﻿THE 
  ARCHEOLOGY 
  OF 
  THE 
  POPAYAN 
  REGION, 
  

   COLOMBIA 
  1 
  

  

  By 
  Henri 
  Lehmann 
  

  

  INTRODUCTION 
  

  

  At 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  the 
  Spanish 
  Conquest, 
  the 
  Popay&n 
  Valley 
  and 
  the 
  

   surrounding 
  mountains 
  were 
  densely 
  populated 
  by 
  a 
  great 
  number 
  of 
  

   tribes, 
  most 
  of 
  them 
  horticultural. 
  These, 
  the 
  Popayenense 
  or 
  

   Guambiano-Coconuco 
  group, 
  are 
  described 
  in 
  this 
  volume 
  (pp. 
  

   969-974). 
  

  

  The 
  archeology 
  of 
  this 
  area 
  has 
  not 
  been 
  definitely 
  related 
  to 
  these 
  

   historic 
  tribes 
  (map 
  1, 
  No. 
  21). 
  As 
  most 
  excavations 
  have 
  been 
  made 
  

   by 
  treasure 
  hunters, 
  a 
  description 
  of 
  the 
  archeological 
  materials 
  must 
  

   be 
  based 
  largely 
  on 
  recent 
  investigations 
  made 
  by 
  the 
  author 
  (Leh- 
  

   mann, 
  1943). 
  

  

  STONE 
  SCULPTURE 
  

  

  A 
  series 
  of 
  partly 
  buried 
  stone 
  statues 
  was 
  discovered 
  in 
  the 
  moun- 
  

   tains 
  of 
  Popayan, 
  bounded 
  by 
  Pandiguando 
  (El 
  Tambo 
  township) 
  

   to 
  the 
  south 
  and 
  the 
  township 
  of 
  Su&rez 
  to 
  the 
  north. 
  Some 
  of 
  these 
  

   statues 
  were 
  found 
  on 
  the 
  banks 
  of 
  the 
  Rio 
  Cauca, 
  but 
  most 
  were 
  

   farther 
  back 
  in 
  the 
  Cordillera 
  Occidental, 
  in 
  the 
  region 
  where 
  the 
  

   Chisquio 
  lived. 
  One 
  statue 
  was 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  neighborhood 
  of 
  Popayan 
  

   itself. 
  Other 
  objects, 
  such 
  as 
  milling 
  stones, 
  have 
  been 
  found 
  at 
  Mal- 
  

   vasa* 
  and 
  in 
  Coconuco 
  territory 
  around 
  Calaguala, 
  but 
  little 
  study 
  has 
  

   been 
  made 
  of 
  them. 
  

  

  In 
  general, 
  these 
  sculptures 
  are 
  much 
  simpler 
  than 
  those 
  of 
  San 
  

   Agustin. 
  They 
  are 
  more 
  like 
  columns 
  on 
  which 
  the 
  sculptors 
  have 
  

   depicted 
  heads, 
  arms 
  (the 
  elbows 
  being 
  at 
  a 
  right 
  angle 
  in 
  most 
  cases), 
  

   legs, 
  and 
  often 
  the 
  sex 
  organ. 
  

  

  PICTOGRAPHS 
  

  

  Pictographs 
  or 
  paintings 
  on 
  stone 
  are 
  preserved 
  at 
  several 
  places. 
  

   At 
  Guambia, 
  near 
  La 
  Primera 
  Vereda, 
  north 
  of 
  the 
  Rfo 
  Piendamo, 
  is 
  

   the 
  figure 
  of 
  a 
  horned 
  animal 
  with 
  a 
  body 
  like 
  that 
  of 
  an 
  insect; 
  two 
  

   front 
  legs 
  and 
  two 
  rear 
  legs 
  are 
  represented. 
  To 
  the 
  right, 
  apparently 
  

  

  1 
  The 
  archeological 
  materials 
  described 
  in 
  this 
  article 
  represent 
  still 
  another 
  style 
  in 
  the 
  Upper 
  Cauca 
  zone 
  

   described 
  in 
  the 
  article 
  on 
  general 
  Colombian 
  archeology. 
  

  

  861 
  

  

  