The condor and the shepherdess
…A girl was seated on the edge of a chacuña –a semi-circle of stones where the shepherdesses went to do their weaving. As she watched her flock in the…
The Son of the Canelo
…were slaughtered. In those days, the only tree in the land was a single canelo, and they say that from one of its seeds a man was born. In the…
Economy
…The Yaghan were one of the Southern-Chilean Canoeist Tribes, nomadic people who lived by hunting, fishing and gathering. Canoes played a key role in their economy and their way…
Makemake the Creator
…As told by Arturo Teao Tori Makemake was alone, and this was not good. He picked up a gourd filled with water and peered inside. Makemake’s reflection entered the…
Bolsa – Faja
Tejido de urdimbre complementaria, fibra de camélido. Por lo general, la cara interior de estas fajas, que va pegada al cuerpo, sólo presenta listados. Hacia el final de…
Atacameña
…evolved in different ways. One of the customs most commonly celebrated among the Atacameño people is the cleaning of the irrigation canals. In the ritual surrounding this activity the people…
Beliefs and funeral rites
…was then covered with a layer of clay and a wig made of human hair was placed on the head. The Chinchorro mummification process evolved through several stages: Initially, they…
History
…has determined that the area was first occupied around 8000 B.C. by hunting-gathering groups that made use of the ravines and salt flats. In the later pre-Hispanic period, between 900…
Art
…from guanaco hair) that covered their backs and shoulders; and loincloths made from dried seaweed. Sources also mention that the women wore skirts of bird feathers tied around their waists….
Social organization
…one or more ‘mayor of the waters’ is also appointed. Lower level positions may be held by unmarried men, though never by women, and may include: the artisan appointed to…
Economy
…were made from the skins of four male sea lions, softened in fresh water, sewn together and inflated, to produce floats up to 3 meters (10 feet) in length. A…
The encounter
…how the Conquest imposed more than just a new system of political, administrative, economic and social organization on the American lands that were incorporated into the Spanish realm; what was…
The pictographs of Tambillo
…The Tambillo pictographs are found on the walls of eight small rock shelters distributed along some 300 meters of the narrow, dry bed of the upper Quisma Ravine,…
The pictographs of Milla
…latter site. The Milla panels contain large-scale red pictographs painted onto rock walls that are highly visible from the valley floor. The combined use of lines and flat painting are…
Pre-hispanic music of Chile
…to the forefront, with its intricate sound based on different lengths of cane. In Pica and the Atacama, in contrast, a complex ritual was developed around the raspy, intense, atonal…
The pictographs of El Médano
…Around 75 km north of Taltal, the El Médano ravine is home to one of the most remarkable rock art deposits in the South American Pacific watershed. The…
Aymara Headdress
…These hats were constructed from the top down, starting with a small disc that was used for the top. Multiply camelid yarn was used to create the basic structure using…
The petroglyphs of Kalina
…are believed to have been hunters in the early stages of domesticating camelids, specifically through the capture and taming of wild guanacos, among other species. The large rock wall situated…
Hunter-gatherers of the southern zone
…terrestrial hunter-gatherer way of life lasted longer in this part of Chile than in the rest of the country: In the early 20th century the Tehuelche people were still living…
Expedition of the Seven Explorers
…Seven young men came. The first was called Ira, the second Raparenga, the third Ku’uku’u A’Huatava, the fourth Ringiringi A’Huatava, the fifth Nonoma A’Huatava, the sixth U’Ure A’Huatava and…
The Sacrificer
…war. An alternate explanation is tied to the belief that the deceased watch over agricultural fields and ensure a bountiful harvest. Just as the farmers cut the heads of the…
A tale of two brothers
…the head of a rooster and some bits of bread. After walking all day, the poor brother came across a cave at nightfall and decided to sleep there, covering himself…
Hunter-gatherers of the central Chile
…During the final stage of the Pleistocene-Holocene transition, a few herds of huge herbivores still roamed around parts of the Central Valley, especially near bodies of water such…