﻿4 
  SOUTH 
  AMERICAN 
  INDIANS 
  [B. 
  A. 
  B. 
  Bull. 
  143 
  

  

  about 
  5,000 
  years 
  ago. 
  Furthermore, 
  the 
  Patagonian 
  evidence 
  sug- 
  

   gests 
  that 
  these 
  were 
  land 
  Indians 
  and 
  not 
  canoe 
  users. 
  

  

  Land 
  hunters 
  who 
  entered 
  South 
  America 
  via 
  the 
  Isthmus 
  of 
  

   Panama 
  would 
  probably 
  proceed 
  up 
  the 
  Atrato, 
  Magdalena, 
  and 
  Cauca 
  

   Rivers 
  of 
  Colombia, 
  which 
  lead 
  from 
  north 
  to 
  south 
  back 
  into 
  the 
  

   Andes. 
  The 
  dense 
  jungles 
  of 
  the 
  Pacific 
  Coast 
  of 
  Colombia 
  and 
  

   Ecuador 
  would 
  probably 
  not 
  be 
  attractive 
  to 
  land 
  hunters 
  without 
  

   good 
  knowledge 
  of 
  canoe 
  transportation. 
  In 
  any 
  case, 
  a 
  hunting 
  

   pattern 
  adapted 
  to 
  Andean 
  conditions 
  would 
  undoubtedly 
  progress 
  

   with 
  considerable 
  rapidity 
  south 
  from 
  Colombia 
  through 
  the 
  moun- 
  

   tains 
  and 
  then 
  spread 
  to 
  the 
  more 
  favorable 
  hunting 
  region 
  of 
  the 
  

   Chaco, 
  the 
  Pampa, 
  and 
  Patagonia. 
  Moreover, 
  the 
  varied 
  environ- 
  

   mental 
  zones 
  in 
  the 
  Andes 
  and 
  the 
  corresponding 
  variations 
  in 
  flora 
  

   and 
  fauna 
  might 
  well 
  have 
  supported 
  land 
  hunters 
  for 
  a 
  considerable 
  

   time. 
  

  

  Direct 
  evidence 
  for 
  such 
  early 
  migrations 
  is 
  meager 
  in 
  the 
  Andean 
  

   region. 
  About 
  1921, 
  at 
  Punin, 
  Ecuador, 
  a 
  human 
  skull 
  was 
  found 
  

   embedded 
  in 
  a 
  volcanic-ash 
  layer 
  which 
  also 
  contained 
  such 
  Pleisto- 
  

   cene 
  fauna 
  as 
  ground 
  sloth, 
  mastodon, 
  horse, 
  deer, 
  and 
  camel. 
  (See 
  

   Collier, 
  this 
  volume, 
  767-784, 
  and 
  McCown, 
  Handbook, 
  vol. 
  5.) 
  

   No 
  artifacts 
  were 
  associated, 
  but 
  the 
  long-headed 
  low 
  skull 
  is 
  some- 
  

   what 
  like 
  other 
  early 
  fossil 
  finds 
  from 
  Lagoa 
  Santa, 
  Brazil. 
  At 
  

   another 
  site 
  in 
  Ecuador 
  remains 
  of 
  a 
  mastodon 
  were 
  found 
  in 
  associa- 
  

   tion 
  with 
  human 
  artifacts, 
  although 
  the 
  significance 
  of 
  this 
  association 
  

   has 
  not 
  yet 
  been 
  satisfactorily 
  explained. 
  Along 
  the 
  Coast 
  of 
  Perti 
  are 
  

   enormous 
  shell 
  heaps, 
  presumably 
  built 
  up 
  by 
  an 
  early 
  fishing 
  popula- 
  

   tion, 
  although 
  so 
  far 
  little 
  archeological 
  work 
  has 
  been 
  done 
  in 
  these 
  

   sites. 
  In 
  North 
  Chile, 
  however, 
  somewhat 
  similar 
  shell 
  heaps 
  have 
  

   produced 
  evidence 
  of 
  two 
  periods 
  of 
  preagriculture 
  occupation. 
  (See 
  

   Bird, 
  this 
  volume, 
  pp. 
  587-594.) 
  Future 
  discoveries 
  will 
  undoubtedly 
  

   increase 
  the 
  knowledge 
  of 
  these 
  early 
  migrants. 
  However, 
  the 
  

   typical 
  Andean 
  culture 
  pattern 
  is 
  based 
  on 
  the 
  domestication 
  of 
  plants, 
  

   whether 
  by 
  the 
  early 
  migrants 
  or 
  by 
  peoples 
  who 
  entered 
  the 
  region 
  

  

  Jo 
  'fp'p 
  

  

  PLANT 
  DOMESTICATION 
  

  

  Sauer 
  (1936) 
  pointed 
  out 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  requirements 
  for 
  the 
  domes- 
  

   tication 
  of 
  plants: 
  a 
  "forcing 
  bed" 
  or 
  a 
  rich 
  area 
  which 
  rewards 
  the 
  

   intensive 
  use 
  and 
  care 
  of 
  plants; 
  diversified 
  raw 
  materials 
  for 
  a 
  well- 
  

   balanced 
  economy; 
  soils 
  which 
  are 
  workable 
  with 
  simple 
  tools; 
  

   native 
  vegetation 
  which 
  is 
  easily 
  disposed 
  of 
  by 
  primitive 
  methods; 
  

   and 
  a 
  genial 
  climate 
  with 
  seasonal 
  contrasts. 
  Many 
  areas 
  in 
  the 
  

   Highlands 
  meet 
  most 
  of 
  these 
  requirements. 
  Furthermore, 
  isolated 
  

   mountain 
  farms 
  allow 
  for 
  the 
  diversification 
  and 
  selection 
  of 
  plants. 
  

   It 
  is 
  probable 
  that 
  some 
  important 
  species 
  were 
  first 
  domesticated 
  

   in 
  the 
  Andean 
  Highlands. 
  As 
  the 
  entire 
  problem 
  of 
  plant 
  domesti- 
  

  

  