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Material Culture

Browse primary sources, people, eras, and related themes connected to material culture.

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Chavin de Huantar

Ritual architecture, psychoactive plants, sound, and authority in the Early Horizon Andes

A concise archaeological site entry on Chavin de Huantar as a ceremonial center where architecture, controlled movement, sound, San Pedro imagery, and direct evidence for vilca and Nicotiana snuff formed part of institutionalized ritual practice.

ca. 1200-500 BCE

Archaeological Site

SoundArchitectureVisual Culture

Cueva del Chileno

A high-Andean ritual bundle with direct chemical evidence for multiple psychoactive plants

A rock shelter in southwestern Bolivia where archaeologists found direct chemical evidence for ancient use of coca, harmine-bearing plants, DMT-bearing plants, and possibly psilocin.

905-1170 CE

Archaeological Site

ArchaeologyMaterial CulturePharmacology