Prehistoric psychotropic consumption in Andean Chilean mummies

Hallucinogenic plants are often regarded as the main source of psychoactive drugs in antiquity to reach deep altered states of consciousness^1,2^. Many researchers believe this was particularly true during the Tiwanaku empire expansion, circa (500-1000 A.D.), along the Atacama Desert of Chile. Highly decorated snuffing tablets and tubes are often found as grave goods during this period^3,4,5,6,7,8^. Until now the type of drugs consumed in this paraphernalia has been unclear. From the modern city of Arica, naturally mummified human bodies with abundant hair provided a unique opportunity to test for hallucinogenic plants consumed in Andean prehistory. Analysis by gas chromatography and mass spectrometry demonstrated the presence of harmine. The Banisteriopsis vine, commonly called Ayahuasca, was the probable source. This is the first confirmed evidence of psychoactive plant consumption in pre-Hispanic Andean populations along the Atacama coastal region. Of the 32 mummy hair samples analyzed 3 males tested positive for harmine. This alkaloid aids in the catalysis and synergic effects of powerful hallucinogenic drugs. The consumption of harmine was likely related to medicinal practices and not exclusively ingested by shamans. Another important aspect of this evidence is that Banisteriopsis is an Amazon plant. It does not grow in the Atacama coastal region. Thus, our findings reveal extensive plant trade networks in antiquity between the coast, desert, highlands, and Amazon basin. The excellent preservation of human organic specimens, the use of gas chromatography and mass spectrometry allowed us to map and demonstrate the consumption of psychoactive compound plants in Andean prehistory. In addition, our findings open the door for future studies to debate the consumption and social role of ancient psychoactive and hallucinogenic plants

MULTI-INSTRUMENTAL IDENTIFICATION OF ORPIMENT IN ARCHAEOLOGICAL MORTUARY CONTEXTS

Indexación: Web of Science; Scielo.This paper reports on an unknown yellowish mineral compound found in an archaeological context from Chorrillos cemetery (Calama, Chile) dating to the Early Formative period (800 - 200 B.C.). We used optic microscopy, SEM, EDX, 1H-RMN, 13C-RMN, and infrared (IR) and Raman spectroscopy to tease out the chemical and molecular composition of the sample. The microscopic images show amorphous yellowish granulates with heterogeneous chemical surfaces. 1H-RMN and 13C-RMN negative results show that the sample is free of organic matter. The SEM and EDX indicate the presence of arsenic and sulfur in the sample. The IR and Raman analyses suggest the presence of orpiment which is a toxic yellow arsenic sulfide mineral.http://ref.scielo.org/mfcms

Evaluación de materiales filtrantes para el reúso en agricultura de aguas residuales tratadas provenientes de zonas áridas

This study was aimed to evaluate Sand, Activated Charcoal and Zeolite as filter materials to assess their effect on water salinity and others important water quality parameters for municipal wastewater reuse in arid environments. For this, filtration systems were built. In influent and effluents were evaluated the following parameters: a) Boron (B), b) Chloride (Cl-), c) Sulfate (SO4-2), d) Calcium (Ca+2), e) Electrical Conductivity (EC), f ) pH h) Temperature (T), besides a group of heavy metals. The results showed that Activated Charcoal removes B to concentrations below 0.75 mg/L. However, during initial stage (first two weeks) effluents from Activated Charcoal filters showed EC above 2.5 dS/m and pH above 8.4. Probably these effluents will bring problems in water reuse for irrigation in crops. In the case of Sand, lixiviation problems with As and Sodium were defined. This lixiviation problem was associated to material’s origin. By contrast, the Zeolite is the only material with potential use as filter to remove salinity. The Zeolite was able to reduce by up to 20% the value of the EC without negative effect in any other water quality parameter evaluated in this study. In addition, Zeolite did not show any saturation problem during operational time.Este trabajo tuvo por objetivo evaluar la arena (A), el carbón activado (CA) y la zeolita (Z) como materiales filtrantes para valorar su efecto en reutilización para agricultura de aguas residuales tratadas de un ambiente árido. Para esto se construyeron 7 columnas de filtración: a) columna 1, 100 % de Z, b) columna 2, 100 % de CA (origen A), c) columna 3, 100 % de CA (origen B), d) columna 4, 100 % de A, e) columna 5, 50 % de Z sobre 50 % de CA, f) columna 6, 50 % de A sobre 50 % de CA, y g) columna 7, 50 % de Z sobre 50 % de A. En el afluente y efluente se evaluó boro (B), cloruro (Cl-), sulfato (SO4-2), calcio  (Ca+2), conductividad eléctrica (CE), pH y temperatura (T), junto a un grupo de metales pesados (As, Cd, Cu, Fe, Mn, Pb y Zn). Los resultados mostraron cómo el CA (de origen A o B) es capaz de remover boro a valores por debajo de 0,75 mg/L. Sin embargo, en una etapa inicial (primera quincena) los efluentes a este medio filtrante, presentaron un valor de CE mayor a 2,5 dS/m, y de pH mayor a 8,4, lo que seguramente traerá problemas para su aplicación en riego de cultivos. Por su parte, la arena, al ser de la región, presenta problemas de lixiviación de elementos, como el arsénico y el sodio, por lo que no debería utilizarse como material filtrante. Por el contrario, el único medio evaluado que tiene potencial de ser aplicado en la reducción de la salinidad es la zeolita. Este material filtrante, sin mezcla con otro, fue capaz de reducir hasta un 20 % el valor de la CE sin tener un efecto negativo en ninguno de los otros parámetros evaluados en este estudio, y además, sin mostrar un estado de saturación durante el tiempo de operación evaluado. En el caso de las columnas que utilizaron mezclas de materiales, no existe un efecto sinérgico para la eliminación de los parámetros de calidad del agua evaluados

