Archaeological Investigations at Yunkaray (Cuzco, Peru): Reconstructing the Rise and Fall of an Early Inca Rival (A.D. 1050–1450)

In the highland Andes during the centuries leading to Inca imperial expansion (ca. A.D. 1400–1530s), the people of the Cuzco Basin established alliances and rivalries with diverse neighbors living across the Cuzco region. Among the most powerful of those groups was a polity centered at Yunkaray (occ...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of field archaeology 2018-05, Vol.43 (4), p.332-343
Main Authors: Quave, Kylie E., Covey, R. Alan, Cáceres, Karen X. Durand
Format: Article
Language:English
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:In the highland Andes during the centuries leading to Inca imperial expansion (ca. A.D. 1400–1530s), the people of the Cuzco Basin established alliances and rivalries with diverse neighbors living across the Cuzco region. Among the most powerful of those groups was a polity centered at Yunkaray (occupied ca. A.D. 1050–1450) on the Maras Plain just northwest of the burgeoning city of Cuzco. Recent settlement survey and excavations in and around Yunkaray have identified the site as the principal settlement of the Ayarmaca group, which remained outside the sphere of Inca cultural influence despite its proximity to Cuzco. The distinctive nature of Yunkaray’s interaction with the Incas is examined here through household excavations, which indicate that the large village was occupied by a population presenting modest status distinctions and relying on locally derived sources of social identity.
ISSN:0093-4690
2042-4582
DOI:10.1080/00934690.2018.1456839