13the thesis concludes with an outline of future directions of research and possible extensions to the model developed here. In view of the voluminous bulk of the thesis, I would like to suggest that, the cursory reader may want to skim briefly through Chapters 2 through 4, and Chapter 6, at least for an initial reading. Chapter 5 contains the main theo- retical ideas in this thesis, and Chapter 7 offers my conclusions based on the results. Chapters 3 and 4 develop the various aspects of data needed in Chap- ter 5 and can be used, along with the corresponding appendices, as reference material. Sections 5.2 and 5.3 of Chapter 5 assume a basic familiarity with linear programming and its application to the “diet problem” in anthropology (please see Keene, 1981, Johnson and Behrens, 1982), The nonspecialist reader may wish to skip the bulk of these sections at first reading and proceed directly to Section 5.4 after reading Section 5.1 and browsing through the modelling framework described at the beginning of Section 5.3.1. “4Chapter 2 The Peruvian Central Coast and the Emergence of Socio-Economic Complexity 2.1 Previous Research on Early Coastal Societies During the second and third millennia BC (Complex Preceramic and Initial Pe- tiod) the Central Coast of Peru witnessed an unprecedented growth that resulted in the emergence of so-called complex societies based on intensive agricultural Production (see, for instance, Moseley, 1975, Cohen, 1978, Bonavia, 1982, Don- nan ed., 1985, Bird et al., 1985, Haas et al., 1987, Keatinge ed., 1988). The archaeological record provides us with basic characteristic of that period: pop- ulation growth, increased use of agricultural crops, emergence of ceremonial architecture, and the presence of sedentary villages, However, the process by which these evolutionary changes occurred remains largely obscure. There is, in Particular, no agreement in the literature as to what economic basis allowed for ‘the emergence of these early complex societies, or which subsistence strategies 15could support the growing numbers of peoples and growing social complexity (Moseley, 1975, Osborn, 1977, Bonavia, 1982, Wilson, 1981, Raymond, 1981, Zechenter, 1984, Moseley and Feldman, 1988). The archaeological literature abounds in conflicting scenarios and hypotheses, and it is not clear whether the Preceramic people could have been truly sedentary before the advent of agricul- ture, whether they indeed subsisted principally upon marine resources during ‘the Complex Preceramic Period, or at what point marine resources and/or agri- culture started to play an essential role in the emergence of dense populations capable of supporting larger architectural centers. The emergence of early Peruvian complex societies has been a fertile field of inquiry from shortly after the beginning of the XXth century (Lumbreras, 1974). Many discoveries of extensive archaeological sites, with preserved ceremonial ar- chitecture of seemingly early chronological age, prompted several archaeologists to undertake field research in an attempt to clarify the chronological sequence of that period and to understand the evolutionary process that led to the devel- opment of social complexity. I shall briefly describe these advancements in the following sections. 2.1.1 Development of Chronological Sequences Studies of early complex Peruvian societies started in the 1900’s with extensive explorations by Uhle and Tello, whose work led to the development of the first chronological sequence of this region. It was in that period that the notion of cultural horizons was developed, and consequently Andean history was divided into a series of such horizons. According to their sequence, Peruvian history 16started with the oldest Coastal Primitive Fisherman culture, which was followed by the development of complex and fairly advanced societies belonging to the Chavin horizon (Uhle, 1920, Tello, 1942, 1960). Following these early classifications, which were based mainly upon work on burials, monuments, and art objects, came the period of more comprehensive archaeological excavations and field trips, such as the Viru Valley project and studies by J. Bird, bringing new emphasis on habitational sites and regional analysis. These new data suggested that the process of change from egalitarian to non-egalitarian societies in the coastal area was more complex than origi- nally suggested, and furthermore that the change from the Primitive Fisherman Culture toward Chavin Horizon was a multifarious process (Bird, 1948, Willey, 1953). In the 1940’s, studies by Bird (1948) on the North Coast of Peru demon- strated the existence of large early sedentary villages, settled