Mummies and Mortuary Monuments

<p>Since prehistoric times Andean societies have been organized around the <i>ayllu</i> a grouping of real or ceremonial kinspeople who share labor resources and ritual obligations. Many Andean scholars believe that the <i>ayllu</i> is as ancient as Andean culture itself possibly dating back as far as 6000 B.C. and that it arose to alleviate the hardships of farming in the mountainous Andean environment.</p> <p>In this boldly revisionist book however William Isbell persuasively argues that the <i>ayllu</i> developed during the latter half of the Early Intermediate Period (around A.D. 200) as a means of resistance to the process of state formation. Drawing on archaeological evidence as well as records of Inca life taken from the chroniclers Isbell asserts that prehistoric <i>ayllus</i> were organized around the veneration of deceased ancestors whose mummified bodies were housed in open sepulchers or <i>challups</i> where they could be visited by descendants seeking approval and favors. By charting the temporal and spatial distribution of <i>chullpa</i> ruins Isbell offers a convincing new explanation of where when and why the <i>ayllu</i> developed.</p>