﻿824 
  SOUTH 
  AMERICAN 
  INDIANS 
  [B. 
  a. 
  B. 
  Bull. 
  143 
  

  

  forms 
  a 
  natural 
  link 
  between 
  the 
  two 
  areas. 
  In 
  Colombia, 
  further- 
  

   more, 
  the 
  Tropical 
  Lowlands 
  are 
  not 
  isolated 
  from 
  the 
  Highlands 
  by 
  

   a 
  high 
  wall 
  of 
  mountains, 
  as 
  is 
  the 
  case 
  in 
  Peru, 
  but 
  rather 
  the 
  two 
  are 
  

   interlocked 
  at 
  many 
  points. 
  In 
  fact, 
  a 
  general 
  view 
  of 
  a 
  relief 
  map 
  

   of 
  Colombia 
  gives 
  a 
  picture 
  of 
  the 
  Highlands 
  like 
  a 
  series 
  of 
  peninsulas 
  

   projecting 
  in 
  all 
  directions 
  into 
  the 
  Tropical 
  Forest 
  sea. 
  

  

  In 
  spite 
  of 
  its 
  potential 
  importance, 
  the 
  archeology 
  of 
  Colombia 
  is 
  

   still 
  so 
  little 
  known 
  that 
  it 
  is 
  not 
  yet 
  possible 
  to 
  trace 
  a 
  long 
  and 
  de- 
  

   tailed 
  history 
  of 
  its 
  cultural 
  development. 
  This 
  is 
  in 
  part 
  owing 
  to 
  the 
  

   limited 
  amount 
  of 
  archeological 
  work 
  so 
  far 
  accomplished, 
  but 
  it 
  is 
  

   also 
  attributable 
  to 
  the 
  nature 
  of 
  the 
  archeological 
  finds 
  themselves. 
  

   For 
  the 
  most 
  part, 
  the 
  remains 
  are 
  not 
  concentrated 
  in 
  certain 
  favor- 
  

   able 
  sites, 
  nor 
  are 
  they 
  of 
  sufficient 
  elaborateness 
  to 
  permit 
  easy 
  

   arrangement 
  in 
  chronological 
  sequences. 
  

  

  Most 
  of 
  the 
  excavations 
  have 
  been 
  made 
  in 
  the 
  mountain 
  areas 
  of 
  

   the 
  western 
  third 
  of 
  the 
  country, 
  and 
  but 
  few 
  of 
  these 
  have 
  been 
  

   directed 
  by 
  professional 
  scientists. 
  Consequently, 
  our 
  knowledge 
  of 
  

   Colombian 
  archeology 
  is 
  based 
  largely 
  on 
  public 
  and 
  private 
  collec- 
  

   tions, 
  few 
  of 
  which 
  have 
  been 
  gathered 
  with 
  accompanying 
  data 
  of 
  

   any 
  kind, 
  and 
  on 
  a 
  series 
  of 
  miscellaneous 
  publications, 
  which 
  but 
  

   rarely 
  present 
  descriptive 
  reports 
  of 
  actual 
  excavations. 
  This 
  unfor- 
  

   tunate 
  situation 
  has 
  been 
  ameliorated 
  in 
  recent 
  years 
  by 
  an 
  ever 
  

   increasing 
  number 
  of 
  field 
  excavations 
  directed, 
  for 
  the 
  most 
  part, 
  by 
  

   the 
  Colombian 
  scientists. 
  When 
  these 
  reports 
  of 
  work 
  in 
  progress 
  

   are 
  published, 
  a 
  much 
  clearer 
  picture 
  of 
  Colombia's 
  past 
  will 
  be 
  

   possible. 
  

  

  At 
  the 
  present 
  time, 
  the 
  archeological 
  remains 
  can 
  be 
  described 
  in 
  

   terms 
  of 
  a 
  series 
  of 
  geographic 
  zones, 
  each 
  of 
  which 
  presents 
  one 
  or 
  

   more 
  distinguishable 
  styles 
  of 
  materials. 
  There 
  is 
  only 
  minor 
  evidence 
  

   for 
  arranging 
  these 
  styles 
  in 
  chronological 
  order, 
  and 
  actually 
  the 
  

   zones 
  themselves 
  are 
  not 
  truly 
  comparable. 
  Some, 
  such 
  as 
  San 
  

   Agustin, 
  Tierradentro, 
  and 
  Santa 
  Marta, 
  have 
  received 
  the 
  major 
  

   part 
  of 
  the 
  scientific 
  attention, 
  while 
  others, 
  potentially 
  of 
  equally 
  

   great 
  importance, 
  have 
  been 
  virtually 
  neglected. 
  This 
  situation 
  

   too 
  is 
  being 
  remedied 
  as 
  archeological 
  exploration 
  advances. 
  

  

  GEOGRAPHY 
  

  

  The 
  geography 
  of 
  the 
  Colombian 
  Highlands 
  has 
  been 
  reviewed 
  in 
  

   terms 
  of 
  human 
  habitation 
  in 
  the 
  general 
  introduction 
  to 
  this 
  volume. 
  

   In 
  brief, 
  the 
  Colombian 
  Andes 
  are 
  composed 
  of 
  four 
  major 
  mountain 
  

   ranges 
  running 
  roughly 
  north 
  to 
  south. 
  The 
  westernmost 
  Coastal 
  

   range, 
  the 
  Serrania 
  de 
  Baudo", 
  is 
  covered 
  with 
  a 
  tropical 
  rain 
  forest, 
  

   and 
  little 
  is 
  known 
  about 
  its 
  archeology. 
  The 
  next 
  two 
  ranges, 
  the 
  

   Cordilleras 
  Occidental 
  and 
  Central, 
  are 
  separated 
  by 
  a 
  rift 
  valley 
  

   drained 
  by 
  the 
  Cauca 
  River. 
  These 
  mountains 
  have 
  high 
  peaks 
  and 
  

  

  