Arqueología y memoria de los caminantes de la precordillera de camarones, Sierra de arica

Abstract

This article presents a case study about prehispanic and traditional mobility in the South Central Andes, which centers around paths that converge on the foothills of the Camarones Valley. Unlike the prehispanic towns abandoned during the 16th century, this network of roads continued to be used until recent times, being part of active mobility circuits for the communities that currently inhabit these spaces. For many of them, the paths constitute an object of memory and connection to the past that cannot be accomplished through spoken language. Following two of these paths by foot allowed us to document a total of 42 archeological sites that show evidence of occupations dating back to the Late Intermediate period until recent times (centuries X-XX). The paths as well as certain sites were recognized and occupied by the people who participated in our ethnographic work. From this we are able to conclude that until the second half of the 20th century different strategies of transit coexisted, associated with diverse social practices that allowed us to identify travelers, their circuits and their places of origin.