Anthropology • Archaeology • Latin America

Excavations at Cerro Azul, Peru: The Architecture and Pottery

Joyce Marcus

Recipient of the Jo Anne Stolaroff Cotsen Prize

During the Late Intermediate period (AD 1100-1470), the lower Cañete Valley of Peru was controlled by the walled Kingdom of Huarco. While inland sites produced irrigated crops, the seaside community of Cerro Azul, 130 km south of Lima, produced fish for the rest of the kingdom. Cerro Azul's noble families lived in large, multipurpose compounds with tapia walls. Their pottery had its strongest ties with valleys to the south, such as Chincha and Ica. During the course of excavation, the University of Michigan Project excavated two tapia buildings in their entirety, saving every sherd from every room, walled work area, feature, and midden. This remarkable volume is the final site report on the architecture and pottery of Late Intermediate Cerro Azul.

ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTORS

Joyce Marcus is Robert L. Carneiro Distinguished Professor of Social Evolution,department of anthropology, and director and Curator of Latin American Archaeology, Museum of Anthropology, at the University of Michigan.

Published By The Cotsen Institute of Archaeology Press

8.5 x 11 in. 360 pages 20 color plates, 7 color photos, 297 figures