Under the direction of Dr. Daniel Sandweiss, Mr. Kurt Rademaker will collect data for his doctoral dissertation research. His project focuses on determining the timing of early human occupation in the Andes Mountains. Human settlement of Earth's high-altitude mountains and plateaus is among the most recent of our species' bio-geographic expansions. Current anthropological models emphasize the physiographic and biological challenges inherent to these extreme environments to explain a lack of pre-11,000 year-old archaeological evidence above 3500 m elevation in the Andes and on the high Tibetan Plateau. However few archaeological studies targeting hunter-gatherer sites have been conducted in these areas.
This interdisciplinary project's primary objectives are to better understand the timing, environmental setting, and adaptations involved in human settlement of the high Andes of southern Peru. Rademaker's investigations so far have led to the discovery of early archaeological sites in the Pucuncho Basin, a wetland oasis ringed by glaciated volcanoes and situated at ~4500 m (~14,760 ft) elevation. One of these sites, Cuncaicha rockshelter, has yielded preliminary radiocarbon dates that indicate an initial settlement of this high-altitude area between 12,400 and 11,800 years ago. These dates establish Cuncaicha as one of the oldest known directly-dated archaeological sites in the Andes Mountains and the highest ice-age site yet discovered anywhere in the world.
The final laboratory phase of this dissertation project, to be funded by NSF, will significantly strengthen the preliminary chronological data from Cuncaicha shelter and provide information on the development of local habitats important to Andean animals and people for successful colonization of high-altitude zones. Rademaker will obtain additional radiocarbon dates for the Cuncaicha rockshelter site and the nearby Rio Blanco geologic section. These archaeological and paleoecologic data will be directly comparable with local glacial geologic records, and these comparisons will shed light on links between late ice-age climatic change, the formation of Andean habitats, and early human settlement of extreme high-altitude environments.
This project will have several broad impacts. By conducting pretreatment of samples at the University of Arizona accelerator mass spectrometry lab, Rademaker will receive valuable training in archaeological scientific methodology. Completion of this dissertation project will yield numerous peer-reviewed journal publications and ultimately lead to publication of an edited volume for a more general audience. The project team has given, and will continue to give, guest lectures at Peruvian and North American universities, in addition to presenting scientific results at professional meetings at home and abroad. Since 2005 this project has provided limited temporary economic benefits to some local inhabitants of the Pucuncho Basin who have assisted in surveys and excavation and provided related support for the project team. The team has brought medicine, vitamins, and educational materials for the school children in Pucuncho's three villages and worked to instill a conservation ethic about archaeological remains in the region. Continued scientific work in the Pucuncho area, which will build upon this Ph.D. dissertation project, will undoubtedly reinforce this ethic and yield additional valuable information on climatic change, ecology, and human prehistory.
The goal of this dissertation project was to understand better the timing, environmental setting, and adaptations involved in the initial human settlement of the high Peruvian Andes. Human settlement of Earth’s high-altitude mountains and plateaus is among the most recent of our species’ geographic expansions. Historically, the challenges inherent to these extreme environments have been invoked to explain a lack of archaeological evidence above 4000 m elevation in the Andes and on the high Tibetan Plateau prior to ~11,000 years ago. However, few archaeological studies targeting early sites have been conducted in these areas, which may account for this lack of evidence. Prior to receiving National Science Foundation Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant # 1208748, the Co-Principal Investigator had discovered and excavated early archaeological sites in the Pucuncho Basin, a wetland oasis ringed by glaciated volcanoes in the Andes of southern Peru. One of these sites, Cuncaicha rockshelter (4480 m elevation), was radiocarbon dated to 12,400-11,800 years ago, establishing Cuncaicha as one of the oldest known archaeological sites in the Andes Mountains and the highest ice-age site yet discovered anywhere in the world. We requested National Science Foundation funds for the final laboratory phase of this dissertation project, in order to: i) radiocarbon date additional samples from Cuncaicha rockshelter to strengthen the preliminary dating, ii) radiocarbon date sediment samples from the nearby Rio Blanco geologic exposure to provide information on the development of local habitats, iii) ship material remains recovered from Pucuncho Basin archaeological sites to colleagues for analysis, and iv) prepare a report sharing the project’s findings with the Peruvian Ministry of Culture, a requirement for all archaeological research projects conducted in Peru. The Co-Principal Investigator personally prepared all samples for radiocarbon dating at the University of Arizona. To test the accuracy of the ages obtained at the University of Arizona, a subset of samples also was dated at PaleoResearch Institute using a separate technique. Dates provided by both laboratories are statistically identical and confirm the antiquity of Cuncaicha rockshelter. Dating of the Rio Blanco geologic exposure indicated an age of only 4000 years, so unfortunately this exposure cannot contribute information on Andean habitats at the time of initial human settlement of this area. Material remains from Pucuncho Basin sites have been shipped to colleagues at institutions in the U.S., Canada, and Germany, and analyses of materials currently are underway to characterize patterns of Andean technology, diet, mobility, and connections between these sites in the high Andes and sites in other ecological zones. The Co-Principal Investigator submitted a technical report to Peru’s Ministry of Culture, fulfilling legal obligations for conducting archaeological research in Peru. Thanks to National Science Foundation support of this project, Cuncaicha rockshelter is one of the best-dated late ice age archaeological sites in all of South America. Despite colder temperatures, more extensive glaciers, and low-oxygen conditions, successful human colonization of the high-altitude Pucuncho Basin began ~12,600-11,800 years ago at the end of the last ice age, and humans have been present in the Pucuncho Basin throughout the past 12,000 years. Such long occupation sequences are rare in Peru and almost unknown in the high Andes. We plan further research at this site to investigate long-term environmental change and Andean cultural development. This project contributed new archaeological information on the geographic expansion and adaptations of humans in extreme high mountain environments, and the project provided valuable educational and professional development opportunities for the Co-Principal Investigator, as well as graduate and undergraduate students who participated as field and laboratory assistants. The Co-Principal Investigator completed a doctoral dissertation and a technical report written in Spanish for Peru's Ministry of Culture, which also was distributed to the pastoralist communities of the Pucuncho Basin. We have presented results from this work at the Society for American Archaeology annual meeting and at various academic institutions in the U.S. and abroad. Results from this dissertation project have been published in an edited volume through University of Utah Press, Quaternary International, Boletín de Arqueología PUCP (Lima, Peru), and Geology. The Co-Principal Investigator currently is preparing a manuscript on Cuncaicha rockshelter and the late ice age settlement of the high Peruvian Andes to be submitted for publication fall 2013.
