A mysterious Inca-era monument consisting of about 5,200 holes high in the Andes may have been a place for bartering and accounting hundreds of years ago, new research suggests.
The holes are arranged in a regular grid at Monte Sierpe (‘Snake Mountain’) in the southern Andes of Peru. Research suggests the ruins may have been built between 1000 and 1400 AD as a place of exchange for the powerful Chincha kingdom, which had a population of more than 100,000 people. The authors suggested that when the kingdom was conquered by the Inca Empire in the 15th century, the location of the “Band of Halls” may have been reused to collect tribute and taxes from local groups.
After analyzing thousands of holes using drone technology, archaeologists found that they were able to detect “mathematical patterns in the layout of the holes,” meaning that the holes were organized into sections or blocks reminiscent of accounting and recording methods of the time. Study co-author Charles Stanish, a professor of anthropology at the University of South Florida, said in a statement that the researchers also analyzed samples taken from the hole.
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hole band
The mystical pits of Monte Sierpe are arranged in long strips, divided into blocks of dozens of divots. The entire band is 0.9 miles (1.5 kilometers) long. Each hole is 3 to 6 feet (1 to 2 meters) in diameter and up to 3 feet (1 meter) deep, and some holes are lined with rocks. The site is near a road intersection with a defense settlement that dates back to pre-Hispanic colonization in the 16th century.
Archaeologists first recorded the site in the 1930s and then investigated it in the 1970s, but little research has been done since then, Stanish said. “This site is isolated and not threatened by development,” he explained. “As a result, there was no sense of urgency.”
Researchers have proposed various ideas over the years to explain the vast number of holes.
“Hypotheses about Monte Sierpe’s purpose range from defense, storage, and interpretation to water harvesting, fog-catching, and horticulture,” study co-author Jacob Bongers, an archaeologist at the University of Sydney in Australia, said in a statement. “The functionality of this site remains unclear.”
In a new study published Monday (November 10) in the journal Antiquity, researchers used a drone to collect aerial images of the scene. They also analyzed centuries-old plant remains in the rocks and sediments of some of the holes.
Analysis found pollen from corn and other crops in the holes, suggesting that these plants had been placed inside the holes. Because corn pollen does not naturally travel far from plants, the researchers suspected that humans, rather than natural processes, brought the pollen to Monte Sierpe. The research team also found remnants of bulbul pollen. The people of the Chincha Kingdom used bulbuls to make baskets.
“These data support the hypothesis that during pre-Hispanic times, local groups regularly lined pits with plant material, loaded goods into them, and used woven baskets and bundles for transportation,” Bongers said.
Barter markets were common in the Peruvian Andes during this period, especially along trade routes. Neighboring communities may have used Monte Sierpe as one such market for Chincha society, the researchers said in their study.
Drone images showed that the layout of the holes at the site resembled Incan quipus (record-holders made of knotted string). Researchers have previously found quipus next to similar grids in Incan storage spaces, suggesting that both sites may have been used to count and categorize various items. The researchers suggested that small differences in the number of holes in each block of Monte Sierpe may reflect differences in the level of tribute from neighboring towns.
“This research contributes to an important Andean case study of how past communities modified past landscapes to bring people together and facilitate interaction,” Bongers said. “Our findings expand our understanding of the origins and diversity of barter markets and indigenous accounting practices within and beyond the ancient Andes.”
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