- Chicago, Illinois, United States
Brian Bauer
University of Illinois at Chicago, Anthropology, Department Member
Research Interests:
This paper assesses the original name of the Inca settlement now known as Machu Picchu. We examine three data sources: the field notes of Hiram Bingham, toponyms on nineteenth century maps, and information recorded in seventeenth century... more
This paper assesses the original name of the Inca settlement now known as Machu Picchu. We examine three data sources: the field notes of Hiram Bingham, toponyms on nineteenth century maps, and information recorded in seventeenth century documents. The results uniformly suggest that the Inca city was originally called Picchu, or more likely
Huayna Picchu, and that the name Machu Picchu became associated with the ruins starting in 1911 with Bingham’s publications.
Huayna Picchu, and that the name Machu Picchu became associated with the ruins starting in 1911 with Bingham’s publications.
Research Interests:
Bauer, Brian S.; Silva, Miriam Araoz; and Hardy, Thomas John (2022) "The Settlement History of the Lucre Basin (Cusco, Peru)," Andean Past: Vol. 13, Article 11. Available at:... more
Bauer, Brian S.; Silva, Miriam Araoz; and Hardy, Thomas John (2022) "The Settlement History of the Lucre
Basin (Cusco, Peru)," Andean Past: Vol. 13, Article 11.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/andean_past/vol13/iss1/11
Basin (Cusco, Peru)," Andean Past: Vol. 13, Article 11.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/andean_past/vol13/iss1/11
Catalogue of the Fondo Corregimiento, Archivo Departamental del Cusco
Research Interests:
The climate of the central Andes has varied throughout prehistory. Recent research indicates that there have been substantial fluctuations in rainfall and temperature over the past several millennia that greatly affected the plant and... more
The climate of the central Andes has varied throughout prehistory. Recent research indicates that there have been substantial fluctuations in rainfall and temperature over the past several millennia that greatly affected the plant and animal resources available to the people occupying various regions and altitudes. Although studies of past climate change in the central Andes are just beginning, there are some data that can be used to assess the broad climatic conditions that have existed in the Cuzco region since the end of the last glaciation.
To understand the subtleties of past climatic change and its effects on societies, we must compare our archaeological data with climatic models developed using a variety of different Holocene records. In this chapter, we provide a summary of our current understanding of climate change in the Cuzco region since the end of the Pleistocene. While changes in climatic conditions should not necessarily be seen as the direct cause for cultural change in the region, they did present limitations and, in a few cases of severe drought, considerable challenges to the existing societies.
To understand the subtleties of past climatic change and its effects on societies, we must compare our archaeological data with climatic models developed using a variety of different Holocene records. In this chapter, we provide a summary of our current understanding of climate change in the Cuzco region since the end of the Pleistocene. While changes in climatic conditions should not necessarily be seen as the direct cause for cultural change in the region, they did present limitations and, in a few cases of severe drought, considerable challenges to the existing societies.
Research Interests:
Los Andes centrales cuentan con los más grandes depósitos de plata del mundo en Potosí (Bolivia) y uno de los depósitos más grandes de mercurio en Huancavelica (Perú). Aunque separados por más de mil kilómetros, estos dos depósitos... more
Los Andes centrales cuentan con los más grandes depósitos
de plata del mundo en Potosí (Bolivia) y uno de los
depósitos más grandes de mercurio en Huancavelica
(Perú). Aunque separados por más de mil kilómetros,
estos dos depósitos minerales fueron los principales
responsables de la dominante posición que España
tuvo en los asuntos mundiales a fines del siglo XVI
y durante los siglos XVII y XVIII. Esto se debió a que,
cuando el mercurio se mezcla con las menas de plata,
se amalgama con (o adhiere a) ella y permite extraer
valiosas cantidades del metal incluso en menas de baja
ley. En consecuencia, para poder producir plata a gran
escala, resulta esencial tener una fuente confiable de
mercurio (Brown 2001; Contreras 1982; Robins 2011;
Whitaker 1941). Como lo comentó el virrey Luis de Velasco
a principios del siglo XVII, “si no hubiese azogue
[mercurio] menos habría plata” (Velasco 1921 [1604]:
111). En este capítulo examinaremos cómo fue que los
españoles lograron transportar miles de toneladas de
mercurio de Huancavelica a Potosí, a lo largo de lo que
llamaremos el Camino del Mercurio.
