2013 trip to hualcáyan, perú in a collaborative project with piara
Post on 21-Oct-2014
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Here are a few slides and text rom my trip to Hualcáyan Peru in August of 2013. The purpose of the trip was to explore some potential collaboration between Proyecto de Investigación Arqueológico Regional Ancash (PIARA) (www.piaraperu.org) and students at the University of Memphis and the C.H. Nash Museum at Chucalissa in Memphis, Tennessee, U.S.TRANSCRIPT
2013 Trip to Hualcáyan, Peru in collabora8on with Proyecto de Inves8gación Arqueológico Regional Ancash (PIARA).
In August of 2013, I traveled to Hualcáyan, Perú. The village, with a popula8on of about 400, is located in the department of Ancash at about 3200 meters (10,500 feet) above sea level in the Cordillera Blanca Mountain Range northeast of Lima, Perú. The purpose of the trip was to inves8gate the poten8al for collabora8ve projects between PIARA, students in the Museum Studies Graduate Cer8ficate Program at the University of Memphis, and the C.H. Nash Museum at Chucalissa in Memphis Tennessee, U.S.
AVer a 10 hour bus ride from Lima, I spent the night in Caraz at about 2200 masl acclima8ng to the increased eleva8on.
The village of Hualcáyan was founded in the early 1980s. The 400 residents primarily work in agriculture and raise livestock.
The first night in the village the new arrivals were treated to a dinner of rabbit and sweet potatoes.
Haulcáyan is situated in a complex of prehistoric archaeological features that span 4000 years of human occupa8on of the region. The open field in the foreground is where the village plays soccer. The linear features on the hillside in the background are prehistoric agricultural terraces.
The structure shown here is a chulpa. The interior contains four separate chambers used for burials in prehistory. At this chulpa and most others in the region, the mummified human remains and burial offerings were looted long ago.
The Hualcáyan archaeological features also includes a complex series of prehistoric mounds that that were rebuilt and expanded over 8me. A second mound is visible in the background.
PIARA has conducted field excava8ons at Hualcáyan for several years drawing on students from throughout the United States and Peru.
A cri8cal component of PIARA’s work is the economic, educa8onal and cultural heritage development for the village. Some of the collabora8ve projects with PIARA will draw on the student skills and training opportuni8es at the University of Memphis. On August 3rd of this year, PIARA organized the first ever Cultural Heritage Fes8val in Hualcáyan. The fes8val was a`ended by area residents, students from the Na8onal University of Ancash, and the press, some who drove over three hours to a`end.
PIARA provided many ac8vi8es for the children such as making masks.
AVer a religious service opening the fes8val, numerous speakers brought gree8ngs and spoke of the significance of Hualcáyan’s cultural heritage. Elizabeth Cruzado Carranza (5th from right) and Rebecca Bria (4th from right) the Directors of PIARA were featured speakers.
Four different tradi8onal dance groups performed.
And a band played well into the night . . .
In addi8on to a tour of the field excava8ons, a “pop-‐up” museum exhibited ar8facts recovered in the past few field seasons. Although intended to be on exhibit for the single day of fes8val, residents con8nued to visit the temporary museum the following day as well.
PIARA Director Rebecca Bria explains the culture history of the Hualcáyan site to the municipal leader of the village and a news reporter from Caraz.
PIARA Director Elizabeth Cruzado Carranza shows preserved tex8les to village residents.
The designs and effigy forms of ceramic vessels were of par8cular interest to Hualcáyan residents.
For many area residents, the pop-‐up museum was the first 8me they came to understand Hualcáyan’s ceramic vessels and mummified human remains as something more than commodi8es they could sell to offset their poverty. Village leaders have expressed an interest in developing a permanent museum and cultural center in the village. PIARA has set a goal of developing both the preserva8on and presenta8on of the village’s cultural heritage for local residents and the tourists who use Hualcáyan as a star8ng point for adventure hiking through the adjacent Na8onal Park.
When it came 8me on the Fes8val Day to christen the new library that PIARA purchased and organized, the power in the town was out so the loudspeaker could not announce the event. Instead, the band played on and led the way as the people followed, like a Second Line Parade in New Orleans, Louisiana!
The band played and the people danced.
Followed by the ribbon cujng on the new shelves of library books and computer sta8on organized and funded by PIARA.
A tremendous improvement over the old classrooms at the school.
I look forward to a return trip in 2014 . . . Follow my blog at: rcnnolly.wordpress.com for updates on the project and visit PIARA at www.piaraperu.org