This page contains selected papers by Bruce Owen about archaeological research in Peru, including
- Published articles, with full text and graphics
- Conference papers
- Technical reports to the Peruvian Instituto Nacional de Cultura (now the Ministerio de Cultura)
- My dissertation on the coastal Osmore (Ilo) valley
- My Master's thesis on common metal objects in the Inka state (Partially superseded by Owen 2012)
plus
- Photo galleries of ceramics. Over 50 photos of Ilo-Tumilaca/Cabuza ceramics. Chen Chen, Chiribaya, and possibly other styles coming eventually.
- Picture gallery of ceramics. Thirteen representative colored drawings of ceramic vessels.
- Papers on Chiribaya ceramics and culture by David Jessup, with his permission
- An introduction to Kite Aerial Photography as I used it to make photographic site maps before switching to a drone
- Statistical studies of historical assemblages from San Francisco and Oakland through the Anthropological Studies Center at Sonoma State University.
The papers are nearly identical to the original paper documents, including pagination. They may be cited. To view them, you may need a PDF viewer such as the free Adobe Acrobat Reader.
For information about the author, including titles of additional papers and technical reports that are available by request, please see my curriculum vitae.
2012. The meanings of metals: The Inca and regional contexts of quotidian metals from Machu Picchu. In The 1912 Yale Peruvian Scientific Expedition Collections from Machu Picchu: Metal Artifacts, ed. by R.L. Burger and L.C. Salazar. Yale University Publications in Anthropology 91:73-189, 249-304. (Full text, tables, figures, and references.) Explores the expression of multiethnicity by yanacona inhabitants of Machu Picchu by identifying likely regions of origin of their metal objects, using 186 maps of geographic distributions of over 10,000 metal artifacts across the Andes. Presents a typology of metal artifacts. Shows that Inka metal assemblages were variable, not standardized. Evaluates whether certain artifact types were markers of Inka state affiliation or Cuzqueño ethnicity; some items often considered "Inka" clearly were not. Tracks life histories of metal artifacts, including use of some tupus and tumis as cutting implements, intentional destruction, and subsequent repair. Intended to help Andeanists interpret their own finds. 44.6 M.
2009. Early Agriculture in the Coastal Osmore Valley, Peru: Synchronous Events and Macroregional Processes in the Formation of Andean Civilization. In Andean Civilization: A Tribute to Michael E. Moseley, ed. by Joyce Marcus and Patrick Ryan Williams. Monograph 63, Cotsen Institute of Archaeology, University of California, Los Angeles. Documents and dates preceramic and early ceramic occupations at El Algodonal and Loreto Viejo, with attention to the paleobotanical inventory over time. Shows committed agriculture by 1900 to 1600 cal BC. Suggests that the adoption of agriculture was roughly synchronous along the Central Andean coast, possibly associated with a widespread dry period. Discusses a possible concurrent shift in emphasis in marine resources from shellfish to fish. Documents and discusses an initial scarcity of maize followed by a dramatic increase. Read but no download.
2009. La expansión y el colapso de Tiwanaku y el papel de Arequipa. In Arqueología del Area Centro Sur Andina, ed. by M. Ziólkowski, J. Jennings, L.A. Belan Franco, and A. Drusini. Andes (Boletín del Centro de Estudios Precolombinos de la Universidad de Varsovia) 7:431-460. Explicit synthesis of the two-stage diaspora model in Owen 2005; model and research questions for Arequipa. In Spanish. 8.5 M.
2007. Rural Wari Far from the Heartland: Huamanga Ceramics from Beringa, Majes Valley, Perú. Andean Past 8:287-373. 6.7 M.
2007. Comment on Axel Nielsen: Armas Significantes. Boletín del Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino 12(1):33-34. Identifies three common flaws in studies of meaning or symbolism of material culture. In English. 103 K.
2005. Distant Colonies and Explosive Collapse: The Two Stages of the Tiwanaku Diaspora in the Osmore Drainage. Latin American Antiquity 16(1):45-80. 10.3 M.
