Cultura material y fuentes escritas: los Chichas de los Andes del Sur

Abstract

In recent years, archaeological investigation of the Yavi-Chicha ceramic type and the study of the documentary sources of the XVI century about a cultural entity called Chichas has created a conflictive panorama when it came to comparing both sources. The present article presents an overview over the problematic situation and suggests that the existence of the Yavi-Chicha ceramic is linked to a specific territory with a range of stylistic varieties and the presence of the cultural entity called Chichas. Archaeological findings as well as documentary sources allow important insights into the material culture and the ethnohistoric relationships of the Chichas. They also demonstrate the differences as to the use of the colonial concepts of “etnias” and “naciones” and the identity groups which correspond to the persons which were living in this territory. Using both sources of data it will be possible to affirm that the heterogeneous and active relationships between them correspond to different sociopolitical contexts evolving during the existence of this territory, representing a wide panorama of human interrelationships.