**4. New research on the origins of Chilean Diaguita culture: El Olivar archeological site**

In light of the above information about the Mojocoya culture and its ceramic tradition, it is interesting to examine analyses of recent discoveries at the Diaguita site of El Olivar [20, 21], which have identified more stylistic coincidences between

*Ecosystem and Biodiversity of Amazonia*

*other cosmic dimensions, out of this world*

*illusion of flying through the air, animal transformations and the penetration into* 

Similarly, among the Shipibo-Conibo people, *kené* designs left on a material support (ceramic, fabric, or wood) suggest designs perceived during shamanic visions resulting from the ingestion of Ayahuasca and believed to hold great healing power. Thus, these symmetrical, non-figurative designs have a therapeutic as well as an esthetic function. For the Shipibo people, the execution of these complex and extraordinarily beautiful designs constitutes a collaboration with the sacred, spiritual realms, erasing the dividing line between religious and esthetic experience. Thus, there is an evident link between shamanic practices, the consumption of hallucinogenic substances (Ayahuasca), and synesthetic healing therapies, which range from the artistic to the musical [8]. Gehbart-Sayer ([6], p. 161) points out:

*the visions of the designs are described as non analytical impressions on "pages" or "sheets", organized in a pattern that flicker rapidly in front of the eyes of the* 

This synesthetic quality of South American shamanic art also includes the transition between visual art and music, with the use of symmetry being a common feature in both. Gehbart-Sayer ([8], p. 170) comments, *"symmetry prevails in the formal, melodic, and rhythmic characteristics of the songs. An example of a more* 

In these communities, artistic activity goes hand in hand with the sacred; shamans and female artisans create magical-religious objects, in which esthetic beauty is not an end in itself. For example, the Shipibo-Conibo people believe that individuals are "marked" at birth with invisible decorative patterns. When an individual becomes ill, the healing designs are spiritually projected upon the patient by the shaman to bring them back to a healthy state. The attributing of agency to the symmetrical pattern is evident in the story of Netén Vita (a Shipibo shaman from Caimito), as related by Illius ([13], p. 197). Netén Vita affirms that, in order to heal, the shaman must contact the guardian spirits, who are "the bands of drawings from my heaven (*noco naina kené*)." Furthermore, recent studies of Amazonian peoples have revealed the existence of a series of pan-Amazon beliefs [14, 15], expressed in different stylistic traditions. Such commonalities include the representation of specific animals, particularly jaguars and snakes, as well as abstract art, shamanic practices, and the consumption of hallucinogenic substances. These findings point to a longstanding shared ideology, the common elements of which can be found in both present-day cultures and in the archeological record [14]. Also on the basis of archeological and ethnographic evidence, Roe proposes the existence of a common cosmology within the South American tropical forest, pointing out that, *"with its vast interconnecting web of waterways knitting together similar microenviroments, the Amazonian region is a perfect highway of ideas"* ([14], p. 26).

In terms of the temporal depth of this shamanic art tradition in South America, Taylor ([16], p. 16) affirms that "*it is possible that what we see in the contemporary Amazonian graphic tradition is only the preservation of a tendency present since pre-Colombian times, the fruit of an ancient cultural tradition, of an eminently intellectual,* 

In the paragraphs below, we will examine archeological information which suggests the existence of long-distance relations that played a determining role in Diaguita ethnogenesis. These cultural relations will also explain the cultural linkages that one observes between the Shipibo-Conibo and pre-Hispanic Diaguita

*shaman then disappear as soon as he tries to take a closer look.*

*complex consonance is the lateral symmetry of melodic inversion."*

*cerebral, elaborate and complex form of art".*

peoples, despite their separation in both space and time.

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the Diaguita and Mojocoya representational universes [8], while at the same time shedding light upon the genesis and development of the Diaguita culture itself in Chile's semi-arid north.

An extensive cemetery was discovered during construction of a highway between the Chilean cities of La Serena and Vallenar, and excavated between 2015 and 2017 [20, 21]. The funerary contexts recovered correspond to 212 individuals in primary graves, 39 of which contained one or two camelids, along with another 44 secondary graves. Among the whole, 86 burial contexts correspond to the period in which Diaguita culture was emerging, which we have called the Early Diaguita phase [21]. The evidence unearthed suggests that it was during this stage that the Diaguitas created their own techno-stylistic material identity. And although there was some degree of interaction with neighboring communities in the semi-arid North, Diaguita ceramics forged an identity all its own, developing visual languages with roots that were linked not only to the Andean world, but with the ancient cultural traditions of the Eastern Bolivian lowlands.

