Pre-Columbian Ecuador
Encyclopedia
Pre-Columbian Ecuador included numerous indigenous
cultures, who thrived for thousands of years before the ascent of the Incan Empire. Las Vegas culture
of coastal Ecuador is one of the oldest cultures in the Americas. The Valdivia culture
in the Pacific coast region is a well-known early Ecuadorian culture. Ancient Valdivian artifacts from as early as 3500 BCE have been found along the coast north of the Guayas Province
in the modern city of Santa Elena
.
Several other cultures, including the Quitus, Caras
and Cañari
s, emerged in other parts of Ecuador. There are other major archaeological sites in the coastal provinces of Manabí
and Esmeraldas
and in the middle Andean highland provinces of Tungurahua
and Chimborazo
. The archaeological evidence has established that Ecuador was inhabited for at least 4,500 years before the rise of the Inca; many scholars believe that the area was populated even earlier, possibly as far back as 12,000 BCE or before.
Great tracts of Ecuador, including almost all of the Oriente (Amazon rainforest
), remain unknown to archaeologists, a fact that adds credence to the possibility of early human habitation. Scholars have studied the Amazon region recently but the forest is so remote and dense that it takes years for research teams to survey even a small area. Their belief that the river basin had complex cultures is confirmed by the recent discovery of the Mayo-Chinchipe Cultural Complex in the Zamora-Chinchipe Province
.
The present Republic of Ecuador is at the heart of the region where a variety of civilizations developed for millennia. During the pre-Inca period people lived in clans, which formed great tribes, and some allied with each other to form powerful confederations, as the Confederation of Quito. But none of these confederations could resist the formidable momentum of the Tawantinsuyu. The invasion of the Inca in the fifteenth century was very painful and bloody. However, once occupied by the Quito hosts of Huayna Capac
(1593–1595), the Incas developed an extensive administration and began the colonization of the region.
The pre-Columbian era can be divided up into four eras:
is the first known culture in Ecuador. They lived on the Santa Elena Peninsula
on the coast of Ecuador between 9000–6000 BCE. The skeletal remains and other finds show evidence the culture once flourished in the area. Scientists have classified three phases of cultural development. The earliest people were hunter-gathers and fisherman. Approximately 6000 BCE the culture were among the first to begin farming (bottle gourd, Lagenaria siceraria, and an early type of maize
, Zea mays L.) The best known remains of the culture are The Lovers of Sumpa. These human remains and other items can be seen at Museo Los Amantes de Sumpa y Centro Cultural in Santa Elena.
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. Evidence from the archeological site El Inca date the culture to 9000–8000 BCE. Several sites were excavated around 1961. It is estimated this area is one of the most important in South America and existed along an ancient trade route. The tools used by these early nomadic hunters have provided relationships to the Clovis culture
level I at Fell's Cave
in southern Chile, and technological relationships to the late Pleistocene "fluted point" complexes of North America.
, Chorrera on the coast; Cotocollao, and The Chimba in the Sierra; and Mayo Chinchipe (4500 BCE—1532 CE), Pastaza, Chiguaza and many other in the Oriente region. The Cerro Narrío or Chaullabamba cultre thrived from 2000 BCE to 600 CE in the southern Cañar
and Azuay provinces.
is the first culture where significant remains have been discovered. Their civilization dates back as early as 3500 BCE. Living in the area near The Valdivias were the first Americans to use pottery. They created bowls, jars and female statues out of clay, both for everyday life and for use in religious ceremonies. They navigated the seas on rafts with sails and established a trade network with tribes in the Andes and the Amazon. Valdivia art and artifacts have been found throughout the country. An extensive collection is on display at the Museo Fianco Banco Central in Quito and the UEES
in Guayaquil.
Succeeding the Valdivia, the Machallia Culture were a farming culture who thrived along the coast of Ecuador between the 2nd and 1st millennia BC. Their ceramics are easily differentiated from the Valdivia as they were painted black or white with red stripes, and figurines were rare and crudely made. These appear to be the earliest people to cultivate maize in this part of South America.
, located on the plateau of Quito and its surrounding valleys. The Bahia culture occupied the area that stretches from the foothills of the Andes to the Pacific Ocean, and from Bahía de Caráquez
, to the south of Manabi. The Jama-Coaque culture inhabited areas between Cabo San Francisco in Esmeraldas
, to Bahía de Caráquez
, in Manabi, in an area of wooded hills and vast beaches of their immigrant who facilitated the gathering of resources of both the jungle and the ocean.
Tribes throughout Ecuador integrated during this period. They created better housing that allowed them to improve their living conditions and no longer be subject to the climate. In the mountains the Cosangua-Píllaro, Capulí
and Piartal-Tuza cultures arose; in the eastern region was the Yasuní Phase, while the Milagro, Manteña and Huancavilca cultures developed on the coast, from 500 BCE—1532 CE.
to Cerro de Hojas in the south. They were excellent weavers, produced textiles, articles of gold, silver spondylus shells and mother of pearls. The manteños mastered the seas and created extensive trade routes as far as present-day Chile to the south and western Mexico to the north. The center of the culture was in the area of Manta
, named in their honor.
was named.
s, the Puruhaes and Cañari
, who by then inhabited the Andean regions of present-day Ecuador. Their main settlement was in the area where they later built up the city of Quito, and its inhabitants are called Quitus. The Quitus were relatively passive, and although they formed a small kingdom, they were overpowered by the Shyris (Cara culture). These ancient indigenous people took over the Kingdom of Quito. The Shyris dominated for more than 700 years before they were invaded by the Inca Tupac Yupanqui. Cañari culture thrived from 400 CE to 1532, but the Cañari people still live in Ecuador today.
expansion northward from modern-day Peru
during the late fifteenth century met with fierce resistance by several Ecuadorian tribes, particularly the Cañari, in the region around modern-day Cuenca
; the Cara (originally of Manabi) in the Sierra north of Quito
, who fought along with the Quitu
, occupants of the site of the modern capital, whom they had formed the Kingdom of Quito with. The conquest of Ecuador began in 1463 under the leadership of the ninth Inca, the great warrior Pachacuti Inca Yupanqui. In that year, his son Tupa took over command of the army and began his march northward through the Sierra.