de plata del mundo en Potosí (Bolivia) y uno de los
depósitos más grandes de mercurio en Huancavelica
(Perú). Aunque separados por más de mil kilómetros,
estos dos depósitos minerales fueron los principales
responsables de la dominante posición que España
tuvo en los asuntos mundiales a fines del siglo XVI
y durante los siglos XVII y XVIII. Esto se debió a que,
cuando el mercurio se mezcla con las menas de plata,
se amalgama con (o adhiere a) ella y permite extraer
valiosas cantidades del metal incluso en menas de baja
ley. En consecuencia, para poder producir plata a gran
escala, resulta esencial tener una fuente confiable de
mercurio (Brown 2001; Contreras 1982; Robins 2011;
Whitaker 1941). Como lo comentó el virrey Luis de Velasco
a principios del siglo XVII, “si no hubiese azogue
[mercurio] menos habría plata” (Velasco 1921 [1604]:
111). En este capítulo examinaremos cómo fue que los
españoles lograron transportar miles de toneladas de
mercurio de Huancavelica a Potosí, a lo largo de lo que
llamaremos el Camino del Mercurio.
Research Interests:
To date, most obsidian sourcing studies in the Andes have concentrated on the highlands and Titicaca Basin of far southern Peru and northern Bolivia. Toward achieving a more complete understanding of the region, this paper offers new data... more
To date, most obsidian sourcing studies in the Andes have concentrated on the highlands and Titicaca Basin of far southern Peru and northern Bolivia. Toward achieving a more complete understanding of the region, this paper offers new data on the long-term prehistoric obsidian procurement and consumption patterns in the Andahuaylas region of the south-central Peruvian highlands. Obsidian sourcing data from Andahuaylas are particularly interesting since the area is centrally located among several important regional obsidian sources. A total of 94 obsidian samples from a range of sites of different temporal periods were chemically analyzed using portable X-ray fluorescence (PXRF), as well as laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS). The results demonstrate a number of interesting trends, the first of which is the long-term importance of the Potreropampa obsidian source to populations of the Andahuaylas region from at least the early Formative period (∼2500 BCE). Secondly, the results indicate that procurement strategies by local populations in Andahuaylas were primarily reliant on nearby (<150 km) obsidian sources. Finally, the paucity of more distant, yet widely exchanged, high quality obsidian (i.e., Chivay, Alca) confirm that as a region, Andahuaylas was more heavily connected economically (and likely culturally) with local areas to the south (Apurímac) and to the west (Ayacucho).► PXRF and LA-ICP-MS analysis of archaeological obsidian from Andahuaylas, Peru. ► Results reflect a long-term dependence on local (<150 km away) obsidian sources. ► Results indicate the long-term dependence on Potreropampa obsidian. ► Local populations in Andahuaylas procured very little, high quality, distant obsidian.
To date, most obsidian sourcing studies in the Andes have concentrated on the highlands and Titicaca Basin of far southern Peru and northern Bolivia. Toward achieving a more complete understanding of the region, this paper offers new data... more
To date, most obsidian sourcing studies in the Andes have concentrated on the highlands and Titicaca Basin of far southern Peru and northern Bolivia. Toward achieving a more complete understanding of the region, this paper offers new data on the long-term prehistoric obsidian procurement and consumption patterns in the Andahuaylas region of the south-central Peruvian highlands. Obsidian sourcing data from Andahuaylas are particularly interesting since the area is centrally located among several important regional obsidian sources. A total of 94 obsidian samples from a range of sites of different temporal periods were chemically analyzed using portable X-ray fluorescence (PXRF), as well as laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS). The results demonstrate a number of interesting trends, the first of which is the long-term importance of the Potreropampa obsidian source to populations of the Andahuaylas region from at least the early Formative period (∼2500 BCE). Secondly, the results indicate that procurement strategies by local populations in Andahuaylas were primarily reliant on nearby (<150 km) obsidian sources. Finally, the paucity of more distant, yet widely exchanged, high quality obsidian (i.e., Chivay, Alca) confirm that as a region, Andahuaylas was more heavily connected economically (and likely culturally) with local areas to the south (Apurímac) and to the west (Ayacucho).► PXRF and LA-ICP-MS analysis of archaeological obsidian from Andahuaylas, Peru. ► Results reflect a long-term dependence on local (<150 km away) obsidian sources. ► Results indicate the long-term dependence on Potreropampa obsidian. ► Local populations in Andahuaylas procured very little, high quality, distant obsidian.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
In Perspectives on the Inca, Monica Barnes, Inés de Castro, Javier Flores Espinoza, Doris Kurella, and Karoline Noack (eds.), pp. 208-225. Stuttgart: Linden-Museum, Sonderband/Tribus.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
El presente artículo aborda las excavaciones arqueológicas desarrolladas en 2005, en la antigua Escuela de Medicina de San Fernando, colindante con el Hospital Real de San Andres (actual plaza Italia en el centro de Lima). Durante el... more
El presente artículo aborda las excavaciones arqueológicas desarrolladas en 2005, en la antigua Escuela de Medicina de San Fernando, colindante con el Hospital Real de San Andres (actual plaza Italia en el centro de Lima). Durante el desarrollo del proyecto arqueológico se hallaron diversas evidencias culturales que obedecen a las antiguas clases de anatomía, las mismas que fueron rescatadas y analizadas mediante rigurosos métodos de análisis bioantropológico. Gracias al dato histórico se permitió, asimismo, analizar y comprender las evidencias arqueológicas.
