THE ANCIENT ANDEAN WORLD

3.982 Fall 2018

SYLLABUS

This subject examines the development of Andean civilization which culminated in the

extraordinary empire established by the Inka in western South America in the 15th and 16th

centuries. The methodologies we will use to understand Andean culture history include

archaeology, ethnohistory, ethnography, and materials analysis. We will pay particular attention

to the unusual topography of the Andean area, its influence upon local ecologies, and the

characteristic social, political, and technological responses of Andean peoples to life in a

topographically “vertical” world. The materials technologies behind Andean cloth and metal

production will receive special consideration.

No attempt will be made to survey the entire range of prehistoric cultural adaptations

from preceramic settlements to complex societies. Instead, we will focus on characteristic

cultural styles of prehistoric Andean coastal and highland life, the important early periods of

pan-Andean unification, and the unique Inka accomplishment of organizing and sustaining a vast

and complex empire, the majority of whose peoples lived at altitudes of 12,000 feet and higher.

There will be a midterm examination, and each student is expected to write a term paper

on a subject chosen in consultation with the instructor. Each student will also give an oral

presentation on some aspect of her/his term project.

INSTRUCTOR: Professor Heather Lechtman

Rm. 8-437 Tel.: 253-2172
email: lechtman@mit.edu
 THE ANCIENT ANDEAN WORLD 3.982 Fall 2018

Tuesday, 7-10 pm Room 4-153

COURSE SCHEDULE

T 11 Sept. - Introduction
- PBS videotape: SECRETS OF LOST EMPIRES: INCA

T 18 Sept. - The khipu: administering an empire with knots and cords;

interpreting the primary sources of the Inka
(guest lecture by Jon Clindaniel, Harvard Univ.)

T 25 Sept. - Topography and climate of the central Andes

- Andean domesticates; vertical ecozones

T 2 Oct. - Vertical archipelago model of Andean resource management

- Relationships within the nuclear community; reciprocity
- The Inka State I: reciprocity and redistribution

T 9 Oct. NO CLASS - COLUMBUS DAY HOLIDAY

T 16 Oct. - The Inka State II: Corvée: public works, army, storage, weaving, khipu

TERM PAPER TOPICS DUE ON 16 OCTOBER

T 23 Oct. - The Inka State III: Imperial governance

- The Inka State IV: Cloth and its functions in the Inka state

T 30 Oct. - Cloth: technological considerations

- Coroma, Bolivia: videotape and discussion

T 6 Nov. MIDTERM EXAMINATION

T 13 Nov. - The Andean scene during the Initial Period: marine resources
- The Andean scene during the Initial Period: highland resources

TERM PAPER OUTLINES DUE ON 15 NOVEMBER

T 20 Nov. - Chavín: the Early Horizon

T 27 Nov. - The Moche: the Early Intermediate Period on the north coast
- A Heartland of Metallurgy: the Ancient Andean World

T 4 Dec. - Andean metallurgy (continued)

- The Kingdom of Chimor: The Late Intermediate Period on the north coast

T 11 Dec. - The aftermath: 1532 and the European invasion

- PBS videotape: THE INCAS
 THE ANCIENT ANDEAN WORLD

Required texts, to be purchased:

Michael E. Moseley
THE INCAS AND THEIR ANCESTORS: THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF PERU
Thames and Hudson revised edition 2001

The paperback edition of this book is available at the MIT COOP at the following
student prices:

Print, new: $34.95

Print, used: $26.20
Print, new rental: $30.95
Print, used rental: $14.70

ANDEAN READER
Compiled by Heather Lechtman
September 2018

The Reader can be purchased at MIT’s CopyTech Center, located in the basement of
Bldg. 11, Rm. 11-004. Cost is $56.00. The Center is open from 8 am to 5:30 pm on
weekdays. Several copies of the Reader will be placed on reserve for this subject in the
Hayden Library.

Reserve book list:

Several copies of the following books have been placed on reserve in the Hayden Library.

Michael E. Moseley
THE MARITIME FOUNDATIONS OF ANDEAN CIVILIZATION
Cummings 1975

ANDEAN READER: 2018

Compiled by Heather Lechtman
 THE ANCIENT ANDEAN WORLD

READING ASSIGNMENTS

Assignment Read for READER MOSELEY

No. class on

1 18 Sept. - Murra: Andean Cultures Chapter 2

- Burger: The Setting; The Changing
Environment
- Thomas & Winterhalder: Physical and
Biotic Environment

2 25 Sept. - Murra: Guaman Poma de Ayala Chapter 1

- Cieza de Leon excerpts
- Murra: El Archipiélago Vertical
Revisited; Limits and
Limitations of Archipelago
- Mayer: Production Zones

3 2 Oct. - Murra: Rite and Crop in Inca State Chapter 3

- Murra: On Inca Political Structure
- Murra: Peasant Corvée & State Revenues

4 16 Oct. - Morris: Huánuco Pampa & Tunsukancha

- Morris: Technology of Highland Inka
Food Storage
- Murra: Ethnocategories of a Regional
Khipu
- Urton: A New Twist in an Old Yarn
- Rowe: Inca Policies and Institutions
- Morris: Infrastructure of Inka Control

5 23 Oct. - Murra: Cloth and Its Functions

- Stone-Miller: To Weave for the Sun

NOTE: THE NEXT READING ASSIGNMENT (No. 6) IS TO BE COMPLETED

BY 13 NOVEMBER. AS IT INVOLVES READING AN ENTIRE, THOUGH
SHORT BOOK, AS WELL AS TWO ARTICLES IN THE READER, THERE ARE
3 WEEKS IN WHICH TO COMPLETE THE ASSIGNMENT.

6 13 Nov. - Michael Moseley: THE MARITIME FOUNDATIONS

OF ANDEAN CIVILIZATION
Copies of this book are on reserve in the
Hayden Library.

- Shady et al: Dating Caral: READER

- Dillehay et al: Preceramic Adoption: READER
Assignment Read for READER MOSELEY
No. class on

7 20 Nov. - Burger: “Unity and Heterogeneity

Within the Chavin Horizon”
[located on the 3.982 Stellar site]

8 27 Nov. & Chapter 7

4 Dec. Chapter 8
Chapter 9

MIDTERM EXAMINATION

The midterm exam will include material we have covered in class and in your reading, from
aspects of the Andean environment through all of the material pertaining to the Inka.
The midterm will be written during a single class period. You will have 3 class hours in which to
complete it. The examination is organized in three parts:

Part 1: You will be shown seven drawings from the Guaman Poma codex [Nueva
corónica y buen gobierno]. Identify what is shown in each drawing and discuss its significance.

Part 2: You will be given several Quecha terms; identify each term and discuss its
significance. The list of Quechua terms appears below.

Part 3: This part of the exam consists of two separate essays.

ANDEAN SOCIETIES - Some Terms to Remember

ayllu corvée cumbi

minga collca aclla
curaca khipu cumbi camayoc
mit’a camayoc panaca
Pax Incaica quipu camayoc Tawantinsuyu
awasqa chaqui taclla chuñu
visita tambo

GRADING

Weight %

Midterm Exam 50

Final Paper 50