2002. Marine Carbon Reservoir Age Estimates for the Far South Coast of Peru. Radiocarbon 44(3):701-708. 1.3 M.
2001. The Economy of Metal and Shell Wealth Goods. In Empire and Domestic Economy, edited by T. D'Altroy and C. Hastorf, Kluwer Academic / Plenum. Wealth goods among the Wanka of the Late Intermediate Period and Late Horizon near Jauja, Peru. Part of the Upper Mantaro Archaeological Research Project (UMARP). Quantitative analyses of distributions of metals among commoners and elites, and changes under Inka conquest. Illustrations and tables. Includes table of contents and combined bibliography of the whole volume. 1.1 M.
2001. Tiwanaku en Moquegua: Interacciones Regionales y Colapso. Boletín de Arqueología PUCP 5:169-188. (B. Owen and P. Goldstein). 4.9 M.
1996. Abandoning arsenic? Technological and cultural changes in the Mantaro Valley, Perú. Boletín del Museo del Oro, Bototá, Colombia 41:119-129. (A. Bezur and B. Owen). Evidence for the Inka tin-bronze horizon and reasons for it. 275 K.
1987. Analysis of the Human Burials, 1977-1983 Field Seasons:
Demographic Profiles and Burial Practices. In Archaeological Field Research in the Upper Mantaro, Peru, 1982-1983: Investigations of Inka Expansion and Exchange, edited by
T. Earle, T. D'Altroy, C. Hastorf, C. Scott, C. Costin, G. Russell, and E. Sandefur, Monograph XXVIII, Institute of Archaeology, University of California, Los Angeles. (B. Owen and A. Norconk). Burial practices, grave lots, demographics, etc. for mostly Late Intermediate Period and Late Horizon Wankas near Jauja, Peru. Shows that Inka conquest improved survivorship among the conquered people. Part of the Upper Mantaro Archaeological Research Project (UMARP). Extensive data tables. 2.5 M.
2001. From Sequence to Social Organization: Tiwanaku Multicomponent Society in Moquegua, Perú. Paper presented at the 66th Annual Meeting of the Society for American Archaeology, New Orleans. 1.2 M.
1998. Bows and Spearthrowers in Southern Peru and Northern Chile: Evidence, Dating, and Why It Matters. Paper presented at the 63rd Annual Meeting of the Society for American Archaeology, Seattle. 667 Kb.
1995. Warfare and Engineering, Ostentation and Social Status in the Late Intermediate Period Osmore Drainage. Paper presented at the 60th Annual Meeting of the Society for American Archaeology, Minneapolis. 180 K.
1994. Were Wari and Tiwanaku in Conflict, Competition, or Complementary Coexistence? Survey Evidence from the Upper Osmore Drainage, Perú. Paper presented at the 59th Annual Meeting of the Society for American Archaeology, Anaheim. 970 K.
1993. Early Ceramic Settlement in the Coastal Osmore Valley: Preliminary Report. Paper presented at the Institute of Andean Archaeology annual meeting, 1993. 320 K.
1992. Coastal Colonies and the Collapse of Tiwanaku: The Coastal Osmore Valley, Perú. Paper presented at the 57th Annual Meeting of the Society for American Archaeology, Pittsburgh. 220 K.
1985. The Changing Use of Metals in the Mantaro Valley: LIP and LH. (B. Owen and T. Earle). Paper presented at the 25th Annual Meeting of the Institute of Andean Studies, Berkeley. 3.5 M.
Reports to the Instituto Nacional de Cultura
2007. Complejos de Patios con Columnas de Camaná: Levantamiento, Sondeos, y Fechados para Definir su Filiación Cultural y Cronológica: Informe de Campo e Informe Final. (H. Tantaleán and B. Owen). Report to the Instituto Nacional de Cultura. Mapping and test excavation of three residential sites in the Camaná valley that prove to date to the early Colonial period or the very end of the Late Horizon, sealed by volcanic ash in AD 1600. Site maps, unit descriptions, photos, interpretations, but no artifact analysis. In Spanish. Radiocarbon dates still pending. 25.1 M.
