Llamas and humans in the Valley of Ambato, Catamarca (c. VI-XI A.D.): approaches to their forms of relationship

Abstract

Research on animals and their role in Aguada de Ambato, Catamarca’s populations between the 6th and 11th centuries A.D., suggests multiple relationships that go beyond economic or consumption needs, allowing us to think of animals as participants in social life. The proposal aims to understand the relationships that may have existed between humans and llamas, in terms of local lifestyles, from an approach to the archaeological record based on faunistic, technological, contextual, and iconographic studies. It is concluded that these relationships demonstrate that, in addition to being vital for life in Ambato, llamas were active participants in the world and social life of the settlers, expanding previous conceptualizations about these animals in these societies.