De la arqueología en otros países de América

Esta sección contiene la reseña de los diferentes trabajos academicos más importantes relacionados con la investigación arqueológica en latinoamerica; se encuentran las siguientes reseñas:El significado de la difusión como factor de evoluciónLa serie ValoidePlantas alimenticias del Ecuador PrecolombinoInvestigaciones sobre minería y metalurgia en el Perú prehispánicoEvidencias de inhalación de alucinógenos en esculturas TiwanakuMomias de cerca de 8000 años de antigüedad halladas en ChilePatologías óseas de la población morr0-1 asociada al complejo chinchorro: norte de chileCráneos de paredes gruesasAl otro lado de Chiriquí, El Diquis: Nuevos datos para la integración cultural de la región Gran ChiriquíModos de subsistencia lacustr

Violence in fishing, hunting, and gathering societies of the Atacama Desert coast: A long-term perspective (10,000 BP—AD 1450)

In this study, we examine the long-term trajectory of violence in societies that inhabited the coast of the Atacama Desert in northern Chile using three lines of evidence: bioarchaeology, geoarchaeology and socio-cultural contexts (rock art, weapons, and settlement patterns). These millennia-old populations adopted a way of life, which they maintained for 10,000 years, based on fishing, hunting, and maritime gathering, complementing this with terrestrial resources. We analyzed 288 adult individuals to search for traumas resulting from interpersonal violence and used strontium isotopes 87Sr/86Sr as a proxy to evaluate whether individuals that showed traces of violence were members of local or non-local groups. Moreover, we evaluated settlement patterns, rock art, and weapons. The results show that the violence was invariant during the 10,000 years in which these groups lived without contact with the western world. During the Formative Period (1000 BC-AD 500), however, the type of violence changed, with a substantial increase in lethality. Finally, during the Late Intermediate Period (AD 1000–1450), violence and lethality remained similar to that of the Formative Period. The chemical signal of Sr shows a low frequency of individuals who were coastal outsiders, suggesting that violence occurred between local groups. Moreover, the presence of weapons and rock art depicting scenes of combat supports the notion that these groups engaged in violence. By contrast, the settlement pattern shows no defensive features. We consider that the absence of centralized political systems could have been a causal factor in explaining violence, together with the fact that these populations were organized in small-scale grouping. Another factor may have been competition for the same resources in the extreme environments of the Atacama Desert. Finally, from the Formative Period onward, we cannot rule out a certain level of conflict between fishers and their close neighbors, the horticulturalists

Chinchorro Twined Shrouds

The first inhabitants of the South Central Andes arrived to the Pacific coast of what is now Northern Chile and Southern Peru about 8000 BC. The early Chinchorro were fisher-hunter-gatherers that made use of two media for their artistic expressions, their own bodies and large canvases made from twined reeds and sedges. Mats and textiles were used for a variety of domestic and personal uses, including shelter, packaging and shrouding the dead. It is likely they were used as blankets for the living as well. The textile shrouds and stylistic mummification techniques employed by the Chinchorro culture predate pottery, agriculture and metal work Large shrouds made of semi-processed sedge fiber were probably made with a basic warp-weighted loom and twinning. Evidence indicates that they were initially painted and by 6000 BC they were embroidered with dyed camelid hair in a variety of geometric designs. Analyses of a decorated twined shroud from the Morro site in Arica, Chile together with contexts gathered from other archaeological evidence help build a more complex picture of the Chinchorros and their environment. Recent studies, including fiber, dye, construction and stylistic analyses reveal the experimentation and growth of technologies, materials and communication that are the beginning of the long and rich Andean coastal textile tradition. The textile studies plus the mortuary contexts provide new insight into the lives of these first settlers in the Americas