The fate of the mummies of the Inca kings following the Spanish conquest of Peru has been the focus of more than a century of historical and archaeological research. Several lines of evidence indicate that five of the royal mummies were... more
The fate of the mummies of the Inca kings following the Spanish conquest of Peru has been the focus of more than a century of historical and archaeological research. Several lines of evidence indicate that five of the royal mummies were deposited in the Hospital of San Andre´s in Lima in 1560. In this work, we summarize what is currently known concerning the fate of the royal Inca mummies as well as the results of a recent ground-penetrating radar survey and an archaeological testing program that we conducted on the hospital grounds. The excavations revealed the location of the hospital’s first cemetery, the remains of a nineteenth-century fountain, an early colonial trash pit, and, most intriguingly, a vaulted structure. While we did not find the royal mummies, the historical research and archaeological fieldwork yielded new information on the history of the San Andre's compound and life in Lima during early colonial times.
Research Interests:
Tracking social and economic change in Andean societies prior to the invasion of the Spanish has always been a difficult task, especially given that these cultures failed to develop any form of written record. Here we present a new method... more
Tracking social and economic change in Andean societies prior to the invasion of the Spanish has always been a difficult task, especially given that these cultures failed to develop any form of written record. Here we present a new method of reconstructing socio-economic shifts in a rural setting from the analysis of the frequency of oribatid mite remains present in a sedimentary lake sequence. Oribatid mites are soil-dwelling microarthropod detritivores, some of which inhabit areas of grassland pasture. One of the primary controls governing their abundance in such habitats is the level of animal dung present. We propose that past fluctuations in mite remains can be related to the density of domestic animals using the area of pasture and, by extension, may provide a proxy for broad-scale social and economic change through time. To test this hypothesis, we analysed a high-resolution (∼6 years) mite record from a sequence of well-dated sediments from Marcacocha, a climatically sensitive lake site located close to an important Inca trading route across the Andes. The timing and magnitude of mite fluctuations at Marcacocha since the 1530s show remarkable correspondence with a series of major, well-documented socio-economic shifts in the region relating to political and climatic pressures. This provided the confidence to extend the record back a further 700 years and reconstruct changes in domestic herbivore densities for a period of time that lacks historical documentation and thereby infer changes in human occupation of the basin. In particular, high mite abundances appear to correspond clearly with the rapid rise and fall of the Inca Empire (c. AD 1400–1532). We argue that small lake basins such as Marcacocha may be particularly suitable for obtaining continuous oribatid mite records and providing the possibility of reconstructing large herbivore abundances in the Andes and elsewhere.
