﻿640 
  SOUTH 
  AMERICAN 
  INDIANS 
  [B. 
  A. 
  E. 
  Bull. 
  143 
  

  

  tegic 
  retreats. 
  To 
  stop 
  an 
  invasion 
  and 
  expose 
  the 
  attackers 
  to 
  the 
  

   arrows 
  of 
  the 
  defenders, 
  these 
  openings 
  never 
  coincide 
  in 
  two 
  con- 
  

   tiguous 
  walls. 
  On 
  top 
  of 
  the 
  hill 
  are 
  grouped 
  the 
  buildings 
  for 
  the 
  

   permanent 
  garrisons 
  of 
  the 
  fortification. 
  A 
  most 
  serious 
  problem 
  was 
  

   that 
  of 
  water 
  storage. 
  In 
  a 
  village 
  it 
  could 
  be 
  obtained 
  from 
  the 
  near- 
  

   by 
  river 
  ; 
  but 
  the 
  pucaras 
  were 
  high 
  above 
  the 
  river 
  level, 
  and 
  a 
  siege 
  

   could 
  force 
  their 
  surrender 
  owing 
  to 
  the 
  lack 
  of 
  water. 
  In 
  the 
  pucara 
  

   of 
  Aconquija, 
  in 
  the 
  Department 
  of 
  Andalgala, 
  Province 
  of 
  Cata- 
  

   marca, 
  a 
  water 
  hole 
  (ojo 
  de 
  agua), 
  today 
  dry, 
  averted 
  this 
  danger. 
  

   In 
  other 
  cases, 
  true 
  water 
  cisterns 
  were 
  built 
  to 
  store 
  the 
  precious 
  

   liquid. 
  

  

  The 
  walls 
  were 
  only 
  built 
  on 
  the 
  slopes 
  which 
  were 
  less 
  steep; 
  cliffs, 
  

   which 
  could 
  not 
  be 
  ascended, 
  were 
  left 
  without 
  special 
  fortification. 
  

   In 
  the 
  pucara 
  of 
  Punta 
  de 
  Balasto 
  there 
  were 
  seven 
  parallel 
  walls. 
  

   The 
  lowest, 
  located 
  on 
  the 
  southeastern 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  hill 
  on 
  which 
  the 
  

   pucara 
  is 
  situated, 
  is 
  reinforced 
  by 
  two 
  large 
  cylindrical 
  towers, 
  about 
  

   650 
  feet 
  (200 
  m.) 
  apart, 
  with 
  a 
  quebrada 
  or 
  gulley 
  in 
  between. 
  The 
  

   wall 
  is 
  as 
  much 
  as 
  5 
  feet 
  (IK 
  m.) 
  thick 
  and 
  10 
  feet 
  (3 
  m.) 
  high 
  on 
  the 
  

   outside. 
  

  

  Fortified 
  towns. 
  — 
  Another 
  type 
  of 
  urban 
  construction 
  is 
  essentially 
  

   civilian, 
  but 
  has 
  defensive 
  works. 
  This 
  is 
  what 
  Ambrosetti 
  (1897, 
  

   1907-08) 
  called 
  "cities." 
  Ambrosetti 
  studied 
  two 
  sites 
  of 
  this 
  type: 
  

   Quilmes 
  (in 
  Catamarca), 
  which 
  he 
  describes 
  in 
  a 
  small 
  pamphlet 
  

   (1897), 
  and 
  La 
  Paya, 
  on 
  which 
  he 
  wrote 
  one 
  of 
  his 
  greatest 
  and 
  most 
  

   complete 
  works 
  (1907-08) 
  . 
  Both 
  sites 
  have 
  extensive 
  ruins 
  of 
  dwellings, 
  

   granaries, 
  and 
  external 
  protective 
  walls. 
  Their 
  large 
  size 
  explains 
  the 
  

   somewhat 
  too 
  ambitious 
  name 
  given 
  them 
  by 
  Ambrosetti. 
  

  

  Miscellaneous 
  structures. 
  — 
  Other 
  architectural 
  works 
  include 
  

   granaries 
  or 
  silos, 
  and 
  andenes 
  or 
  terraces 
  for 
  cultivation. 
  The 
  former 
  

   are 
  ellipitical 
  structures, 
  smaller 
  in 
  diameter 
  than 
  houses. 
  Houses 
  

   are 
  13 
  to 
  16 
  feet 
  (4 
  to 
  5 
  m.), 
  silos 
  as 
  a 
  rule 
  not 
  over 
  6 
  feet 
  (2 
  in.) 
  

   in 
  diameter. 
  Silos 
  and 
  dwellings 
  are 
  built 
  of 
  dry 
  masonry 
  or 
  pirca. 
  

   The 
  agricultural 
  terraces, 
  like 
  those 
  of 
  the 
  Inca, 
  were 
  built 
  to 
  increase 
  

   the 
  area 
  of 
  tillable 
  soil 
  and 
  to 
  convert 
  the 
  sloping 
  land 
  into 
  horizontal 
  

   surfaces 
  which 
  would 
  hold 
  rain 
  water. 
  Because 
  in 
  the 
  whole 
  Diaguita 
  

   area, 
  plants 
  were 
  sowed 
  "a 
  temporal," 
  that 
  is, 
  without 
  artificial 
  irri- 
  

   gation, 
  these 
  andenes 
  were 
  imperative 
  for 
  productive 
  harvest. 
  

  

  No 
  trace 
  of 
  houses 
  remain 
  in 
  the 
  subarea 
  of 
  Barreales, 
  no 
  doubt 
  

   because 
  they 
  were 
  built 
  of 
  vegetal 
  materials. 
  For 
  San 
  Juan, 
  Debene- 
  

   detti 
  (1917) 
  has 
  mentioned 
  great 
  rectangular 
  constructions 
  of 
  adobe. 
  

   There 
  are 
  also 
  rectangular 
  stone 
  edifices 
  which 
  may 
  be 
  of 
  Inca 
  origin. 
  

  

  DRESS 
  AND 
  ORNAMENTS 
  

  

  All 
  the 
  Calchagui 
  and 
  Diaguita 
  belong 
  to 
  what 
  the 
  chroniclers 
  called 
  

   the 
  " 
  dressed 
  people." 
  Kepeated 
  statements 
  in 
  historical 
  sources 
  and 
  

  

  