DINÁMICA ESPACIAL Y TEMPORAL DE LAS OCUPACIONES PREHISPÁNICAS EN LA CUENCA HIDROGRÁFICA DEL RÍO LIMARÍ (30º LAT. S.) SPATIAL AND TEMPORAL TRENDS IN HUMAN PREHISPANIC OCCUPATION IN THE LIMARÍ RIVER BASIN (30º S)

This paper discusses the pre-Hispanic sequence of historical development in the semiarid north of Chile through the study of spatial and temporal dynamics of human occupation in the Limari valley. Based on the study of settlements, museum collections and rock art, a sequence of transformations and development between the Early Archaic and Inca Period is observed that differs from what is traditionally known of the area. In this time frame, social changes such as the adoption of pottery and the constitution of an agrarian way of life, occur at different paces in both time and space within the same Limari valley. We discuss spatial and representational characteristics of rock art in relation to pre-hispanic social processes, emphasizing the links between audiences, flows of information and the dynamics of social life.