By 1500 Tupa's son, Huayna Capac
, overcame the resistance of these populations and that of the Cara, and thus incorporated most of modern-day Ecuador into Tawantinsuyu
, as the Inca empire was known. Different tribes also sought refugee in the then thick interior jungles. The influence of these conquerors based in Cuzco (modern-day Peru) was limited to about a half century, or less in some parts of Ecuador. During that period, some aspects of life remained unchanged. Traditional religious beliefs, for example, persisted throughout the period of Inca rule. In other areas, however, such as agriculture, land tenure, and social organization, Inca rule had a profound effect despite its relatively short duration.
Emperor Huayna Capac became very fond of Quito, making it a secondary capital of Tawantinsuyu
and living out his elder years there before his death in about 1527. Huayna Capac's sudden death from a strange disease, described by one as smallpox
, precipitated a bitter power struggle between Huascar
, whose mother was Coya (meaning Empress) Mama Rahua Occillo and legetimate heir, and Atahualpa
, a son who was borne to a Quitu princess, and reputedly his father's "favorite."
This struggle raged during the half-decade before the arrival of Francisco Pizarro
's conquering expedition in 1532. The key battle of this civil war
was fought on Ecuadorian soil, near Riobamba
, where Huascar's northbound troops were met and defeated by Atahualpa's southbound troops. Atahualpa's final victory over Huascar in the days just before the Spanish conquerors arrived resulted in large part from the loyalty of two of Huayna Capac's best generals, who were based in Quito along with Atahualpa. The victory remains a source of national pride to Ecuadorians as a rare case when "Ecuador" forcefully bettered a "neighboring country."
sought Stone Age
objects while in Ecuador during 1880. Most of the items he collected from those brought to him were stone; he thought that most metal artifacts had been smelted in search of any gold they contained.
By far the most common object was a stone star with a hole through the middle. They were found everywhere between Ibarra
and Riobamba
. The majority have six rays (and none have more), proceeding symmetrically from the center, and the whole are fashioned alike upon each side. A certain number have only five rays, and occasional examples are irregular in shape. All are pierced by a hole, which has been drilled from the two sides, and the size of this varies considerably. In dimensions they range from three to five inches in diameter and from three-quarters of an inch to two inches in thickness. Their weight is from five to twenty ounces. The larger part are made from basaltic rock and gabbro. Objects of this class were also cast in metal but these are now rarely found in Ecuador.
Whilst they possess the general points of similarity that have been mentioned, scarcely any two are identical in form. Some are flat and thin, others are thick, or rise in the center upon each side into a shape like the hub of a wheel.
In a U.S. Naval expedition report, figures are given of two stars in bronze (found at Cuzco, Peru), one having a sixth ray prolonged into a hatchet, which suggests that it must have been a war-club or battle-axe. In Squire's book on Peru, there is a figure of a six-rayed object in bronze, said to have been one of several, which are designated by the author (apparently following some earlier writer) casse-têtes, and he says that among the fractured skulls that were found "the larger part seemed to have been broken by blows from some such weapons." Mons. Wiener, in his book on Peru and Bolivia gives a figure of a star which was found at Ancon (near Lima
) showing a stick inserted in the central hole; and another figure of a somewhat similar from in bronze, also handled. Like Squier, he calls them casse-têtes. Finally, the Doctors Reiss and Stübel remark, in their magnificent work upon the Peruvian antiquities obtained at Ancon, that "the few stone objects found here show but slight traces of workmanship, an exception being … a stone weapon of the morning star
type … the six-rayed stone star, here found once only, is elsewhere in Peruvian graves by no means rare."
Though all these writers appear to regard these objects as a kind of battle-axe (and are probably correct so far as those having a ray prolonged into a hatchet are concerned), there are several considerations which suggest these objects were habitually used as weapons. The larger of the stars (which are as heavy as a pound and a quarter) no doubt might be used effectively; but the smaller ones, weighing only a few ounces, would not be very formidable; and taking them as a whole they are less adapted either for offensive or defensive purposes than most of the other stone implements. To this may be added that many are uninjured, and do not seem to have been put to any use whatever. Francisco Campaña (a half-Indian who joined the latter part of Whymper's journey) had assisted in the examination of graves in Peru, and said these stars in stone were found there placed upon the breasts of corpses; and it seems likely that they were to the Children of the Sun symbols of the luminary that they worshipped.
These weapons are known as Macana
(s), used by armies of many Andean and Mesoamerican cultures during centuries until Spanish conquest. They are very effective.
A large number of stone objects were found which were undoubtedly implements.
Five types are shown in the illustration with a white background. In the top row, series A-E, the whole of the edges are rounded, except the bottom ones. In the next line (F-J) all are of a chisel type. The tops and sides of these are sometimes flat or angular, and sometimes rounded; and the lower, or cutting edges, are sharp. The examples in the next series (K-O) bear some resemblance to a bill-hook; the top edges are flat; and they are all pierced with holes drilled from the two sides. The specimens in the next row have similar holes—otherwise they approximate to the chisel type; while the type represented in the bottom series U-Y differs from all the others in having projecting shoulders, and (occasionally) in having a groove along the length of the top edge, apparently to facilitate handling.
All these five types were found in numbers, in many localities, and have evidently been amongst the most common and generally used implements during the Equatorial Stone Age. In minor respects they exhibit considerable variety, and there are large differences in their size, thickness, and weight. The type P-T was the most numerous. The greater part have holes drilled from each side (with the holes having less in diameter in the middle than on their surfaces), though in some the aperture is as broad internally as externally. The positions of the holes vary, some being central, although most of them are nearest to the top. The lower edge is always the sharpest; and, while many would not have cut butter, there are a few sharp enough to cut wood. Their weight ranges from 3¼ to 29 ounces, and like the stars in stone they have been fashioned from a diversity of rocks.
