Datos preliminares sobre el Periodo Formativo en el sur de Potosí, Bolivia

Abstract

The Formative Period in Southern Potosí, Bolivia: A Preliminary Report

In the southern Andes, the period dated from 1600 A.C. to 400 A.D. is usually known as the Formative Period. It is characterized by the apparition of the first agro-pastoral or agro-fisherman communities and the first form of religious and political organization. In the southern part of the Bolivian territory, a series of surface surveys help us to localize new settlements which belong to this period. Most of them are small villages which show the remains of structures such as mud houses or stone terraces. This paper illustrates what could have been the nature of the occupation of this vast area during the Formative Period, emphasizing the settlement pattern and ceramic artifacts. It also tries to present some of the main axes which connected this area to the other countries nearby.