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Investigating obsidian procurement at integration period (ca. AD 700-1500) tola sites in highland northern Ecuador via portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF)

Abstract:

The study of long-distance exchange has long been a focus of research on Ecuadorian prehistory. One of the more prominent archaeological avenues for research on this front has been obsidian sourcing. While much attention has been paid to locating Ecuadorian obsidian sources and documenting their variability, only a few studies have focused on sourcing archaeological artifacts to understand the processes responsible for the distribution of obsidian in prehistory. The results of some of the first chemical characterization analyses of obsidian from Integration Period (ca. AD 700-1500) earthen mound (tola) sites in the País Caranqui region of highland northern Ecuador are presented in this chapter. The analyses of obsidian assemblages from two tola sites, Huataviro and Puntiachíl, suggest that there was differential access to low Fe Callejones obsidian during the Integration Period. Results also suggest that independent procurement processes most likely are responsible for the obsidian distribution patterns observed in the archaeological record. This initial research demonstrates that Caranquis primarily exploited Callejones and Mullumica obsidian. These sources most likely were utilized because of their proximity and it appears that there was some connection between the expedient flake technology employed by Caranquis and the lower quality obsidian from these sources. From the standpoint of chemical characterization research, the results of this study demonstrate that the Bruker Tracer III-V+ SD portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) instrumentation is capable of producing data that are accurate and precise enough to attribute artifacts to known Ecuadorian obsidian source signatures. The ability to bring portable XRF instrumentation to Ecuador will significantly aid in the further examination of some of the initial findings presented in this chapter. Copyright © 2013 American Chemical Society.