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Fishing specialization and the inland trade of the Chilean jack mackerel or jurel, Trachurus murphyi, in far southern Peru

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Abstract

Beginning by at least the Andean Middle Horizon (AD 600–1000), sites located more than 60 km inland from the Pacific coast in far southern Peru contain the remains of jack mackerel (Trachurus murphyi). The coastal region near the modern Peruvian city of Ilo was the habitat where people procured fish and transported them to sites in the Moquegua Valley. Abundant neurocranial fragments indicate that coastal occupants shipped whole fish, not processed body portions, to inland destinations. I previously interpreted the remains of jack mackerel as imported fishes indicating high status deposits, particularly at imperial administrative outposts associated with the Wari Empire. The recent identification of jack mackerel at highly provisional, agricultural sites inhabited by non-elite residents suggests that these fishes were everyday, rather than elite, fare. The analysis indicates that the pre-Hispanic inhabitants discontinued trade in marine fishes after the collapse of the politically integrated empires in the region, but people reestablished fish trade in subsequent time periods. I examine the probable capture methods and possible culinary reasons as to why the Chilean jack mackerel is common at some inland sites in far southern Peru.

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Acknowledgements

The following individuals provided comments that helped to improve this manuscript: J. Ryan Kennedy, Donna Nash, and Nicola Sharratt. All errors or omissions are my own.

Availability of data and materials

All archaeological specimens are housed in the Contisuyo Museum, Moquegua, Peru. Data are available upon request.

Funding

The research at Tacahuay Tambo and Pueblo and at Punta Picata was funded by a National Geographic Society Grant (#8768-10) and a University of Florida, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Humanities Enhancement Fund grant. Research at Cerro Baúl was supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities (RZ-50098-04), the National Science Foundation (BCS-9907167, BCS-0226791, BCS-0074410, BCS-1430792), and the Heinz Family Foundation. The analysis of Tiwanaku materials was supported by a National Science Foundation Grant (# BCS-1152520). Analysis of Tumilaca La Chimba materials was supported by National Science Foundation Grants (# BCS 1347166 & DDIG 0937303), the National Geographic Society (9096-12), the Archaeological Institute of America, the Curtiss T. and Mary G. Brennan Foundation, and Dumbarton Oaks. Excavations and analysis of materials from Las Peñas were supported with a National Science Foundation Grant (# BCS-1430792) and funds from the University of North Carolina-Greensboro.

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    Susan D. deFrance

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deFrance, S.D. Fishing specialization and the inland trade of the Chilean jack mackerel or jurel, Trachurus murphyi, in far southern Peru. Archaeol Anthropol Sci 13, 84 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12520-021-01326-z

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