This contribution surveys the emergence and character of the Middle Horizon in Peru’s north highlands. It centers on Ancash department, a region with a rich and unique archaeological record for contextualizing interaction during the period. My discussion begins by detailing the sequence and variability of interregional interaction in Ancash Department during the latter half of the 1st millennium AD. Then I will examine the general implications of the available data – especially architecture, long distance goodsand ceramic style – with a view to identify current difficulties and to encourage future problem-oriented investigations. Two terms help contextualize the cultural dynamism of the Middle Horizon: bundling (purposeful acquisition and clustering of objects from long-distance) and vector (a distinct cultural predisposition facilitating interaction). Although there is evidence of Wari contact before imperial expansion, trade interaction increased dramatically during the early Middle Horizon, focused on ‘bundled’ patterns of acquisition. These were followed by new exchange orientations and stylistic emulation. There is very little evidence to indicate territorial control, but Wari strategies highlighted the rich areas of western Ancash, while apparently de-emphasising EasternAncash. Religion and prestige economies appear to have been the most common factors for local engagements with Wari culture. / Esta contribución investiga el surgimiento y el carácter del Horizonte Medio en la sierra norte del Perú. Se enfoca en el departamento de Áncash, una región con un registro amplio para contextualizar la interacción durante dicho periodo. Mi discusión comienza detallando la secuencia y la variabilidad de la interacción interregional en Áncash (500-1000 d.C.). Se describen los patrones generales con los datos disponibles —la arquitectura, los bienes de larga distancia y el estilo de cerámica— con el fin de identificar las dificultades actuales. Dos conceptos ayudan a contextualizar el dinamismo cultural del periodo: «bundling»(adquisición intencional y la agrupación de objetos de larga distancia) y «vector» (una predisposición cultural que facilita la interacción). Aunque existe evidencia de contacto wari antes de la expansión imperial, la interacción comercial aumentó dramáticamente durante el Horizonte Medio temprano; se centró en los patrones de «bundling» de adquisición. Estos fueron seguidos por nuevas orientaciones de intercambio y emulación estilística. Hay poca evidencia para indicar el control territorial, pero las estrategias wari destacaron las ricas áreas del oeste de Áncash, con menos presencia en el este. Economías rituales y prestigio parecen haber sido los factores más comunes para las interacciones locales con la cultura Wari.

This research addresses how interregional interaction changed between the Viejo period (AD 700-1200) and Medio period (AD 1200-1450) in northwest Chihuahua, Mexico. Non-locally procured or created artifacts, features, and iconographic elements are used as proxy evidence for past long-distance relationships. Data available in technical reports and other publications concerning these materials in Viejo period contexts and a sample of excavated Medio period sites are synthesized and presented. The data are used to create a geospatial dataset and distribution maps with quantities and contextual information for each of the nonlocal materials. I argue that interaction and social networks with long-distance neighbors were complex and widespread during both the Viejo and Medio periods. These intricate relationships morphed and altered in profound ways with the rise of the regional center Paquimé and the fluorescence of the Casas Grandes cultural tradition, but some of the fundamental relationships also remained the same.

The Cerro Blanco site, located in the lower Nepeña Valley, is a ceremonial center of the Formative Period, which has been considered, without adequate substantiating data, to have been influenced by the Chavín culture. In this brief paper, a local chronology, complemented with data from the nearby site of Huaca Partida, will be presented in an attempt to establish Cerro Blanco within an interregional chronological frame. On the basis of the new archaeological evidence, this broad synchronic comparison suggests an episode of intensive trans-regional interaction. In this context, Cerro Blanco emerges as an essential site for understanding social dynamics during the Andean Formative Period. / El sitio de Cerro Blanco, ubicado en el valle bajo de Nepeña, es un centro ceremonial del Periodo Formativo que, desde su descubrimiento a inicios del siglo XX, ha sido considerado receptor de la influencia chavín, aunque sin ofrecerse las explicaciones apropiadas al respecto. En este breve ensayo se presenta, en primer lugar, una secuencia local complementada con los datos del sitio vecino de Huaca Partida y, luego, se trata de ubicar dicha secuencia dentro de un marco cronológico interregional. Esta comparación sincrónica sobre la base de las nuevas evidencias pone en relieve un episodio de intensiva interacción transregional ocurrido durante el Periodo Formativo, en cuyo marco Cerro Blanco de Nepeña surge como uno de los sitios clave para entender la dinámica de esta etapa prehispánica.

In this article we review what is currently known about the early occupation of the southern Peruvian coast and highlands. We focus our review on the Terminal Pleistocene sites of Quebrada Jaguay and Quebrada Tacahuay (coast) and Pucuncho (highlands), and we compare them with the few other sites known from this period. We cover chronology, settlement pattern, specialization, and the interregional connections during this first period of human settlement. / En este artículo revisamos lo que se sabe en la actualidad acerca de la ocupación temprana de la costa y sierra del sur peruano. Enfocamos nuestro estudio en los sitios del Pleistoceno Final de Quebrada Jaguay y Quebrada Tacahuay, ubicados en la costa, y Pucuncho, situado en la sierra, y los comparamos con los pocos otros yacimientos conocidos de esta época. Tratamos la cronología, el patrón de asentamiento, la especialización y las conexiones interregionales de este primer período del asentamiento humano.

As the focus of over 70 years* of archaeological research, Oaxaca, Mexico, is one of Mesoamerica*s best understood regions. Yet, despite the volume of work in Oaxaca, information about one of its key resource areas, the central Pacific coast, remains limited. Specifically, the ambiguous role of Oaxaca*s Central Coast in interregional relationships during pre-Hispanic times to the sites of Monte Alban and Tututepec has been a chronic problem and major source of debate for decades. The purpose of this thesis is to begin clarifying the role of Oaxaca*s Central Coast in interregional networks and its pre-Hispanic history. Analysis utilized surface observations, surface collections, and information from limited excavations performed by the Proyecto Arqueologico Laguna de Manialtepec (PALM) in the Manialtepec Basin, located on the Central Coast of Oaxaca. The data was then mapped using ArcGIS software to render settlement and artifact patterns. Based on the results of this project I suggest a history of settlement for this area. I also argue that the Basin contained three centers, maintained interregional interactions, and was invaded by the Mixtecs of highland Oaxaca during the Late Postclassic Period (A.D. 1200-1500).