1999. Proyecto "Vecinos de Cerro Baúl" 1997: Informe de Campo e Informe Final. Report to the Instituto Nacional de Cultura. Test excavations at La Cantera (an Omo style Tiwanaku temple), Cancha de Yacango (a Chen Chen style Tiwanaku village and cemetery), Cerro San Miguel (a Tumilaca village), and two other Tumilaca sites. Site maps, unit descriptions, interpretations, initial artifact inventory, but no artifact analysis. In my approximation of Spanish. 1.2 M.
1997. Informe de Excavaciones en los Sectores Mortuorios de Chen Chen, Parte del Proyecto Rescate de Chen Chen, Temporada de 1995. Report to the Instituto Nacional de Cultura. Maps of the central cemeteries of Chen Chen tested in 1995 and each of 22 4x8 meter exposures. Mostly tombs, intact and looted, some before the AD 1600 Huaynaputina ash fall, plus one area of storage pits. Tabulation of cemetery areas, burial densities, and estimate of total number of burials. Certain canals were apparently abandoned before the use of some cemeteries. Inventory lists of contexts and artifacts. In my approximation of Spanish. 1.7 M.
1996. Inventario Arqueológico del Drenaje Superior del Río Osmore: Informe del Campo y Informe Final. Report to the Instituto Nacional de Cultura. Background text, references, and maps showing the locations of all sites recorded during systematic surface survey of the upper drainage of the Osmore valley (Cerro Baúl, Tumilaca valley, Torata valley, etc.), with a table listing ceramics and other features of each. UTM coordinates (PSAD56 datum) of all sites. Various official documents. In my approximation of Spanish. Large: 8.7 M.
1994. Inventario Arqueológico del Valle Osmore Costero: Informe del Campo y Informe Final. Report to the Instituto Nacional de Cultura. Background text, references, and maps showing the locations of all sites recorded during systematic surface survey of the coastal Osmore valley, with a table listing ceramics and other features of each. Similar to Appendix F of my dissertation, but better reports UTM coordinates (PSAD56 datum). In my approximation of Spanish. 1.8 M.
1992. Proyecto Colonias Costeras de Tiwanaku, 1989-90: Informe del Campo y Informe Final. Report to the Instituto Nacional de Cultura. Background, project details, unit-by-unit descriptions of excavations at El Algodonal, Loreto Alto, and Loreto Viejo, references, site maps, two example excavation area maps, table of context information for every excavated provenience, and inventory of all material collected. Parts are similar to Appendix A of my dissertation, but at an earlier stage of assessment. In my approximation of Spanish. 15.1 M.
1993. A Model of Multiethnicity: State Collapse, Competition, and Social Complexity from Tiwanaku to Chiribaya in the Osmore Valley, Perú. Dissertation. Survey, excavation, and lab analysis primarily concerning Ilo-Tumilaca/Cabuza and Chiribaya cultures near Ilo, Peru, framed by a model of varying numbers of distinct social groups under different circumstances. Contrary to expectations, there were no Tiwanaku colonies near Ilo. Instead, former Tiwanaku colonists moved into the coastal valley around cal A.D. 1000 as the Tiwanaku state collapsed. Some aspects of chronology and interpretation have been superceded by later work, including some of the papers above. 14.0 M.
Master's thesis (Partially superseded by Owen 2012 above)
1986. The Role of Common Metal Objects in the Inka State. Master's thesis. Seeks types of copper-alloy objects that might be associated with Inka state strategies, based on a study of metal assemblages from Inka sites and the geographic distribution of metal artifact types plotted from a database of over 3000 objects. Discusses the Late Intermediate Period and Late Horizon metal artifact assemblage from the Jauja area recovered by the Upper Mantaro Archaeological Research Project, with tables of chemical compositions. This posted version does not include the illustrations or maps of geographic distributions of artifacts, because that portion of the study has been superseded by the analysis of a much larger database, presented in Owen 2012, available above.