A large number of implements in stone were obtained, from which selections are given in the illustration with a black background. Those marked E, J, K, L, N-T are unique, and the other forms are more or less rare. The central one, marked M, was the only object for which Ecuadorian natives could assign a use, and it was pronounced to be a corn-pounder. This one weighs five and a quarter pounds, and another of eleven pounds was obtained. Several examples of form I were found, considered by Thomas Ewbank
to be a "hollowing-hammer for metal" by making a handle with a pliable wood rod. It is possible those marked A, B, and C were used for the same purpose. The objects D, F, G, and H are more puzzling. The two latter somewhat resemble the two others represented here, but differ from them in not having the circular cavities in the sides. The objects of this type are highly wrought, and fashioned out of hard stone. It seems not unlikely that they were used for sharpening tools, and that the examples G, H are unused specimens. They have also been found by M. Wiener in Peru.
Amongst the distinctly ornamental objects in stone there are imitations of Maize-heads. These were particularly mentioned in Juan & Ulloa's work, in the mid 18th century. Spanish writers say:
Squier gives in his book on Peru a bad representation of one of these stone maize-heads and says that they were specially mentioned "by Padre Arriaga in his rare book on the Extirpation of Idolatry in Peru under the name zaramama," and were household gods of the ancient inhabitants.
says that the Indians
From this passage it appears that at the time of the Pizarros the Indians used tools of metal for most purposes. The concluding sentence evidently refers solely to fashioning stones for building. Older writers in general do not indicate that they had a congnizance of a Stone Age.
era. In 1463 CE, the Inca warrior Pachacuti and his son Tupac Yupanqui began the incorporation of Ecuador into Inca rule. They began by defeating the people of the Sierra including the Quitus tribe (the people for whom modern day Quito
is named). They continued by heading southwest to the coast, eventually subjugating the Ecuadorians living near the Gulf of Guayaquil and the Island of Puna to Inca rule.
By the end of the 15th century, despite fierce resistance by several Ecuadorian native tribes, Huayna Capac
, Tupac Yupanqui's son with a Cañari princess (the people from modern day Canar province), was able to conquer the remaining tribes and by 1500 most of Ecuador was incorporated into the Incan Empire loosely.
Huayna Capac grew up in Ecuador and loved the land, in contrast preference to his native Cusco. He named Quito the second Inca capital. A road was built to connect the two capitals of Quito and Cusco. Cities and temples were built throughout the country. He married a Quitu princess and remained in the country until his death. When Huayna Capac died, he left the northern portion of the current empire to Atahualpa to be ruled from Quito, while the Southern portion was given to Huascar to be ruled from Cusco.
Since neither of the brothers liked the idea of a torn empire, the two sons sought the throne. Huáscar
, born of Huayna Capac's sister in Cusco, was the legitimate heir. Atahualpa
, born in Quito according to Ecuadorian historiography, and in Cusco according to the Peruvian, was the usurper. The brothers battled for six years, killing many men and weakening the empire. Finally in 1532 near Chimborazo, Atahualpa with aid of two of his father's generals defeated his brother. Huáscar was captured and put in prison. Atahualpa became emperor of a severely weakened empire only to face the Spanish conquistadors' arrival in 1532.
During the period of Inca presence, the Ecuadorian organizations adopted agricultural practices, and few social organization of the Inca occupants, but maintained their traditional religious beliefs and many customs.
Incas domination on Ecuador is short (≈70 years) but they leave one of the most well known archaeological sites of Ecuador: Ingapirca. They tried to conquer high Amazonian valley and not succeed all time, specially in the south, were the Bracamoros defeated them three times.
Indigenous peoples in Ecuador
Indigenous peoples in Ecuador are the groups of people who were present in what became the South American nation of Ecuador when Europeans arrived. The term also includes their descendants from the time of the Spanish conquest to the present...
cultures, who thrived for thousands of years before the ascent of the Incan Empire. Las Vegas culture
Las Vegas culture (archaeology)
The Las Vegas culture was a complex of late-Pleistocene and Holocene settlements along the coast of present day Ecuador, which emerged between 8000 BCE and 4600 BCE...
of coastal Ecuador is one of the oldest cultures in the Americas. The Valdivia culture
Valdivia Culture
The Valdivia Culture is one of the oldest settled cultures recorded in the Americas. It emerged from the earlier Las Vegas culture and thrived on the Santa Elena peninsula near the modern-day town of Valdivia, Ecuador between 3500 BC and 1800 BC....
in the Pacific coast region is a well-known early Ecuadorian culture. Ancient Valdivian artifacts from as early as 3500 BCE have been found along the coast north of the Guayas Province
Guayas Province
Guayas is a coastal province in Ecuador. It is bordered to the west by Manabí, Santa Elena, and the Pacific Ocean ; to the east by Los Ríos, Bolívar, Chimborazo, Cañar, and Azuay; to the north by Los Ríos and Bolívar; and to the south by El Oro and the Pacific Ocean.With a population of over 3...
in the modern city of Santa Elena
Santa Elena (canton seat)
Santa Elena is a town in southwestern Ecuador, and is the capital of both the province and the canton of the same name.At the 2001 census there were 111,671 people living within the canton limits....
.
Several other cultures, including the Quitus, Caras
Caras (tribe)
The Cara culture flourished in coastal Ecuador, in what is now Manabí Province, in the first millennium CE.-History:In the 10th century CE, they followed the Esmeraldas River up to the high Andean valley now known as the city San Francisco de Quito. They defeated the local Quitu tribe and set up a...
and Cañari
Canari
Canari is a commune in the Haute-Corse department of France on the island of Corsica.-Population:-References:*...
s, emerged in other parts of Ecuador. There are other major archaeological sites in the coastal provinces of Manabí
Manabí Province
Manabí is a province in Ecuador. Its capital is Portoviejo. The province is named after the Manabí people.-Economy:Manabí's economy is based heavily on natural resources such as cacao, bananas, cotton, etc. It's industrial sector is based on Tuna canning, tobacco, and alcoholic beverage production...
and Esmeraldas
Esmeraldas Province
Esmeraldas is a province in northwestern Ecuador. The capital is Esmeraldas.The province is home to the Afro-Ecuadorian culture.- Cantons :The province is divided into 8 cantons...
and in the middle Andean highland provinces of Tungurahua
Tungurahua Province
Tungurahua is one of the twenty-four provinces of Ecuador. Its capital is Ambato. The province takes its name from the Tungurahua volcano, which is located within the boundaries of the provinces.-Population:...
and Chimborazo
Chimborazo Province
Chimborazo is a province in Ecuador, located in the central Ecuadorian Andes, containing a section of Sangay National Park. The capital is Riobamba. The province contains Chimborazo , Ecuador's highest mountain.- Cantons :...