Included among the discoveries associated with those Early Diaguita funerary contexts were novel polychrome vessels, including an anthropomorphic bi-globular polychrome pitcher, which bears a rather crude version of the Wave A pattern on the back of its "head" (**Figure 14a,b**). Also outstanding among the grave goods found is a polych-rome anthropomorphic cup decorated with a labyrinth pattern on both sides of the face and body (**Figure 15a,b**). Yet another notable vessel is the polychrome globular pitcher with a flared neck, which displays the minimal units of the Chain B pattern (triangle combined with a rectangular hook), also present in Mojocoya iconography (**Figure 16**). Lastly, we wish to highlight the four-footed anthropomorphiczoomorphic vessel (**Figure 17**) found at the site, for both its shape and the designs molded and incised on its "face" (nose, eyes, ears), both of which qualities bear evident similarities to the "effigy pieces" illustrated by Brockington et al. [18].

It is interesting to note that, as Diaguita culture consolidated over time, these early motifs gradually transformed and became more complex, until achieving the esthetic and geometric virtuosity characteristic of the Classic Diaguita style and the Diaguita-Inca phase. Clearly, the Wave pattern remained a point of reference throughout Diaguita development, acting as an "axis of formal coherence" [22], an essential formative aspect of Diaguita identity. In effect, when we look at how Diaguita ceramics has evolved over time, we observe the persistence of certain

#### **Figure 14.**

*Bi-globular anthropomorphic polychrome pitcher with wave A pattern A. Grave 182. El Olivar Site; (a) Front section; (b) Back section.*

**121**

**Figure 16.**

*El Olivar site.*

**Figure 15.**

*section; (b) Lateral section.*

*Shipibo Conibo and Chilean Diaguita Visual Art: Cognitive Technologies, Shamanism and Long…*

*Polychrome anthropomorphic cup decorated with labyrinth pattern. Grave 182, El Olivar site. (a) Front* 

complexly structured designs, expressed in a simpler version in the Early Diaguita phase (the Wave A pattern, for example). These decorative patterns were taken up and enhanced time and time again by the Diaguita people in a kind of ongoing sequence that withstood the passage of time. This insistent reproduction of a set of specific designs is a clear expression of how memory constructs and establishes identity. In this sense, we propose that designs like the Wave A pattern, which can

*Globular polychrome pitcher with flared neck, displaying the minimal units of the chain B pattern. Grave 58,* 

*DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.93984*

*Shipibo Conibo and Chilean Diaguita Visual Art: Cognitive Technologies, Shamanism and Long… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.93984*

**Figure 15.**

*Ecosystem and Biodiversity of Amazonia*

cultural traditions of the Eastern Bolivian lowlands.

Chile's semi-arid north.

the Diaguita and Mojocoya representational universes [8], while at the same time shedding light upon the genesis and development of the Diaguita culture itself in

An extensive cemetery was discovered during construction of a highway between the Chilean cities of La Serena and Vallenar, and excavated between 2015 and 2017 [20, 21]. The funerary contexts recovered correspond to 212 individuals in primary graves, 39 of which contained one or two camelids, along with another 44 secondary graves. Among the whole, 86 burial contexts correspond to the period in which Diaguita culture was emerging, which we have called the Early Diaguita phase [21]. The evidence unearthed suggests that it was during this stage that the Diaguitas created their own techno-stylistic material identity. And although there was some degree of interaction with neighboring communities in the semi-arid North, Diaguita ceramics forged an identity all its own, developing visual languages with roots that were linked not only to the Andean world, but with the ancient

Included among the discoveries associated with those Early Diaguita funerary contexts were novel polychrome vessels, including an anthropomorphic bi-globular polychrome pitcher, which bears a rather crude version of the Wave A pattern on the back of its "head" (**Figure 14a,b**). Also outstanding among the grave goods found is a polych-rome anthropomorphic cup decorated with a labyrinth pattern on both sides of the face and body (**Figure 15a,b**). Yet another notable vessel is the polychrome globular pitcher with a flared neck, which displays the minimal units of the Chain B pattern (triangle combined with a rectangular hook), also present in Mojocoya iconography (**Figure 16**). Lastly, we wish to highlight the four-footed anthropomorphiczoomorphic vessel (**Figure 17**) found at the site, for both its shape and the designs molded and incised on its "face" (nose, eyes, ears), both of which qualities bear evident similarities to the "effigy pieces" illustrated by Brockington et al. [18].

It is interesting to note that, as Diaguita culture consolidated over time, these early motifs gradually transformed and became more complex, until achieving the esthetic and geometric virtuosity characteristic of the Classic Diaguita style and the Diaguita-Inca phase. Clearly, the Wave pattern remained a point of reference throughout Diaguita development, acting as an "axis of formal coherence" [22], an essential formative aspect of Diaguita identity. In effect, when we look at how Diaguita ceramics has evolved over time, we observe the persistence of certain

*Bi-globular anthropomorphic polychrome pitcher with wave A pattern A. Grave 182. El Olivar Site; (a) Front* 

**120**

**Figure 14.**

*section; (b) Back section.*

*Polychrome anthropomorphic cup decorated with labyrinth pattern. Grave 182, El Olivar site. (a) Front section; (b) Lateral section.*

