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El Paraíso (IPA: , "ell pah-rah-EE-so") is the modern name of a Late Preceramic (3500-1800 BC) archaeological site located in the Chillón Valley on the central coast of Peru. The site is situated several kilometers north of Lima, the capital of Peru, in the San Martin de Porres District in the Province of Lima. El Paraíso is one of the largest settlements from this period, encompassing over 58 hectares of land.〔Moseley 1975; Pozorski and Pozorski 2008; Quilter 1991〕 Other major centers from this period include Aspero and Caral on the northern coast in the Supé Valley.〔Stanish 2001〕 Sizable centers can be found in different ecozones, from the coast to inland areas. Stanish〔 concluded that this was a time when settlements were broadly distributed, located at various distances from the coast allowing access to a variety of marine and agricultural resources.〔 == Historical occupation == The occupation period for El Paraíso was relatively short, lasting approximately 300 to 400 years, from 3790 cal BP to 3,065 cal BP (calibrated radiocarbon years before present).〔Quilter 1985〕 While it is generally accepted as a Preceramic site by most archaeologists, the occupation appears to have continued into the early Initial Period.〔Stanish 2001; Quilter 1985; Quilter 1991〕 Also known as the Cotton Preceramic (a term coined by Fréderic Engel in 1957) site, the Preceramic designation is disputed by some researchers, especially Pozorski and Pozorski, who argue that it actually was occupied primarily in the early Initial Period, by which time many areas had ceramics. Since it is not associated with ceramics during its main occupation sequence, they consider El Paraíso to be an example of an "aceramic" site instead.〔Pozorski and Pozorski 2008〕 The purpose for the centre is unclear. The lack of substantial midden deposits in recognized dump areas, designated burial areas or cemeteries, and thick wall construction consisting of stone quarried in local hills, suggests that it was not a residential or domestic complex.〔Moseley 1975; Quilter 1991; Stanish 2001〕 Evidence instead promotes the contention that El Paraíso was either an economic or religious centre, and possibly both. As well, it may also have been a centralized hub for control and development of cotton rather than food production.〔Quilter 1985; Stanish 2008〕 Archaeological findings suggest a possible connection to the Kotosh Religious Tradition of the Central Highlands (:es:Cordillera Central (Perú)).〔Quilter 1991; Stanish 2001〕 The site is notable for having a U-shape creating a 7 ha plaza; this layout resembles many nearby sites located in the Chillón-Rimac-Lurin Valleys from the later Ceramic Period, and therefore El Paraíso maybe a possible precursor to later architectural developments.〔Moseley 1975; Pozorski and Pozorski 1990; Stanish 2001〕 Stanish suggests that the social organization required to build El Paraíso represents what is known as a chiefdom level society, with no central polity but a series of autonomous settlements and regions that allowed for the collaboration of regional groups.〔Moseley 1975; Haas 2006〕 Unlike Aspero and Caral, which were part of a developed socio-economic interaction region (known as Norte Chico civilization) during the Late Preceramic, El Paraiso was part of a group of regionally isolated centers that developed along various parts of the Peruvian coast.〔Haas 2006〕 Moseley considers it a major supporter of his Maritime Foundations Theory which argues that a heavy reliance on rich marine resources were instrumental in the early establishment of social complexity in the region.〔 As the name implies, the Preceramic period in the Andes is marked by the absence of ceramic material. This was a period of general growing social complexity along the Peruvian coast, which saw the introduction and increase in centers with monumental architecture, including indications for increasing trade and greater regional interactions, both up and down the coast, and between groups in low and high elevations.〔 Population estimates range from between 1500 to 3000 people.〔 El Paraíso does not appear to have suffered any catastrophic final event, but shows evidence of gradual and relatively rapid abandonment in the early Initial Period; there is no indication for the cause for its decline and there is no evidence for a reoccupation phase.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「El Paraíso, Peru」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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