EXPLORING COPPER SOURCES FROM THE LATE INTERMEDIATE PERIOD AND LATE HORIZON IN THE CALCHAQUÍ VALLEYS, NORTHWESTERN ARGENTINA

VERONICA I WILLIAMS; CASTELLANOS, MARÌA CECILIA; LAZARTE, ENRIQUE; MIGUEL AZAREVICH ; LUIS HORTA

La Plata

Workshop; Exploring Copper: local and global perspectives on the study of copper use, circulation and provenance in the pre-Columbian Southern Andes; 2025

Wenner Gren

Evidence of the use of copper for metallurgical and lapidary production at sites from the Late Intermediate Period (PIT) (900 to 1400 AD) and the Late Horizon (1430 to 1536 AD) of the middle and southern Calchaquí Valley, Salta province, is presented in fragments of refractory ceramics (molds, intermediates, and crucibles), metal, mineral fragments, and beads that were recovered through systematic research carried out at sites in Tacuil and La Campana, in the upper ravines of the middle sector of the Calchaquí valley, and Tolombón, towards the south of the same valley. High ravine environments (between 2,600 and 3,400 meters above sea level) connect the Calchaquí valleys with the current Puna of Salta and Catamarca.Some metal pieces come from tomb contexts at Tacuil that were excavated non-systematic towards the end of the 19th century. They are currently kept in national museum collections. The study of refractory ceramics and metals and the application of the SEM-EDS technique have allowed us to propose a metallurgical production chain through casting26in molds. This would include the smelting of copper or metallic copper minerals, the use of tin bronze, and the use of substances rich in calcium and phosphorus for the demolding of the pieces.By applying SEM-EDS techniques, X-ray diffraction, and Raman spectroscopy on mineral fragments and beads, we have identified the use of turquoise, chrysocolla, aragonite, and atacamite. All raw materials are mostly available in the Puna environment; although some are also available in the valleys.We work from archaeology and geology, seeking to develop a cartography of sources and answer questions that help us interpret the material evidence to understand the use of copper among the pre-Hispanic populations of the Calchaquí Valley during the PIT and the HT. From this, we ask ourselves about the sources of copper available in the area and the variability of ores in the region; in addition to the mechanisms and circulation routes that allowed access to mineral resources from areas further away from the Calchaquí valley.