This paper briefly reports on the initial results of a new Leverhulme-sponsored four-year archaeological project (RPG 234- 2014) centred on the Atures Rapids area of the Middle Orinoco River, Amazonas State, Venezuela ( Fig. 1 ). The Cotua Island Reflexive Archaeology Project seeks to establish the longue duree historical processes that by early colonial times culminated in the region’s reputation for being a key crossroads – where diverse ethno-linguistic groups from far-flung regions converged to trade (Oliver et al. 2014). Harnessing new evi- dence, it aims to elucidate how interaction between such diverse indigenous groups unfolded and the role it played in forg- ing ethnogenesis. Through archaeological research, it seeks to gain new insights into its history and elucidate regional patterns of exchange through the study of technical andstylisticdimensionsofmaterialculture. It also aims to investigate the abundant pre-colonial rock art and its relationships to the landscape and aboriginal oral tradi- tions. Finally, it seeks to understand how Western and Non-western archaeological knowledge is produced by engaging with the current indigenous groups as partners in (re)constructing history.

中文翻译：

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委内瑞拉奥里诺科中部急流急流中的考古

本文简要报告了由勒沃胡姆（Leverhulme）赞助的一项新的四年考古项目（RPG 234-2014）的初步结果，该项目的中心是委内瑞拉亚马孙州奥里诺科河中部Atures急流区（图1）。Cotua岛反身考古项目力图建立贵族酋长的历史进程，到殖民地早期，该进程就以该地区的重要十字路口而达到高潮，在这里，来自遥远地区的各种民族语言群体汇聚起来进行贸易（Oliver等，2014）。 ）。利用新的证据，它旨在阐明这种多样化的土著群体之间的相互作用是如何发展的，以及它在促进人类发展中的作用。通过考古研究，通过对物质文化的技术和风格维度的研究，它寻求获得对其历史的新见解，并阐明区域交流的模式。它还旨在研究丰富的前殖民时期岩石艺术及其与景观和土著口头传统的关系。最后，它试图了解如何通过与当前的土著群体合作（重建）历史来产生西方和非西方的考古知识。