por What was the Atacames culture?
The culture attack me It was a culture that took place on the north coast of Ecuador. The history and study of the atacames is divided into two periods, the early atacames (700-1100 AD) and the late atacames (1100-1526 AD), corresponding to the Integration Period in Ecuador.
Its largest center of development was located at the mouth of the Esmeraldas River. The Atacames are descendants of the Teaone and Tolita cultures, which existed in the coastal zone.
They had a hierarchical political organization, in which there was a chief who was generally the oldest and strongest of the inhabitants, called cacique. This guided the commercial transactions of the tribe and administered justice in the group.
Basically, its economy was based on the trade of fishing, shellfishing and corn planting. In addition, archaeological work has revealed that the Atacames were also excellent workers in metallurgy and the textile sector.
Ecuadorian archeology has found important evidence of the atacame work corresponding to the late period. Said evidences have been collected through the “Esmeraldas Project”.
On the shores of the Atacames coast there are still 65 mounds and remains of what were their towns. These spaces are protected by the State and are a source of massive visits every year.
The settlements of the atacames evolved from small villages, in their initial period, to large populations of about 5,000 inhabitants. They were dense and compact populations that were located between the north coast and the Esmeraldas River.
It is estimated that by the end of the pre-Hispanic period its population reached between 13,000 and 19,000 inhabitants.
History of the Atacam culture
The atacames are one of the indigenous cultures that took place in the north of Ecuador, and there are records of it since 700 AD.
Many of the cultures that the Spanish encountered were not ancestral or unique, they were the product of the alliance of previous cultures that came together for territorial and demographic reasons.
The Atacames culture comes from the union of the Teaone and Tolita peoples. These groups resided on the Ecuadorian coast and integrated to give way to the Atacame culture. This aspect was essential to acquire new traditions and modify the economy of the group.
According to the chroniclers of the area, the caciques controlled the trade in blankets, pottery, beads and goldsmithing. There was also a type of tax that the «regional lords» charged them for working on that land.
For this reason, the atacames are known as merchants. They sold or exchanged objects that they themselves manufactured, paid taxes, and the surplus was distributed among the community.
Around 1200, in the period of the late atacames, the population doubled, an aspect that led to a change in the way of producing food.
Thanks to this, they dedicated themselves to perfecting the fishing technique, which provided a stable source of food for the population.
However, at the end of the pre-Hispanic period, coexistence became complex in view of the influence exerted on them by the «regional lordships». The capture of tribes and the centralization of power significantly affected their organization and productivity.
Characteristics of the Atacames culture
– Hierarchical structure: himThe atacames had a chief, called cacique, who administered the public and economic life of the tribe. In turn, there were councils of elders who advised the chief on the basis of his experience.
– Fishing😀They developed fishing techniques for marine species of all kinds. Although they are not known for being great browsers.
– manufacturers: himThe Atacams began to make utensils and tools with skins, wood and clay in an expansive way from very early on.
– Merchants: orne of their most outstanding features is that they were aware of the importance of trade and, in fact, they were known as the merchants of the pre-Hispanic period.
– polytheists:sTheir beliefs were similar to those of other cultures, polytheism was expressed in the worship of the sun, trees, water, earth and wind.
Economy
Agriculture and fishing were undoubtedly the main engines of its economy. Later, pottery introduced stylistic and technological changes in the way of production.
They also worked with metals, a tradition that derived directly from the teaone. Metallurgy was developed through the technique of hammering, embossing, and cutting to create jewelry, hooks, and needles.
Another part that was not decisive in the economy was ceramics: although they did not have great development in the technique of it, today they are exhibited parts in the main museums and archaeological centers.
The exchange method was based on the number of valves (movable and hard pieces that the shells of the mollusks detached), which once obtained were used to exchange them for products. These shells were equivalent to today’s money.
According to the narrations of the chroniclers, the town of Atacames served as a trading port for crops, tools, pottery, and goldsmiths.
They were a culture that really had an idea of the importance of trade and their port was the embodiment of those ideas.
Traditions
The atacames were one of the cooperative cultures with the highest degree of organization of the pre-Hispanic period. The cacique distributed the tasks of men and women so that each one fulfilled a role.
Mutual aid was one of the ancestral values that all members of the community abide by and strive to fulfill. This environment of collaboration and cooperation contributed to social cohesion and development of the technique.
The atacames followed rigorous traditions of worship of their gods where they made offerings for good harvests.
They were polytheists and for them the main god was nature, that is, the plants, the seas, the earth and the trees. Everything was an object of worship because the gods placed it there for them.
A ceremony that was repeated every year in the rainy season consisted of asking the gods for abundant rain for the crops.
References
History of the Atacames Culture. Retrieved from blogitravel.com.
attack us. Retrieved from es.wikipedia.org.
The Atacama Culture. Recovered from lahora.com.ec.