Soro Mik'aya Patjxa
  Location in Peru | |
| Region |  PeruIlave River Basin, Puno[1] |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 16°14′2″S 69°43′30″W / 16.23389°S 69.72500°W |
| Altitude | 3,860 m (12,664 ft)[1] |
| Type | open-air seasonal residential site |
| Area | 2,800 m2 (30,139 sq ft) |
| History | |
| Founded | 8,000 BP[1] |
| Abandoned | 6,700 BP[1] |
| Periods | Middle to Late Archaic periods |
| Associated with | hunter–gatherers |
Soro Mik'aya Patjxa is an archaeological site located in the Ilave River basin in the region of Puno, Peru, about 30 km (19 mi) west of the current shoreline of Lake Titicaca. It was a seasonal residential site consistently occupied by hunter-gatherers over a period of over a thousand years.
Description
Situated on a fluvial terrace at 3860 m of elevation, the site was first identified by Mark Aldenderfer in 1995.[1] The excavated portion of Soro Mik'aya Patjxa consists of one cultural layer of interest. 13 pits were excavated at the site.[1] The site was occupied at least 1,500 years before the advent of low-level agriculture in the region at around 5,000 BP.[2]
Artifacts
Over 80,000 artifacts were recovered at the site. They mainly consist of lithic flake, while the rest include bones, ground stones, charred plant remains, mineral pigments (red ocher) and ceramic sherds.[1][3] As the ceramic sherds were found to stylistically post-date 1,000 AD, the sherds are considered to be intrusive.[1]
Human remains
The remains of 16 individuals were recovered from pit burials at the site. Five of the crania from the site exhibit signs of intentional cranial modification.[1] Isotopic analysis, estimates of travel distance to nearby lower elevation areas, demographic profiling, and the evidence for the high use of local lithic materials suggest that people at Soro Mik'aya Patjxa were permanent inhabitants of a high-elevation environment.[3]
Diet
It is likely that people at Soro Mik'aya Patjxa heavily relied on hunting large, terrestrial mammals and on intensive processing and consumption of plants.[1] Projectile points dominate the lithic flake findings at Soro Mik'aya Patjxa.[1] Additionally, animal remains mostly consist of large mammals, most likely taruca and vicuña. Guinea pig, carache fish and viscacha were also identified from the small animal remains at the site. The majority of the animal bones recovered from the site shows evidence of burning.[1]
The presence of large quantities of ground stones at the site and dental wear analysis indicate that the consumption of plants was an important part of the diet at Soro Mik'aya Patjxa. Only one of the 251 teeth recovered from the site shows evidence for dental caries, a low rate which is typical of hunter-gatherers. Dental wear analysis suggests a diet typical of terrestial hunter-gatherers.[2] Dental wear analysis also reveals evidence for lingual surface attrition of the maxillary anterior teeth (LSAMAT), a condition which has been linked with the intensive consumption of tubers by hunter-gatherers.[2]
Archaeogenetics
In 2018, researchers successfully sequenced the genome from SMP5, a 50-55 male directly dated to around 6800 BP. SMP5 shares a genetic component with later ancient DNA samples from the Lake Titicaca region, a component that is also found in modern Andean populations. When compared against modern populations, SMP5 shows closest genetic affinity for the Quechua people and the Aymara people. Unlike later ancient individuals sequenced from the Lake Titicaca region, SMP5, along with USR1 from the Upward Sun River site, Anzick-1, Kennewick man, and the individual tested from the Saqqaq culture, shows a genetic affinity for modern Siberian populations, especially the Yakuts.[4]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Haas, W. Randall; Llave, Carlos Viviano (2015). "Hunter-gatherers on the eve of agriculture: investigations at Soro Mik'aya Patjxa, Lake Titicaca Basin, Peru, 8000–6700 BP". Antiquity. 89 (348). Antiquity Publications: 1297–1312. doi:10.15184/aqy.2015.100. ISSN 0003-598X.
- ^ a b c Watson, James T.; Haas, Randall (2017-06-05). "Dental evidence for wild tuber processing among Titicaca Basin foragers 7000 ybp". American Journal of Physical Anthropology. 164 (1). Wiley: 117–130. doi:10.1002/ajpa.23261. ISSN 0002-9483.
- ^ a b Haas, Randall; Stefanescu, Ioana C.; Garcia-Putnam, Alexander; Aldenderfer, Mark S.; Clementz, Mark T.; Murphy, Melissa S.; Llave, Carlos Viviano; Watson, James T. (2017). "Humans permanently occupied the Andean highlands by at least 7 ka". Royal Society Open Science. 4 (6). The Royal Society. doi:10.1098/rsos.170331. ISSN 2054-5703.
{{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter|displayauthors=ignored (|display-authors=suggested) (help) - ^ Lindo, John; Haas, Randall; Hofman, Courtney; Apata, Mario; Moraga, Mauricio; Verdugo, Ricardo A.; Watson, James T.; Viviano Llave, Carlos; Witonsky, David; Beall, Cynthia; Warinner, Christina; Novembre, John; Aldenderfer, Mark; Di Rienzo, Anna (2018). "The genetic prehistory of the Andean highlands 7000 years BP though European contact". Science Advances. 4 (11). American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). bioRxiv 381905. doi:10.1126/sciadv.aau4921. ISSN 2375-2548.
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