Settlement patterns in the Early Ceramic Period of Central Chile

Abstract

Essential to understanding prehispanic settlement systems is the identification of the structure and relationships of archaeological sites within a region. Here we examine the results of a survey program that included the Rancagua basin, Santiago basin and Melipilla valley in Central Chile, in order to make inferences related to the settlement pattern of groups that inhabited this area during the Early Ceramic Period. The data show clusters of sites grouped near water resources, mainly river valleys, and empty spaces that share the same geographical conditions but have no evidence of ancient occupation. We use ethnographic and ethnohistorical evidence to propose that this pattern relates to the social organization of groups, with families as the closest cooperative level, and whose subsistence economy is mainly horticulture.