. The archaeological evidence has established that Ecuador was inhabited for at least 4,500 years before the rise of the Inca; many scholars believe that the area was populated even earlier, possibly as far back as 12,000 BCE or before.
Great tracts of Ecuador, including almost all of the Oriente (Amazon rainforest
Amazon Rainforest
The Amazon Rainforest , also known in English as Amazonia or the Amazon Jungle, is a moist broadleaf forest that covers most of the Amazon Basin of South America...
), remain unknown to archaeologists, a fact that adds credence to the possibility of early human habitation. Scholars have studied the Amazon region recently but the forest is so remote and dense that it takes years for research teams to survey even a small area. Their belief that the river basin had complex cultures is confirmed by the recent discovery of the Mayo-Chinchipe Cultural Complex in the Zamora-Chinchipe Province
Zamora-Chinchipe Province
Zamora Chinchipe is a Province of the Republicof Ecuador, located at the southeastern end of the Amazon Basin, which shares borders with the Ecuadorian provinces of Azuay and Morona Santiago to the north, Loja and Azuay to the west, and with Peru to the east and south...
.
The present Republic of Ecuador is at the heart of the region where a variety of civilizations developed for millennia. During the pre-Inca period people lived in clans, which formed great tribes, and some allied with each other to form powerful confederations, as the Confederation of Quito. But none of these confederations could resist the formidable momentum of the Tawantinsuyu. The invasion of the Inca in the fifteenth century was very painful and bloody. However, once occupied by the Quito hosts of Huayna Capac
Huayna Capac
Huayna Capac was the eleventh Sapa Inca of the Inca Empire and sixth of the Hanan dynasty. He was the successor to Tupac Inca Yupanqui.-Name:In Quechua, his name is spelled Wayna Qhapaq, and in Southern Quechua, it is Vaina Ghapakh...
(1593–1595), the Incas developed an extensive administration and began the colonization of the region.
The pre-Columbian era can be divided up into four eras:
- Preceramic Period;
- Formative Period;
- Period of Regional Development; and
- Period of Integration and the Arrival of the Incas.
Preceramic period
The Pre-Ceramic period begins with the end of the last ice age and continues through 4200 BCE. The Las Vegas and Inga cultures dominated this period.Las Vegas culture
The Las VegasLas Vegas culture (archaeology)
The Las Vegas culture was a complex of late-Pleistocene and Holocene settlements along the coast of present day Ecuador, which emerged between 8000 BCE and 4600 BCE...
is the first known culture in Ecuador. They lived on the Santa Elena Peninsula
Santa Elena Peninsula
The Santa Elena Peninsula is a peninsula in Santa Elena Province, Ecuador. The Santa Elena Peninsula contains the westernmost point on mainland Ecuador and is bordered by the Gulf of Guayaquil to the south and the Santa Elena Bay to the north....
on the coast of Ecuador between 9000–6000 BCE. The skeletal remains and other finds show evidence the culture once flourished in the area. Scientists have classified three phases of cultural development. The earliest people were hunter-gathers and fisherman. Approximately 6000 BCE the culture were among the first to begin farming (bottle gourd, Lagenaria siceraria, and an early type of maize
Maize
Maize known in many English-speaking countries as corn or mielie/mealie, is a grain domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The leafy stalk produces ears which contain seeds called kernels. Though technically a grain, maize kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable...
, Zea mays L.) The best known remains of the culture are The Lovers of Sumpa. These human remains and other items can be seen at Museo Los Amantes de Sumpa y Centro Cultural in Santa Elena.
El Inga
The Inga lived in the Sierra near present-day QuitoQuito
San Francisco de Quito, most often called Quito , is the capital city of Ecuador in northwestern South America. It is located in north-central Ecuador in the Guayllabamba river basin, on the eastern slopes of Pichincha, an active stratovolcano in the Andes mountains...
. Evidence from the archeological site El Inca date the culture to 9000–8000 BCE. Several sites were excavated around 1961. It is estimated this area is one of the most important in South America and existed along an ancient trade route. The tools used by these early nomadic hunters have provided relationships to the Clovis culture
Clovis culture
The Clovis culture is a prehistoric Paleo-Indian culture that first appears 11,500 RCYBP , at the end of the last glacial period, characterized by the manufacture of "Clovis points" and distinctive bone and ivory tools...
level I at Fell's Cave
Cueva Fell
Cueva Fell is a natural cave and archaeological site in southern Patagonia. Cueva Fell is in proximity to the Pali Aike Crater, another significant archaeological site. Cueva Fell combined with the nearby Pali Aike site have been submitted to UNESCO as a possible World Heritage Site.-References:*...
in southern Chile, and technological relationships to the late Pleistocene "fluted point" complexes of North America.
Formative Period
During the Formative Period, people of the region moved from the hunter-gather and simple farming into a more developed society, with permanent developments, an increase in agriculture and the use of ceramics. New cultures included the Machalilla culture, ValdiviaValdivia
-Geography:*Chile** Valdivia, Chile, a city and municipality in the Province of Valdivia** Valdivia River, a river which begins in the city of Valdivia** Valdivia Province, the Province of Valdivia...
, Chorrera on the coast; Cotocollao, and The Chimba in the Sierra; and Mayo Chinchipe (4500 BCE—1532 CE), Pastaza, Chiguaza and many other in the Oriente region. The Cerro Narrío or Chaullabamba cultre thrived from 2000 BCE to 600 CE in the southern Cañar
Cañar Province
Cañar is a province in Ecuador. The capital is Azogues. At the time of census 2005 the province had a population of 221,045. It contains the 16th-century ruins of Ingapirca, the best-known Inca settlement in Ecuador and a product of their conquest of the indigenous Cañari.- Cantons :The province...
and Azuay provinces.