1991. General Trends in the Development of the Chiribaya Culture, South-coastal Peru. Paper presented at the 56th Annual Meeting of the Society for American Archaeology, New Orleans. Briefly presents Jessup's three phases of Chiribaya ceramics (Algarrobal, Yaral, and San Geronimo), describes results of cemetery excavations at San Geronimo, and suggests general hypotheses about Chiribaya prehistory. Sixteen detailed figures, including examples of the ceramic phases, related styles, and two tombs with grave goods, reproduced at good quality from mediocre xeroxed originals. See Jessup 1990c for more complete textual descriptions of the ceramic styles. Posted by permission of the author. Large: 8.2 M.
1990. Desarollos Generales en el Intermedio Tardio en el Valle de Ilo, Peru. Informe Interno del Programa Contisuyo. Draft, never finalized. Broader and more thorough than Jessup 1991, but without figures. Synthetic review of Chiribaya culture and archaeology. Detailed textual description of ceramic styles: Tumilaca, Chiribaya-Algarrobal, Chiribaya-Yaral, Chiribaya-San Geronimo, Ilo Multi-color, Osmore Multi-color, San Miguel, Pocoma/Gentilar, Estuquiña, and Porobaya Multi-color. See Jessup 1991 for illustrations; compare to Owen 1993 Appendix B and the "picture gallery" below. Discusses chronology of ceramic styles. Some details are now debatable, but most of this pioneering paper is still valid. In unedited Spanish. Posted by permission of the author. 120 K.
2009. Social Status in San Francisco and Oakland: Status Indices and Social Reality (B. Owen), and Conclusions About Quantitative Methods (B. Owen). In The Power of Numbers - Material Status Index and Moving Forward. (M. Praetzellis, A. Praetzellis, and B. Owen). An investigation of multivariate indices of overall status suggests that only indices that combine numerous variables correlate well with historically documented professional status. For South of Market: Historical Archaeology of 3 San Francisco Neighborhoods. The San Francisco-Bay Bridge West Approach Project. Two volumes, Anthropological Studies Center, Sonoma State University, edited by Mary Praetzellis and Adrian Praetzellis. 2.7 M.
2009. Consumption and Status in Nineteenth-century San Francisco and Oakland: Statistical Analyses for the San Francisco West Approach Project. Quantitative analyses of many artifact types by categories such as profession, ethnicity, and religion suggest surprising details about nineteenth-century urban life in San Francisco and Oakland. Also includes the social status analysis and methodological conclusions in the article above. For South of Market: Historical Archaeology of 3 San Francisco Neighborhoods. The San Francisco-Bay Bridge West Approach Project. Two volumes, Anthropological Studies Center, Sonoma State University, edited by Mary Praetzellis and Adrian Praetzellis. 3.9 M.
2004. Statistical Analysis. Quantitative analyses of meat cuts and species, glass and ceramic containers, and ceramic tableware and servingware by categories such as profession, ethnicity, and religion, with comparisons to data from Oakland, for SF-80 Bayshore Viaduct Seismic Retrofit Projects Report on Construction Monitoring, Geoarchaeology, and Technical and Interpretive Studies for Historical Archaeology, edited by Mary Praetzellis. 824 K.
2004. Statistical Analysis of Summary Faunal Data. Quantitative analysis for Putting the "There" There: Historical Archaeologies of West Oakland, edited by Mary Praetzellis and Adrian Praetzellis. 172 K.
2004. Statistical Analysis of Bottle Data by General Categories. Quantitative analysis for Putting the "There" There: Historical Archaeologies of West Oakland, edited by Mary Praetzellis and Adrian Praetzellis. 201 K.
Photo galleries of ceramics. Over 50 photos of Ilo-Tumilaca/Cabuza ceramics. Chen Chen, Chiribaya, and possibly other styles coming eventually. | |
A picture gallery of ceramics from the Osmore drainage | |
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What are those funny little graphics? | |
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An Archaeologist Uses Kite Aerial Photography: Why and how I made photographic maps with a camera suspended from a kite (before affordable drones!). Illustrated. |
Archaeology
Research in Peru by Bruce Owen
Copyright (c) 2023, Bruce Owen. All rights reserved.
bruce.owen@sonoma.edu
URL of this document: http://bruceowen.com/research/researchperu.htm
Revised: 13 February 2023