**Figure 16.**

*Globular polychrome pitcher with flared neck, displaying the minimal units of the chain B pattern. Grave 58, El Olivar site.*

complexly structured designs, expressed in a simpler version in the Early Diaguita phase (the Wave A pattern, for example). These decorative patterns were taken up and enhanced time and time again by the Diaguita people in a kind of ongoing sequence that withstood the passage of time. This insistent reproduction of a set of specific designs is a clear expression of how memory constructs and establishes identity. In this sense, we propose that designs like the Wave A pattern, which can

**Figure 17.** *Four-legged anthropomorphic-zoomorphic vessel. Grave 186, El Olivar site.*

**Figure 18.**

*Evolution of Wave A pattern over time: (a) Mojocoya trichromatic design (Lathrap 1970, p.143); (b) Sherd of the Wave A pattern, Early Diaguita period, El Olivar site; (c) Wave A pattern in trichromatic cup, Diaguita pre- Inca period, Grave 149, El Olivar site; (d) Wave A1 pattern in felinomorphic bowl, Diaguita-Inca period, Grave 59, El Olivar site.*

**123**

*Shipibo Conibo and Chilean Diaguita Visual Art: Cognitive Technologies, Shamanism and Long…*

be traced back to the earliest times of the Mojocoya culture and is represented in Diaguita culture without interruption from its origin to the Inca stage, is an "axis of formal coherence" [21]. These particular forms and designs are used by a group of

Obviously, the Mojocoya and Chilean Diaguita cultures are separated by a major gap in both time and space, making it difficult to speak of a direct link between the two. Perhaps the latter can be thought of as an original source of the concepts and designs that spread, albeit with some variations, over a geographically extensive area that stretched to the eastern lowlands and likely into the Amazon uplands as well.

A detailed examination of pre-Inca Diaguita visual art [1] from the perspective of its motifs, formal logic, and symmetrical structure suggests that this representational universe does not seek to communicate specific concepts of any kind. Notably, the hyper-concentrated visual litanies of that period were crafted by artisans highly skilled in intricate, complex symmetrical operations. For us, it appears that their aim was more likely the creation of what Gell [22] has termed

In turn, the same author considers decorative art a special form of technology. Gell comments [23],"the decoration of objects is a component of a social technology, which I have elsewhere called the technology of enchantment" [22], and continues, "this psychological technology encourages and maintains the motivations 6necessitated by social life. The world is filled with decorated objects because decoration is often essential to the psychological functionality of artifacts, which cannot be dissociated from the other types of functionality they possess, notably their practical

As Gell explains, work of art captivate the viewer with the difficultly of their conception and execution. Their uniqueness and beauty transform them into active agents in the social sphere. In particular, abstract art exploits our perception of

The author goes on to argue that this "sets up a biographical relation – an unfinished exchange – between the decorated index and the recipient" ([23], p. 81), and thus attributes this "cognitive stickiness" of abstract patterns "to this blockage in the

Thus, by employing these visual strategies, the abstract patterns acquire properties, such as the illusion of movement and vibration, that help to captivate the viewer and enhance the agency of the pattern. In the words of Gell ([23], p. 77), "nothing could be more animated than the tessellations (tiling patterns) devised by Islamic decorative artisans…it seems, to inspire ever more effective inducements to

In this regard, Taylor [16] notes that in the Amazonian representational universe, figurative representations of the entities of the cosmovision are virtually absent, while abstract and geometrical representations abound. The author concludes, "*any surface with geometric motifs can evoke subjectivity or personality. Even* 

*"Patterns, by their multiplicity and the difficulty we have in grasping their mathematical or geometrical basis by mere visual inspection, generate relationships over time between persons and things, because what they present to the mind is,* 

cognitive process of reconstructing the intentionality embodied in artefacts."

captivation by visual artifice, the non-mimetic appearance of animation".

*cognitively speaking, always "unfinished business" ([23], p.23)*

people as a means of their own social reproduction (**Figure 18a**–**d**).

**5. Pre-Inca Diaguita art: the agency of art and technologies** 

*DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.93984*

**of enchantment**

"technologies of enchantment."

or social functionality" ([23], p. 74).

internal agency because

*Shipibo Conibo and Chilean Diaguita Visual Art: Cognitive Technologies, Shamanism and Long… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.93984*

be traced back to the earliest times of the Mojocoya culture and is represented in Diaguita culture without interruption from its origin to the Inca stage, is an "axis of formal coherence" [21]. These particular forms and designs are used by a group of people as a means of their own social reproduction (**Figure 18a**–**d**).

Obviously, the Mojocoya and Chilean Diaguita cultures are separated by a major gap in both time and space, making it difficult to speak of a direct link between the two. Perhaps the latter can be thought of as an original source of the concepts and designs that spread, albeit with some variations, over a geographically extensive area that stretched to the eastern lowlands and likely into the Amazon uplands as well.