Valdivia Culture
The Valdivia cultureValdivia Culture
The Valdivia Culture is one of the oldest settled cultures recorded in the Americas. It emerged from the earlier Las Vegas culture and thrived on the Santa Elena peninsula near the modern-day town of Valdivia, Ecuador between 3500 BC and 1800 BC....
is the first culture where significant remains have been discovered. Their civilization dates back as early as 3500 BCE. Living in the area near The Valdivias were the first Americans to use pottery. They created bowls, jars and female statues out of clay, both for everyday life and for use in religious ceremonies. They navigated the seas on rafts with sails and established a trade network with tribes in the Andes and the Amazon. Valdivia art and artifacts have been found throughout the country. An extensive collection is on display at the Museo Fianco Banco Central in Quito and the UEES
UEES
Universidad de Especialidades Espíritu Santo is a non-profit private university located in Guayaquil, Ecuador. Founded by Dr. Carlos Ortega Maldonado, it was accredited by CONESUP, then the Ecuadorian higher education governing agency. Its modern campus is located in Samborondon...
in Guayaquil.
Machallila Culture
Chorrera Culture
Existing in the late Formative period, the Chorrera culture lived in the Andes and Coastal Regions of Ecuador between 900 and 300 BCE. They were best known for their hollow ceramic animal- and plant-shaped figurines.Period of Regional Development
The period of Regional Development is when regional differences developed in the territorial or political and social organization of the peoples. Among the main towns of this period were the cultures: Jambelí, Guangala, Bahía, Tejar-Daule, La Tolita, Jama Coaque in the coast of Ecuador, in the Sierras the Cerro Narrío Alausí; and in the Ecuadorian Amazon jungle the Tayos.La Bahía
The figurine of the Bahia Culture (300 BCE–500 CE), La Chimba is the site of the earliest ceramic northern Andes, north of Quito, and is representative of the Formative Period in its final stage. Its inhabitants contacted several villages on the coast and the mountains, keeping close proximity to the Cotocollao cultureCotocollao Indians
The Cotocollao culture were an indigenous Pre-Columbian culture the valley that is now Quito, in Ecuador.- Introduction :The Cotocollao Indians were the first inhabitants of the mountains of what is now Ecuador. They lived approximately 1,500 to 500 years BCE...
, located on the plateau of Quito and its surrounding valleys. The Bahia culture occupied the area that stretches from the foothills of the Andes to the Pacific Ocean, and from Bahía de Caráquez
Bahía de Caráquez
La Villa de San Antonio de Caráquez, known simply as Bahía de Caráquez or Bahía, is a coastal city in the Ecuadorian province of Manabí. The city is located on a sandy peninsula on the country's western coast at the mouth of the Río Chone...
, to the south of Manabi. The Jama-Coaque culture inhabited areas between Cabo San Francisco in Esmeraldas
Esmeraldas
Esmeraldas is the Spanish word for 'emeralds'. It is a toponym that may refer to the following:*Brazil**Esmeraldas, Minas Gerais*Ecuador**Esmeraldas, Ecuador**Esmeraldas River**Esmeraldas Province**Esmeraldas Canton*Special:Allpages/Esmeraldas...
, to Bahía de Caráquez
Bahía de Caráquez
La Villa de San Antonio de Caráquez, known simply as Bahía de Caráquez or Bahía, is a coastal city in the Ecuadorian province of Manabí. The city is located on a sandy peninsula on the country's western coast at the mouth of the Río Chone...
, in Manabi, in an area of wooded hills and vast beaches of their immigrant who facilitated the gathering of resources of both the jungle and the ocean.
La Tolita Culture
The La Tolita developed in the coastal region of Southern Colombia and Northern Ecuador between 600 BCE and 200 CE. Numerous archaeological sites have been discovered that show the highly artistic nature of this culture. Artifacts are characterized by gold jewelry, beautiful anthropomorphic masks and figurines that reflect a hierarchical society with complex ceremonies.Period of Integration and the arrival of the Inca
Capulí culture
The Capulí culture refers to an archaeological classification for a group in Pre-Columbian South America on the Andean plain in what is now northern Ecuador and southern Colombia. The Capulí preceded the Piartal and Tuza cultures in the archaeological record ranging from around 800 to 1500 CE. ...
and Piartal-Tuza cultures arose; in the eastern region was the Yasuní Phase, while the Milagro, Manteña and Huancavilca cultures developed on the coast, from 500 BCE—1532 CE.
Los Manteños
The Manteños were the last of the pre-Columbian cultures in the coastal region and flourished between 600–1534. They were the first to witness the arrival of Spanish ships sailing in the surrounding Pacific Ocean. According to archaeological evidence and Spanish chronicles, the civilization extended from Bahia de CaraquezBahía de Caráquez
La Villa de San Antonio de Caráquez, known simply as Bahía de Caráquez or Bahía, is a coastal city in the Ecuadorian province of Manabí. The city is located on a sandy peninsula on the country's western coast at the mouth of the Río Chone...
to Cerro de Hojas in the south. They were excellent weavers, produced textiles, articles of gold, silver spondylus shells and mother of pearls. The manteños mastered the seas and created extensive trade routes as far as present-day Chile to the south and western Mexico to the north. The center of the culture was in the area of Manta
Manta
Manta is a mid-sized city in Manabí Province, Ecuador. It is the second most populous city in the province, the fifth most populous in the country and, economically, the third most important city of Ecuador. Manta has existed since Pre-Columbian times. It was a trading post for the Mantas....
, named in their honor.
Los Huancavilcas
The Huancavilcas constitute the most important pre-Colombinan culture of Guayas, after Las Vegas. These warriors were noted for their appearance. Huancavilca culture recounts the legend of Guayas and Quiles, for which the city of GuayaquilGuayaquil
Guayaquil , officially Santiago de Guayaquil , is the largest and the most populous city in Ecuador,with about 2.3 million inhabitants in the city and nearly 3.1 million in the metropolitan area, as well as that nation's main port...
was named.
Quitu-Cara culture and the Kingdom of Quito
The Kingdom of Quito was formed by the QuituQuitu
The Quitus were Pre-Columbian indigenous peoples in Ecuador who founded Quito, which is now the capital of Ecuador. The inhabitants' existence spanned from 2000 BCE to the beginning of the Spaniards' conquest of the city in 1524...
s, the Puruhaes and Cañari
Canari
Canari is a commune in the Haute-Corse department of France on the island of Corsica.-Population:-References:*...
