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Related Experiment Videos

Preceramic irrigation canals in the Peruvian Andes.

Tom D Dillehay1, Herbert H Eling, Jack Rossen

  • 1Department of Anthropology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA. tom.d.dillehay@vanderbilt.edu

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
|November 15, 2005
PubMed
Summary

Early irrigation canals in Peru, dating back 6,700 years, reveal sophisticated environmental manipulation for food production. This evidence challenges previous notions about early agricultural development and societal organization.

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Area of Science:

  • Archaeology
  • Anthropology
  • Environmental Science

Background:

  • The Neolithic Revolution marked a global shift from foraging to food production, involving sedentism and agricultural development.
  • Peru is recognized as one of the independent centers where early civilization and food production emerged approximately 4,500 years ago.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To present new archaeological evidence of early small-scale gravity canals in northern Peru.
  • To analyze the environmental manipulation and agricultural practices associated with these ancient canals.
  • To understand the societal organization and economic implications of early irrigation farming.

Main Methods:

  • Archaeological excavation and analysis of ancient canal systems in a circumscribed valley in the western Andean foothills.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Dating of canal structures to identify their age and sequence.
  • Reconstruction of farming practices and agroecosystem development based on canal associations and topographical context.

    • Main Results:

    • Discovery of 5,400- and potentially 6,700-year-old small-scale gravity canals.
    • Association of canals with farming on low terrace benches, utilizing water from small lateral streams.
    • Evidence of an artificially created wet agroecosystem, indicating environmental manipulation beyond natural resource harvesting.
    • Findings challenge the expectation of early canals in broad coastal valleys, suggesting development in constrained Andean foothills.
    • Indication of communal labor organization for canal construction and maintenance, and coordinated daily activities.

    Conclusions:

    • Early irrigation farming in Peru involved significant environmental manipulation and sophisticated water management.
    • The development of organized irrigation systems supported population growth by supplementing hunting and gathering economies.
    • This research redefines our understanding of the timing, location, and nature of early agricultural intensification in the Andes.