by groups without the knowledge of ceramics and dating therefore to the “Pre-Chavin” horizon. Despite the fact that these villages did not use ceramics, they could not be eas- ily dismissed as Primitive Fisherman groups. They were of sedentary character and seemed to be supported by agricultural diets with some inputs of coastal resources. Bird’s detailed excavations at Huaca Prieta showed that the Andean chronological sequence needed to be supplemented by the addition of a tran- sitional period, now called the Preceramic Period which was characterized by more complexity than that attributed to the originally described Primitive Fish- ermen culture and yet was less developed than the subsequent Chavin horizon (Bird, 1948, Bird, et al., 1985). In the 2950's and 1960's the knowledge of Preceramic coastal sites was greatly 7enlarged by many archaeological surveys conducted by F. Engel, who reported that large and complex Preceramic sites were present all along the Peruvian Coast (Engel, 1957a, 1957b, 1963, 1966, 1967, Fung, 1972). It was the exten- sive work of Engel that provided the basis for recognition of the Preceramic Period in the Andean cultural sequence (Bird, 1948, Engel, 1957a,b, 1963, 1966, 1967). Engel’s discoveries prompted excavations at many of such early coastal sites as Culebras, Rio Seco, and El Paraiso. The so-called Cotton Preceramic Period (2500 BC ~ 1800 BC) became a new focus of research (Engel, 1957a,b, 1963, 1966, 1967, Fung, 1969, 1972, Lanning, 1963, 1967, Moseley, 1968, Pat- terson and Lanning, 1964, Patterson and Moseley, 1968, Craig and Psuty, 1971, Patterson, 1971a,b, 1973, Wendt, 1964, Lumbreras, 1967, Parsons, 1970, Mat- suzawa, 1974, 1978). The growing evidence of ceremonial architecture indicated that Preceramic coastal societies were organized at a level higher than what was described in the literature as typical of hunting-gathering groups or as typical of non-agricultural groups. The presence of architecture, craft objects in form of cotton textiles, carved gourds, and differentiated burial patterns in these sites suggested that the indigenous development was headed towards social stratifi- cation, thus paving the way to the development of early states. 2.1.2 The Maritime Theory It was during the 1960’s that a concept of reliance on maritime foods was de- veloped by E. Lanning (1963, 1967, 1974). He was the first to point out that Peruvian societies may not fit well within the evolutionary schemes of the day. Lanning suggested thai the observed changes in settlement pattern on the coast were related to the subsistence shift according to the following sequence: 181. an initial reliance on hunting and gathering on lomas, with emphasis on seed gathering, 2. a shift to seashore mollusk gathering and fishing, and finally, 3. a dependence on agriculture with maize as the major cultigen. Lanning saw the Cotton Preceramic Period as a transitional period with a mixed subsistence pattern, large centers relying on agriculture supplemented by fishing, and smaller villages focusing on mollusk gathering and fishing (Lanning, 1967). Moseley’s research was an outgrowth of this idea, but he arrived at different conclusions, arguing that marine resources in the Peruvian area were and are perennial, rich, and therefore sufficient to support critical population densities necessary for the development of social complexity (Moseley, 1968, 1975). ‘Moseley (1968) developed a model that related the autochthonous develop- ment of coastal societies to marine exploitation. He emphasized the uniquely Andean character to the development and contrasted the Peruvian coastal situ- ation with the other areas of the world where agriculture provided the economic base underlying the development of complex societies. This maritime model immediately gained importance in the Andean perspective because it pointed to the unusual environmental circumstances of the Peruvian coastal regions. Its importance in comparative world-wide terms was largely due to the fact that it denied the essential evolutionary role of agriculture. Until that time, there was a general assumption in the literature that incipient agriculture has been a Precondition to the rise of civilization, and that “neolithization” was a universal Process which set the stage for social growth and eventual emergence of state entities (Childe, 1951). 