, who by then inhabited the Andean regions of present-day Ecuador. Their main settlement was in the area where they later built up the city of Quito, and its inhabitants are called Quitus. The Quitus were relatively passive, and although they formed a small kingdom, they were overpowered by the Shyris (Cara culture). These ancient indigenous people took over the Kingdom of Quito. The Shyris dominated for more than 700 years before they were invaded by the Inca Tupac Yupanqui. Cañari culture thrived from 400 CE to 1532, but the Cañari people still live in Ecuador today.
The Incas
The Inca civilizationInca civilization
The Andean civilizations made up a loose patchwork of different cultures that developed from the highlands of Colombia to the Atacama Desert. The Andean civilizations are mainly based on the cultures of Ancient Peru and some others such as Tiahuanaco. The Inca Empire was the last sovereign...
expansion northward from modern-day Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
during the late fifteenth century met with fierce resistance by several Ecuadorian tribes, particularly the Cañari, in the region around modern-day Cuenca
Cuenca, Ecuador
Cuenca is the capital of the Azuay Province. It is located in the highlands of Ecuador at about 2500 m above sea level...
; the Cara (originally of Manabi) in the Sierra north of Quito
Quito
San Francisco de Quito, most often called Quito , is the capital city of Ecuador in northwestern South America. It is located in north-central Ecuador in the Guayllabamba river basin, on the eastern slopes of Pichincha, an active stratovolcano in the Andes mountains...
, who fought along with the Quitu
Quitu
The Quitus were Pre-Columbian indigenous peoples in Ecuador who founded Quito, which is now the capital of Ecuador. The inhabitants' existence spanned from 2000 BCE to the beginning of the Spaniards' conquest of the city in 1524...
, occupants of the site of the modern capital, whom they had formed the Kingdom of Quito with. The conquest of Ecuador began in 1463 under the leadership of the ninth Inca, the great warrior Pachacuti Inca Yupanqui. In that year, his son Tupa took over command of the army and began his march northward through the Sierra.
By 1500 Tupa's son, Huayna Capac
Huayna Capac
Huayna Capac was the eleventh Sapa Inca of the Inca Empire and sixth of the Hanan dynasty. He was the successor to Tupac Inca Yupanqui.-Name:In Quechua, his name is spelled Wayna Qhapaq, and in Southern Quechua, it is Vaina Ghapakh...
, overcame the resistance of these populations and that of the Cara, and thus incorporated most of modern-day Ecuador into Tawantinsuyu
Inca Empire
The Inca Empire, or Inka Empire , was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The administrative, political and military center of the empire was located in Cusco in modern-day Peru. The Inca civilization arose from the highlands of Peru sometime in the early 13th century...
, as the Inca empire was known. Different tribes also sought refugee in the then thick interior jungles. The influence of these conquerors based in Cuzco (modern-day Peru) was limited to about a half century, or less in some parts of Ecuador. During that period, some aspects of life remained unchanged. Traditional religious beliefs, for example, persisted throughout the period of Inca rule. In other areas, however, such as agriculture, land tenure, and social organization, Inca rule had a profound effect despite its relatively short duration.
Emperor Huayna Capac became very fond of Quito, making it a secondary capital of Tawantinsuyu
Inca Empire
The Inca Empire, or Inka Empire , was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The administrative, political and military center of the empire was located in Cusco in modern-day Peru. The Inca civilization arose from the highlands of Peru sometime in the early 13th century...
and living out his elder years there before his death in about 1527. Huayna Capac's sudden death from a strange disease, described by one as smallpox
Smallpox
Smallpox was an infectious disease unique to humans, caused by either of two virus variants, Variola major and Variola minor. The disease is also known by the Latin names Variola or Variola vera, which is a derivative of the Latin varius, meaning "spotted", or varus, meaning "pimple"...
, precipitated a bitter power struggle between Huascar
Huáscar
Huáscar Inca was Sapa Inca of the Inca empire from 1527 to 1532 AD, succeeding his father Huayna Capac and brother Ninan Cuyochi, both of whom died of smallpox while campaigning near Quito.After the conquest, the Spanish put forth the idea that Huayna Capac may have...
, whose mother was Coya (meaning Empress) Mama Rahua Occillo and legetimate heir, and Atahualpa
Atahualpa
Atahualpa, Atahuallpa, Atabalipa, or Atawallpa , was the last Sapa Inca or sovereign emperor of the Tahuantinsuyu, or the Inca Empire, prior to the Spanish conquest of Peru...
, a son who was borne to a Quitu princess, and reputedly his father's "favorite."
This struggle raged during the half-decade before the arrival of Francisco Pizarro
Francisco Pizarro
Francisco Pizarro González, Marquess was a Spanish conquistador, conqueror of the Incan Empire, and founder of Lima, the modern-day capital of the Republic of Peru.-Early life:...
's conquering expedition in 1532. The key battle of this civil war
Inca Civil War
The Inca Civil War, the Inca Dynastic War, the Inca War of Succession, or, sometimes, the War of the Two Brothers was fought between two brothers, Huáscar and Atahualpa, sons of Huayna Capac, over the succession to the Inca throne. The war followed Huayna Capac's death in 1527, although it did not...
was fought on Ecuadorian soil, near Riobamba
Riobamba
Riobamba is the capital of the Chimborazo Province in central Ecuador, which is located at the Chambo River Valley of the Andes. It is south of Ecuador's capital Quito and located at 2754 m on the Avenue of the Volcanoes...
, where Huascar's northbound troops were met and defeated by Atahualpa's southbound troops. Atahualpa's final victory over Huascar in the days just before the Spanish conquerors arrived resulted in large part from the loyalty of two of Huayna Capac's best generals, who were based in Quito along with Atahualpa. The victory remains a source of national pride to Ecuadorians as a rare case when "Ecuador" forcefully bettered a "neighboring country."
