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The Contemporary Past of San Pedro de Atacama, Northern Chile: Public Archaeology?

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Abstract

Historically, the relationships between archaeologist and the indigenous communities in San Pedro Atacama (northern Chile) have been complex and conflicting. The study of the contemporary past in this oasis situates us fully in the present, in a horizontal timeframe that gives us the chance to try a new approach to archaeology, letting our practice be guided in a critical, reflexive manner and acknowledging that it is immersed in a fabric of social and political relations. In this article, we examine our archaeological practice as we embark on the study of capitalist expansion in San Pedro de Atacama.

Résumé

Les relations entre les archéologues et les communautés autochtones à San Pedro de Atacama (au nord du Chili) sont traditionnellement complexes et conflictuelles. L’étude du passé contemporain dans cette oasis nous situe pleinement dans le présent, sur une durée horizontale qui nous offre la possibilité d’essayer une nouvelle approche archéologique, laissant notre pratique être guidée de façon critique et réfléchie, tout en convenant qu’elle est immergée dans un tissu de relations sociales et politiques. Dans cet article, nous examinons notre pratique archéologique alors que nous entamons l’étude de l’expansion du capitalisme à San Pedro de Atacama.

Resumen

Históricamente, las relaciones entre el arqueólogo y las comunidades indígenas en San Pedro Atacama (norte de Chile) han sido complejas y conflictivas. El estudio del pasado contemporáneo en este oasis nos sitúa plenamente en el presente, en un marco de tiempo horizontal que nos ofrece la posibilidad de probar un nuevo enfoque en arqueología, dejando que nuestra práctica sea guiada de una manera reflexiva y crítica y reconociendo que está inmersa en un tejido de relaciones sociales y políticas. En el presente artículo, examinamos nuestra práctica arqueológica a medida que nos embarcamos en el estudio de la expansión capitalista en San Pedro de Atacama.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the community of San Pedro de Atacama for working with us throughout this journey. This research has been funded by FONDECYT Project 1120087.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anthropology, Universidad de Chile, Ignacio Carrera Pinto 1045, Ñuñoa, Santiago, Chile

    Flora Vilches

  2. Doctoral Program, Universidad de Tarapacá, Callejón Toro, Ayllu de Séquitor, San Pedro de Atacama, Chile

    Cristina Garrido

  3. Archaeological Chilean Society, 17 Roberts Ave., Bar Harbor, ME, 04609, USA

    Patricia Ayala

  4. Antropologist Chilean Association, Laskar 368, Ayllu de Solcor, San Pedro de Atacama, Chile

    Ulises Cárdenas

Authors
  1. Flora Vilches
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  2. Cristina Garrido
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  3. Patricia Ayala
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  4. Ulises Cárdenas
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Patricia Ayala.

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Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Notes

  1. 1.

    A project is presently underway to renovate the archaeological museum. It is being implemented jointly by the Undersecretary of Regional Development, the San Pedro Municipality, and the Universidad Católica del Norte. The project involves the replacement of the museum building that was constructed gradually by Le Paige in 1960 and following.

  2. 2.

    Energy resources such as firewood (algarrobo and chañar) were also extracted on a smaller scale (Green 2013).

  3. 3.

    These are other “human” entities from another time who will cause sickness among living humans if their rest is interrupted or they do not receive their ritual offerings. They are thus respected, feared, and not to be touched, and this is the reason why the Atacameño people object to the excavation of cemeteries and the display of human bodies.

  4. 4.

    It should be noted that unlike the previous instances, which were specifically focused on the local indigenous population, this one was oriented to the general public, especially children.

  5. 5.

    While as investigators we are not legally obligated, out of respect for and as an expression of good faith, as enshrined in Convention 169, we contacted the communities to inform them of what was being done on private properties located within traditional indigenous territory.

  6. 6.

    Fondecyt projects like ours assume a linear, well-defined timeline (in our case, 4 years) and include the preparation of annual academic reports in pre-established formats, evidence of the informed consent of those interviewed, the publication of articles in indexed journals (ISI, Scopus), the submission of biannual financial reports justifying expenditure of the funds allocated, and the education of undergraduate and graduate students.

  7. 7.

    We are referring to conversations with presidents of communities and/or assemblies in which our objectives were supported and methodological ideas were offered that coincided with our own proposals (make audiovisual recordings of older adults to preserve their testimonials; undertake a kinship study for the cattle-driving era and following; but above all, recover the stories/objects of the “forgotten” or better yet “postponed” 20th century).

  8. 8.

    When it was not possible to speak directly to the assemblies, we organized meetings with community leaders to present the results. These received the same positive response as the assembly presentations.

  9. 9.

    This methodology was implemented in similar contexts in the Saltpeter pampa (Vilches et al. 2012).

  10. 10.

    We are aware of the public objections that have been made to the Fondecyt bioethics committee by different social science scholars, particularly anthropologists.

  11. 11.

    The stories alluded to in this text come from a total of 9 informants interviewed in 2012 and another 6 interviewed in 1996–1998 and 2008–2010. The cattle-driving era is associated with a productive cycle that lasted until around the 1930s or 1940s; meanwhile, the salt, sulfur, and llareta industries were most active from the 1930s until the 1980s (or 1960s in the case of llareta).

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Vilches, F., Garrido, C., Ayala, P. et al. The Contemporary Past of San Pedro de Atacama, Northern Chile: Public Archaeology?. Arch 11, 372–399 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11759-015-9283-x

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