19Moseley excavated a group of coastal sites in the Ancén-Chill6n area, mainly middens which consisted primarily, or so it seemed, of shells and bones of sea birds and marine mammals. Examination of these remains led him to the as- sertion that the bulk of calories at his sites came from mollusks, sea mammals, fishes and, to a lesser degree, sea birds, Moseley also emphasized the close-to- shore location of Preceramic sites and the omnipresence of substantial amounts of shell middens along the whole coast. He pointed out that maritime resources in the coastal area are extremely rich, while land itself is mostly barren, arid, and unsuitable for agriculture without expensive irrigation canals. He also ar- gued that even though incipient agriculture was already known at that period, it had mainly industrial importance, rather than being used for cultivation of edible plants (Moseley, 1975). Moseley refined the chronology of the period and proposed the following subdivision of the Cotton Preceramic Period (2500 BC-1750 BC): 1, Pampa Phase (2500-2300 BC) 2. Playa Hermosa Phase (2800-2100 BC) 3. Conchas Phase (2100-1900 BC) 4. Gaviota Phase (1900-1750 BC), which was followed by the Initial Period. (1800 BC until the beginning of Early Horizon around 900 BC) (Moseley, 1975). According to Moseley’s reconstruction of socio-economic development, hunt- ing and gathering were the main means of subsistence of those early inhabitantsof coastal lomas and valleys during the Lithic stage (9500-2500 BC) (and espe- cially its later phase called the Encanto Phase (3600-2500 BC)). Then during the early phases of the Cotton Preceramic, lomas exploitation was replaced by extensive exploitation of the littoral zone, which allowed an emergence of non- egalitarian societies in the Cotton Preceramic, and development of architecture during its later phases of Conchas and Gaviota. In other words, during the phases of Pampa until Gaviota, coastal groupe were maritime with minor use of domesticated cotton and gourds, whereas the Initial Period was characterized by a shift of settlements inland and development of agricultural production based on maize as a staple crop. Moseley’s conclusions were further supported when Feldman (1977, 1980, 1983) excavated the complex site of Aspero located in the Supe valley together with several smaller sites in that area. His analysis of ethnobotanical remains from these sites supported the maritime theory and Feldman argued that marine foods, mainly small fish and mollusks, were of primary dietetic significance at Aspero, and that agricultural products were introduced in significant amounts only during the later part of Late Preceramic and in the Initial Period (Feldman, 1977, 1980. See also discussion in Section 6.1 of Chapter 6.). Feldman’s field observations seemed also to support the newly suggested possibility that the Central Coast has undergone an extensive tectonic uplift during the Holocene which has altered the distribution of sites in the landscape. This observation and subsequent studies on the northern coast were embraced by Moseley and the other proponents of the maritime theory, who now argued that our under- standing of the ecology of the coastal area is and will remain severely limited, and that one can not conduct basic ecologically-oriented studies in Peru in a 21manner similar to other parts of the world (Moseley, 1984, Moseley, et al., 1983, Sandweiss, et al., 1983). 2.4.3 Challenges to the Maritime Theory Fieldwork conducted in the 1970’s in the Peruvian area brought a wealth of new data, much of which seemed contradictory to older theories including the maritime theory and the tectonic uplift theory and raised further issue with our understanding of the development of early Peruvian civilizations, in particular, and early social complexity, in general. As a result, in the late 1970's and 1980's there were some attempts to challenge this dichotomous interpretation, and the debate over “marine” versus “terrestrial” became polemicized with people taking Positions on either side (with Osborn, 1977 Wilson, 1981, Raymond, 1981, and Zechenter, 1984 challenging the theory and Quilter and Stocker, 1983, among others, defending it). Most proponents of the maritime theory have pointed to the close-to-shore location of Preceramic sites and to the omnipresence of substantial amounts of shell middens along the entire coast (Moseley, 1975, 1978, 1983, Feldman, 1977, 1980, 1983, Jackson and Stocker, 1982, Quilter and Stocker, 1983). Wilson (1981) pointed out, however, that seafood resources are not suitable for storage and are subject to periodic disturbances in the form of el Nifio and aguaje. His calculations showed that in the worst case scenario, the carrying capacity of the early agriculture would have been at least six times greater than that of marine fishing and mollusk gathering. Therefore he argued that the terrestrial resources, especially maize, were crucial for the development of the Cotton Preceramic 22