Stone Age
Edward WhymperEdward Whymper
Edward Whymper , was an English illustrator, climber and explorer best known for the first ascent of the Matterhorn in 1865. On the descent four members of the party were killed.-Early life:...
sought Stone Age
Stone Age
The Stone Age is a broad prehistoric period, lasting about 2.5 million years , during which humans and their predecessor species in the genus Homo, as well as the earlier partly contemporary genera Australopithecus and Paranthropus, widely used exclusively stone as their hard material in the...
objects while in Ecuador during 1880. Most of the items he collected from those brought to him were stone; he thought that most metal artifacts had been smelted in search of any gold they contained.
Macanas
Ibarra, Ecuador
Ibarra is a city in northern Ecuador and the capital of the Imbabura Province. It lies at the foot of the Imbabura Volcano and on the left bank of the Tahuando river. It is about northeast of Ecuador's capital Quito....
and Riobamba
Riobamba
Riobamba is the capital of the Chimborazo Province in central Ecuador, which is located at the Chambo River Valley of the Andes. It is south of Ecuador's capital Quito and located at 2754 m on the Avenue of the Volcanoes...
. The majority have six rays (and none have more), proceeding symmetrically from the center, and the whole are fashioned alike upon each side. A certain number have only five rays, and occasional examples are irregular in shape. All are pierced by a hole, which has been drilled from the two sides, and the size of this varies considerably. In dimensions they range from three to five inches in diameter and from three-quarters of an inch to two inches in thickness. Their weight is from five to twenty ounces. The larger part are made from basaltic rock and gabbro. Objects of this class were also cast in metal but these are now rarely found in Ecuador.
Whilst they possess the general points of similarity that have been mentioned, scarcely any two are identical in form. Some are flat and thin, others are thick, or rise in the center upon each side into a shape like the hub of a wheel.
In a U.S. Naval expedition report, figures are given of two stars in bronze (found at Cuzco, Peru), one having a sixth ray prolonged into a hatchet, which suggests that it must have been a war-club or battle-axe. In Squire's book on Peru, there is a figure of a six-rayed object in bronze, said to have been one of several, which are designated by the author (apparently following some earlier writer) casse-têtes, and he says that among the fractured skulls that were found "the larger part seemed to have been broken by blows from some such weapons." Mons. Wiener, in his book on Peru and Bolivia gives a figure of a star which was found at Ancon (near Lima
Lima
Lima is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín rivers, in the central part of the country, on a desert coast overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Together with the seaport of Callao, it forms a contiguous urban area known as the Lima...
) showing a stick inserted in the central hole; and another figure of a somewhat similar from in bronze, also handled. Like Squier, he calls them casse-têtes. Finally, the Doctors Reiss and Stübel remark, in their magnificent work upon the Peruvian antiquities obtained at Ancon, that "the few stone objects found here show but slight traces of workmanship, an exception being … a stone weapon of the morning star
Morning star (weapon)
The term morning star is used to describe medieval club-like weapons which included one or more spikes. Each used, to varying degrees, a combination of blunt-force and puncture attack to kill or wound the enemy.- Design :...
type … the six-rayed stone star, here found once only, is elsewhere in Peruvian graves by no means rare."
Though all these writers appear to regard these objects as a kind of battle-axe (and are probably correct so far as those having a ray prolonged into a hatchet are concerned), there are several considerations which suggest these objects were habitually used as weapons. The larger of the stars (which are as heavy as a pound and a quarter) no doubt might be used effectively; but the smaller ones, weighing only a few ounces, would not be very formidable; and taking them as a whole they are less adapted either for offensive or defensive purposes than most of the other stone implements. To this may be added that many are uninjured, and do not seem to have been put to any use whatever. Francisco Campaña (a half-Indian who joined the latter part of Whymper's journey) had assisted in the examination of graves in Peru, and said these stars in stone were found there placed upon the breasts of corpses; and it seems likely that they were to the Children of the Sun symbols of the luminary that they worshipped.
These weapons are known as Macana
Macana
The term macana, of Taíno origin, refers to various wooden weapons used by the various native cultures of Central and South America.The earliest meaning attributed to macana is a sword-like weapon made out of wood, but still sharp enough to be dangerous...
(s), used by armies of many Andean and Mesoamerican cultures during centuries until Spanish conquest. They are very effective.
Implements
Five types are shown in the illustration with a white background. In the top row, series A-E, the whole of the edges are rounded, except the bottom ones. In the next line (F-J) all are of a chisel type. The tops and sides of these are sometimes flat or angular, and sometimes rounded; and the lower, or cutting edges, are sharp. The examples in the next series (K-O) bear some resemblance to a bill-hook; the top edges are flat; and they are all pierced with holes drilled from the two sides. The specimens in the next row have similar holes—otherwise they approximate to the chisel type; while the type represented in the bottom series U-Y differs from all the others in having projecting shoulders, and (occasionally) in having a groove along the length of the top edge, apparently to facilitate handling.
All these five types were found in numbers, in many localities, and have evidently been amongst the most common and generally used implements during the Equatorial Stone Age. In minor respects they exhibit considerable variety, and there are large differences in their size, thickness, and weight. The type P-T was the most numerous. The greater part have holes drilled from each side (with the holes having less in diameter in the middle than on their surfaces), though in some the aperture is as broad internally as externally. The positions of the holes vary, some being central, although most of them are nearest to the top. The lower edge is always the sharpest; and, while many would not have cut butter, there are a few sharp enough to cut wood. Their weight ranges from 3¼ to 29 ounces, and like the stars in stone they have been fashioned from a diversity of rocks.
Thomas Ewbank
Thomas Ewbank was an English writer on practical mechanics, who was United States Commissioner of Patents from 1849 to 1852.-Life:...
to be a "hollowing-hammer for metal" by making a handle with a pliable wood rod. It is possible those marked A, B, and C were used for the same purpose. The objects D, F, G, and H are more puzzling. The two latter somewhat resemble the two others represented here, but differ from them in not having the circular cavities in the sides. The objects of this type are highly wrought, and fashioned out of hard stone. It seems not unlikely that they were used for sharpening tools, and that the examples G, H are unused specimens. They have also been found by M. Wiener in Peru.