Research Interests:
The small recently infilled lake basin of Marcacocha (13°13′S, 72°12′W, 3355 m) in the Cuzco region of Peru has a morphology and location that renders it extremely sensitive to environmental change. A record of vegetation, human impact... more
The small recently infilled lake basin of Marcacocha (13°13′S, 72°12′W, 3355 m) in the Cuzco region of Peru has a morphology and location that renders it extremely sensitive to environmental change. A record of vegetation, human impact and climatic change during the past 4200 yr has been obtained from a highly organic core taken from the centre of the basin. Sustained arid episodes that affected the Peruvian Andes may be detectable using the proxy indicator of sedge (Cyperaceae) pollen abundances. As the lake-level was lowered during sustained drier conditions, the local catchment was colonised by Cyperaceae, whereas during lake floods, they retreated or were submerged and pollen production was correspondingly reduced. Drier episodes during prehistoric times occurred around 900 bc, 500 bc, ad 100 and ad 550, with a longer dry episode occurring from ad 900 to 1800. Evidence from the independently derived Quelccaya ice-core record and the archaeological chronology for the Cuzco region appears to support the climatic inferences derived from the sedge data. Many of these aridity episodes appear to correspond with important cultural changes in the Cuzco region and elsewhere in the Central Andes. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Research Interests:
The fate of the mummies of the Inca kings following the Spanish conquest of Peru has been the focus of more than a century of historical and archaeological research. Several lines of evidence indicate that five of the royal mummies were... more
The fate of the mummies of the Inca kings following the Spanish conquest of Peru has been the focus of more than a century of historical and archaeological research. Several lines of evidence indicate that five of the royal mummies were deposited in the Hospital of San Andre´s
in Lima in 1560. In this work, we summarize what is currently known concerning the fate of the royal Inca mummies as well as the results of a recent ground-penetrating radar survey and an archaeological testing program that we conducted on the hospital grounds. The
excavations revealed the location of the hospital’s first cemetery, the remains of a nineteenth-century fountain, an early colonial trash pit, and, most intriguingly, a vaulted structure. While we did not find the royal mummies, the historical research and archaeological fieldwork yielded new information on the history of the San Andre´s compound and life in
Lima during early colonial times.
in Lima in 1560. In this work, we summarize what is currently known concerning the fate of the royal Inca mummies as well as the results of a recent ground-penetrating radar survey and an archaeological testing program that we conducted on the hospital grounds. The
excavations revealed the location of the hospital’s first cemetery, the remains of a nineteenth-century fountain, an early colonial trash pit, and, most intriguingly, a vaulted structure. While we did not find the royal mummies, the historical research and archaeological fieldwork yielded new information on the history of the San Andre´s compound and life in
Lima during early colonial times.
Research Interests:
This book includes the following papers: "Buscando un Inca de aqui y de alla. Los incas de nuestro tiempo, Alemania y Lima, Peru" by Karoline Noack; "Collecting Inca Antiquities: Antiquarianism and the Inca Past in 19th Century Cusco"... more
This book includes the following papers: "Buscando un Inca de aqui y de alla. Los incas de nuestro tiempo, Alemania y Lima, Peru" by Karoline Noack; "Collecting Inca Antiquities: Antiquarianism and the Inca Past in 19th Century Cusco" by Stefanie Gaenger; "The Inca Collection at the Ethnologisches Museum Berlin, Genesis and Contexts" by Manuela Fisher; "Visions of the Inca Dynasty. Narrative Syyles, Emblematic Dress and the Power of Ancestors" by Ann H. Peters; "How did Huanuco Pampa Become a Ruin? From Thriving Settlement to Disappearing Walls" by Monica Barnes; "The Material Remains of Inca Power among Imperial Heartland Communities" by Kylie E. Quave and R. Alan Covey; "The Inca Takeover of the Ancient Centers in the Highlands of Piura" by Cesar W. Astuhuaman Gonzales; "Las motivaciones economicas y religiosas de la expansion incaica hacia la cuenca del lago Titicaca" by David Oshige Adams; "Inca Offerings Associated with the Frozen Mummies from Mount Llullaillaco" by Constanza Ceruti; "Tracing the Inca Past. Ritual Movement and Social Memory in the Inca Imperial Capital" by Steve Kosiba; "The Situa Ritual of the Inca. Metaphor and Performance of the State" by Brian S. Bauer and David A. Reid; "Building Tension, Dilemmas of the Built Environment through Inca and Spanish Rule" by Steven A. Wernke; "Sistema de tenencia de tierras de ayllus y panacas incas en el valle del Cusco, siglos XVI–XVII” by Donato Amado Gonzales; “What Would Have Happened After the Inca Civil War” by Kerstin Nowack.
Research Interests: Kinship (Anthropology), Human sacrifice (Anthropology Of Religion), Anthropology of Kinship, Antiquarianism, Counterfactual History, and 9 moreInca Archaeology, Spanish Colonial Peru, History of Antiquarianism, Incas, History of Collecting and Antiquarianism, Cusco, Huánuco, Capacocha Ritual, and Piura
Bauer, Brian S.
1992 Avances en Arqueología Andina. Centro de Estudios Regionales Andinos, “Bartolomé de Las Casas” Cuzco, Peru (pp. 151, 80 figures, 4 tables).
1992 Avances en Arqueología Andina. Centro de Estudios Regionales Andinos, “Bartolomé de Las Casas” Cuzco, Peru (pp. 151, 80 figures, 4 tables).