Current ICAZ Working Groups

Grupo Zooarqueología de Camélidos—

Research on South American camelids has grown enormously during the last two decades. Ethnoarchaeology, ethnography, archaeology, taphonomy, economic anatomy, osteometry, fiber analysis, densitometry, isotope analysis and genetic studies are among the subjects that have recently been explored, motivated by an interest in both wild (guanaco and vicuña) and domesticated (llama and alpaca) camelids.

The Camelid Working Group, known as the Grupo Zooarqueología de Camélidos (GZC), was created in 1993 and officially recognized by ICAZ in 1995. The GZC's mission focuses on the study of human and camelid interaction through time, from predation to pastoralism and herding, in the Andes and surrounding Andean regions. The group's goals are to promote common lines of research, foster the exchange of information, and establish regional databases. The GZC is open to all researchers who wish to actively contribute. The GZC is currently coordinated by Guillermo L. Mengoni Goñalons (wmengoni@yahoo.com.ar), Daniel E. Olivera (deolivera@movi.com.ar), and Hugo D. Yacobaccio (yacobaccio@aol.co). Goñalons is also the official GZC Liaison to ICAZ.

The GZC has held three international workshops. The first two workshops resulted in books (details below). The GZC is in the process of publishing the results of the third workshop, which took place in August 2003.

In 2001, the GZC published the revised papers presented at the 2nd International Workshop held in Tucumán, Argentina, in 1998. The collection includes contributors from Argentina, Chile, France, Germany, Peru, and USA. The book, titled El Uso de los Camélidos a Través del Tiempo ("The Use of Camelids Through Time"), is edited by G. L. Mengoni Goñalons, D. E. Olivera, and H. D. Yacobaccio and published by Ediciones del Tridente, Buenos Aires. All papers are in Spanish. The cost is US $15 plus postage. If interested in acquiring this volume, please contact any of the GZC coordinators at the e-mail addresses listed above.

In August 2002, the participants of the GZC met during the 9th ICAZ International Conference in Durham, England. Representatives from Argentina, Brazil, Peru, France, Spain, Switzerland, and the USA were in attendance. This is the first time a GZC coordinator was able to attend a meeting since the group's official incorporation in ICAZ. A brief account of the history of the group was given to those present, including a summary of the activities previously organized and books already published and still available. Papers on South American camelids presented at the International Conference by K. Moore, J. Wheeler, M. Kadwell and colleagues, and De Nigris and Mengoni Goñalons discussed different aspects of the zooarchaeology and biology of these animals (i.e., genetics, economic utility indices, utilization strategies).

The 3rd GZC International Workshop, hosted by the Instituto Interdisciplinario Tilcara of the Facultad de Filosofía y Letras (UBA), was held in the picturesque town of Tilcara, Jujuy province, Argentina. Organized around the theme, “The Management of South American Camelids.” The general objective of this meeting was to discuss the variety of current approaches used in studying management practices. Sixteen papers were presented. The publication of this workshop is in progress. Almost all the papers presented at the workshop will be included in the publication. The volume will be titled “El Manejo de los Camélidos Sudamericanos: Perspectivas Multidiscplinarias” (The Management of Southamerican Camelids: Multidisciplinary Perspectives). The subjects covered range from the sustainable utilization of the vicuña in present times, the exploitation of the vicuña in colonial time, the role of the llama in ritual and the economy of present communities, to models and patterns of utilization of the domesticated forms and the guanaco based on evidence provided by the archaeological record. This volume will be published jointly by the Grupo Zooarqueología de Camélidos (GZC) and the Instituto Interdisciplinario de Tilcara (Jujuy) of the Facultad de Filosofía y Letras, Universidad de Buenos Aires, which hosted the meeting.

GZC Workshops:

1st Workshop: Theoretical and Methodological Perspectives for the Archaeological Study of Andean Camelids, Jujuy, Argentina, April 1994.

2nd Workshop: The Utilization of Camelids through Time, Tucumán, Argentina, October 1998.

3rd Workshop: The Management of South American Camelids, Tilcara, Argentina, August 2003

GZC Publications:

Zooarqueología de Camélidos: Perspectivas Teóricas y Metodológicas 1 edited by D.C.Elkin, C. Madero, G.L. Mengoni Goñalons, D.E. Olivera, M.C. Reigadas, and H.D. Yacobaccio (1996). GZC, Buenos Aires.

Zooarqueología de Camélidos: Perspectivas Teóricas y Metodológicas 2 edited by H.D.Yacobaccio, C.M. Madero, and M. P. Malmierca (1998). GZC, Buenos Aires.

Etnoarqueología de Pastores Surandinos edited by G.L. Mengoni Goñalons, D.E. Olivera, and H.D. Yacobaccio (2001). GZC, Buenos Aires.

Zooarqueología de Camélidos: El Uso de los Camélidos a Través del Tiempo ("The Use of Camelids Through Time") edited by G.L. Mengoni Goñalons, D.E. Olivera, and H.D. Yacobaccio (2001). Ediciones del Tridente, Buenos Aires.

This information has been contributed by Guillermo Luis Mengoni Goñalons, GZC Liaison to ICAZ.