Amongst the distinctly ornamental objects in stone there are imitations of Maize-heads. These were particularly mentioned in Juan & Ulloa's work, in the mid 18th century. Spanish writers say:
- "The maize has ever been the delight of the Indians; for, besides being their food, their favourite liquor chicha was made of it; the Indian artists therefore used to shew their skill in making ears of it in a kind of very hard stone; and so perfect was the resemblance that they could hardly be distinguished by the eye from nature; especially as the colour was imitated to the greatest perfection; some represented the yellow maize, some the white … The most surprizing circumstance of the whole is, the manner of their working, which, when we consider their want of instruments and the wretched form of those they had, appears an inexplicable mystery: for either they worked with copper tools, a metal little able to resist the hardness of stones, or, to give the nice polish conspicuous on their works, other stones must have been used as tools."
Squier gives in his book on Peru a bad representation of one of these stone maize-heads and says that they were specially mentioned "by Padre Arriaga in his rare book on the Extirpation of Idolatry in Peru under the name zaramama," and were household gods of the ancient inhabitants.
Age of objects
That the principal part of these objects and implements in stone are of considerable or of great age is apparent from the fact that they are scarcely mentioned at the time of the Pizarros. Garcilaso de la VegaGarcilaso de la Vega
Garcilaso de la Vega was a Spanish soldier and poet. He was the most influential poet to introduce Italian Renaissance verse forms, poetic techniques and themes to Spain.-Biography:...
says that the Indians
- "knew not the invention of putting a handle of Wood to their Hammers, but worked with certain Instruments they had made of Copper, mixed with a sort of fine Brass. Neither did they know how to make Files or Graving-tools, or Bellows for Melting down Metals … But above all, their Carpenters seemed to be worst provided with Tools; for though ours use many Instruments made of Iron, those of Peru had no other than a Hatchet, and a Pick-axe made of Copper; they neither had Saw, nor Augre, nor Planer, nor any other Tool for the Carpenter's work, so that they could not make Arches or Portals for doors; onely they hewed and cut their Timber, and whitened it, and then it was prepared for their Building: And for making their Hatchets and Pick-axes, and some few Rakes, they made use of the Silversmiths, for as yet they had not attained to the Art of Working in Iron. Nor did they know how to make Nails, or use them, but tied all their timber with Cords of Hemp. Nor were their Hewers of Stone more artificial, for in cutting and shaping their Stones, they had no other Tool, than one made with some sharp Flints and Pebbles, with which they rather wore out the Stone by continual rubbing, than cutting."
From this passage it appears that at the time of the Pizarros the Indians used tools of metal for most purposes. The concluding sentence evidently refers solely to fashioning stones for building. Older writers in general do not indicate that they had a congnizance of a Stone Age.
Ecuador under Incan rule
The history of Ecuador is better known from the point of the Inca expansion than during the Pre-ColumbianPre-Columbian
The pre-Columbian era incorporates all period subdivisions in the history and prehistory of the Americas before the appearance of significant European influences on the American continents, spanning the time of the original settlement in the Upper Paleolithic period to European colonization during...
era. In 1463 CE, the Inca warrior Pachacuti and his son Tupac Yupanqui began the incorporation of Ecuador into Inca rule. They began by defeating the people of the Sierra including the Quitus tribe (the people for whom modern day Quito
Quito
San Francisco de Quito, most often called Quito , is the capital city of Ecuador in northwestern South America. It is located in north-central Ecuador in the Guayllabamba river basin, on the eastern slopes of Pichincha, an active stratovolcano in the Andes mountains...
is named). They continued by heading southwest to the coast, eventually subjugating the Ecuadorians living near the Gulf of Guayaquil and the Island of Puna to Inca rule.
By the end of the 15th century, despite fierce resistance by several Ecuadorian native tribes, Huayna Capac
Huayna Capac
Huayna Capac was the eleventh Sapa Inca of the Inca Empire and sixth of the Hanan dynasty. He was the successor to Tupac Inca Yupanqui.-Name:In Quechua, his name is spelled Wayna Qhapaq, and in Southern Quechua, it is Vaina Ghapakh...
, Tupac Yupanqui's son with a Cañari princess (the people from modern day Canar province), was able to conquer the remaining tribes and by 1500 most of Ecuador was incorporated into the Incan Empire loosely.
Huayna Capac grew up in Ecuador and loved the land, in contrast preference to his native Cusco. He named Quito the second Inca capital. A road was built to connect the two capitals of Quito and Cusco. Cities and temples were built throughout the country. He married a Quitu princess and remained in the country until his death. When Huayna Capac died, he left the northern portion of the current empire to Atahualpa to be ruled from Quito, while the Southern portion was given to Huascar to be ruled from Cusco.
Since neither of the brothers liked the idea of a torn empire, the two sons sought the throne. Huáscar
Huáscar
Huáscar Inca was Sapa Inca of the Inca empire from 1527 to 1532 AD, succeeding his father Huayna Capac and brother Ninan Cuyochi, both of whom died of smallpox while campaigning near Quito.After the conquest, the Spanish put forth the idea that Huayna Capac may have...
, born of Huayna Capac's sister in Cusco, was the legitimate heir. Atahualpa
Atahualpa
Atahualpa, Atahuallpa, Atabalipa, or Atawallpa , was the last Sapa Inca or sovereign emperor of the Tahuantinsuyu, or the Inca Empire, prior to the Spanish conquest of Peru...
, born in Quito according to Ecuadorian historiography, and in Cusco according to the Peruvian, was the usurper. The brothers battled for six years, killing many men and weakening the empire. Finally in 1532 near Chimborazo, Atahualpa with aid of two of his father's generals defeated his brother. Huáscar was captured and put in prison. Atahualpa became emperor of a severely weakened empire only to face the Spanish conquistadors' arrival in 1532.
During the period of Inca presence, the Ecuadorian organizations adopted agricultural practices, and few social organization of the Inca occupants, but maintained their traditional religious beliefs and many customs.
Incas domination on Ecuador is short (≈70 years) but they leave one of the most well known archaeological sites of Ecuador: Ingapirca. They tried to conquer high Amazonian valley and not succeed all time, specially in the south, were the Bracamoros defeated them three times.