In search of the ancient cultures of Transkutukú

Abstract

This study is a contribution to glimpse the past cultural panorama of an extensive and difficult to access area of the Upper Amazon and, therefore, very little explored and studied. This is proven by the scarce five field works from the late sixties to today. In archaeology, the area aroused some interest when in 1975, from a site on the banks of the Huasaga River, a mixture of styles was revealed under the same label, the so-called Pastaza Phase, pointing to 2000-1000 BC (Formative period according to the master sequence for Ecuador). Although later research questioned this antiquity and that it could contain such a variety of styles, the questions surrounding this Phase continue: In what chronological period is it inserted? How many variants does it have, if we can divide it like this? What designs and iconography are significant? Is it similar to that of nearby ancient cultures in the Upano valley or in the upper Pastaza valley and, conversely, in the lower basin? The aim of this article is to better understand the ancient cultures of Transkutukú (Morona Santiago province, Ecuador), especially from archaeological surveys carried out in 2017, 2018 and 2019 within the framework of a collaboration agreement between the Gobierno Autónomo Descentralizado Municipal (GADM) de Taisha and the Universidad Estatal Amazónica (UEA), with support from the Centro Cultural Yawi.