Avaliação: El manejo del agua en los Andes : pasado, presente y futuro – Ancient water and power in the Cabana region, Pallasca province (northern Ancash, Peru)

Recent settlement survey and geospatial study by PIARP (Proyecto de Investigación Arqueológica – Región Pallasca) shed light on water use practices of groups in the northern reaches of highland Ancash department, Peru. Known for being a heartland of the Conchucos, the 'land of water' (in Culle, a now extinct native language), the work in Cabana district details new evidence showing the centrality of water and hydraulic constructions in ancient settlement and cultural life extending back at least two millennia. Developments in the region appear most pronounced during the Early Intermediate Period and Recuay culture (c. AD 1-700) and among ethnic Conchucos groups during the Late Intermediate Period and Late Horizon (together roughly 1000-1532). These include extensive canal systems, some sourcing high altitude lakes and linking places of nucleated settlement, including the region’s best-known archaeological site, the Recuay hilltop centre of Pashash. Specialised well constructions, large walled and canalised reservoirs, and associated sites also feature in the survey zone. In ancient times, these seem to have played important roles in sourcing, distributing and keeping usable water for myriad purposes. Oral traditions and traditional organisation of 'water mayors' in neighbouring provinces also inform on the embeddedness of water in the Cabana region's social and political fabric. The examination thus far indicates that hilltop centres, as seats of political and ritual power, were significant nodes for organising communities sharing hydraulic-based infrastructure and resources.

• andes+hydraulic+settlement patterns+recuay+verticality