Bofedales as relational spaces: Irrigation and nurturing practices in a pre-Hispanic pastoral landscape, South Central Andes

Magdalena García Barriga, Adrián Oyaneder, Luca Sitzia, Manuel Prieto, Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino, Millennium Nucleus of Applied Historical Ecology for Arid Forest, Department of Archaeology and History, University of Exeter, Departamento de Antropología, Universidad de Tarapacá, Departamento de Ciencias Históricas y Geográficas, Universidad de Tarapacá, Millenium Nucleus in Andean Peatlands

Journal of Social Archaeology

Published online on November 18, 2025

Abstract

Journal of Social Archaeology, Volume 26, Issue 1, Page 28-50, February 2026.
Various factors have contributed to conceptualizing the altiplano as an “extreme” and hostile upland environment, where niche lifeways such as camelid herding are part of the limited human presence. Consequently, Andean herders are often portrayed as ...