Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino

Cultures > Southern > Paleo-Indian Hunters of South Central Chile

Culto y Funebria

At many sites that were occupied by these Paleo-Indian hunters, “discoidal stones” have been found, stone disks with finely worked geometric patterns that show no evidence of having been used as tools. We do not know exactly what their role was in early Paleo-Indian cosmology, but they clearly had a ritual purpose. Red and ochre pigments were also often used in ceremonial and funeral rites. Although little is known about Paleo-Indian funeral customs, it is likely that practices such as covering the body with stones or cremation were practiced even in these early times.