Home Region: Andes (South America and Caribbean)

Late Tiwanaku

800 CE 1149 CE

D G SC CC

EQ 2020 bo_tiwanaku_2

Preceding Entity: Add one more here.

500 CE 799 CE Early Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_1) [None]

Succeeding Entity:

No Polity found. Add one here.

General Description

“The final stage of the Tiwanaku kingdom, from about 725 to 1200, saw significant territorial expansion and the development of a complex, multiethnic society. Tiwanaku conquests during this period included a large part of the Pacific Coast from central Peru to northern Chile, and highland regions extending into the Andes Mountains. Around 1200, the Tiwanaku kingdom began to decline, and by the next century it had disappeared. Experts are not sure what caused this decline and disappearance, although some attribute it to climate change and extended drought. Tiwanaku civilization is known primarily from archaeological sites and ruins. The main Tiwanaku archaeological site is located in the high Altiplano area south of Lake Titicaca in Bolivia. The site contains many stone structures, earthen mounds, stairways, plazas, and reservoirs. Building stones at the site, weighing up to 100 tons, were brought from a quarry three miles away. The site’s renowned Gateway of the Sun was cut from a 10-foot-high stone and was carved with representations of humans, the condor, and the sun god. These typical Tiwanaku symbols also appear in the region’s textile designs and pottery. Other noteworthy examples of Tiwanaku construction are the Akapana Pyramid, a large earthen platform mound or stepped pyramid faced with finegrained volcanic rock, and the Kalasasaya, a large rectangular-shaped enclosure built with alternating rectangular blocks and taller stone columns and containing many carved stone figures. The enormous amount of planning and labor required for such vast and complex construction projects suggests that the Tiwanaku civilization must have been strictly governed and regimented. It is not clear whether the area near Lake Titicaca was the center of Tiwanaku origin or the capital of the empire at its peak, but these remarkable archaeological sites do seem to point to extensive Tiwanaku cultural, and perhaps political, influence.”^[1]
“The disintegration of Tiwanaku, around A.D. 1000, led to the formation of numerous confederations in territories that had been previously integrated by a much larger and cohesive power structure. Although the reasons for Tiwanaku’s disintegration are still poorly understood, a recurrent argument to explain Tiwanaku’s debacle has been based on the notion of an invasion by southern Aymara9 groups, around A.D. 1200 (Bouysse-Cassagne 1988; Gisbert et al. 1987; Torero 1970).”^[2]
“Around AD 1100/1150, the Tiwanaku State came to its end.(70) Tiwanaku, Lukurmata, and other large Tiwanaku centres were almost completely abandoned. The collapse of the complex administrative network of the Tiwanaku heartland led to the formation of hundreds of new – predominately small – settlements. Approximately a century earlier, the Tiwanaku colonists of the Moquegua Valley had rebelled, breaking free of altiplano rule. Direct Tiwanaku control may also have been resisted in the Azapa Valley, and the Central Andes saw a general waning of Tiwanaku influence. The Tiwanaku did not disappear – only the state apparatus collapsed. In art, certain aspects of the Tiwanaku style survived. However, on the whole, the following cultural period – the Late Intermediate Period (c. AD 1100– 450) – was characterised in the Titicaca Basin by social disunion and the formation of small-scale local polities.”^[3]

[1]: (Middleton 2015: 948) Middleton, John. 2015. World Monarchies and Dynasties. Volume 1-3, A-Z. London: Routledge. https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/7N3PNVCB

[2]: (Albarracin-Jordan 1999: 81) Albarracin-Jordan, Juan V. 1999. The Archeaology of Tiwanaku: The Myths, History, and Science of an Ancient Andean Civilization. Bolivia: Impresión P.A.P. https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/P7MDWPAP

[3]: (Korpisaari 2006: 79) Korpisaari, Antti. 2006. Death in the Bolivian High Plateau: Burials and Tiwanaku Society. Oxford: BAR Publishing. https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/UPGSC7BF

General Variables

Identity and Location

1 Utm Zone

1 Original Name

1 Capital

2 Alternative Name

Temporal Bounds

1 Duration

Political and Cultural Relations

1 Polity Succession

Language

Religion

Social Complexity Variables

Social Scale

1 Population of the Largest Settlement

1 Polity Territory

Hierarchical Complexity

1 Settlement Hierarchy

Professions

1 Professional Priesthood

Bureaucracy Characteristics

Law

Specialized Buildings: polity owned

1 Irrigation System

1 Food Storage Site

1 Drinking Water Supply System

Transport Infrastructure

1 Canal

Special-purpose Sites

1 Mines or Quarry

1 Enclosure

1 Ceremonial Site

1 Burial Site

Information / Writing System

Information / Kinds of Written Documents

Information / Money

1 Precious Metal

Information / Postal System

Information / Measurement System

Warfare Variables (Military Technologies)

Fortifications

Military use of Metals

Projectiles

Handheld weapons

Animals used in warfare

Armor

Naval technology

Economy Variables (Luxury Goods) Coding in Progress.

Religion Variables Coding in Progress.

Crisis Consequence Cases

1 Crisis Consequence

Power Transitions Coding in Progress.

Instability Events Coding in Progress.

General Variables

Identity and Location Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Utm Zone	19 S	800 CE 1149 CE
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Original Name	Late Tiwanaku	800 CE 1149 CE
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Capital	Tiwanaku	800 CE 1149 CE
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Alternative Name	Tiwanaku Kingdom	800 CE 1149 CE
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Alternative Name	Tiwanaku Empire	800 CE 1149 CE
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Temporal Bounds Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More
Duration	[800 CE ➜ 1149 CE]
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Political and Cultural Relations Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More
Preceding Entity 500 CE 799 CE	Early Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_1) [None]
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Language Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More

Religion Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More

Social Complexity Variables

Social Scale Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Population of the Largest Settlement	20,000 people	800 CE 1149 CE
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Polity Territory	[275,000 to 600,000] km²	800 CE 1149 CE
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Hierarchical Complexity Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Settlement Hierarchy	4	800 CE 1149 CE
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Professions Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Professional Priesthood	Present	800 CE 1149 CE
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Bureaucracy Characteristics Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More

Law Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More

Specialized Buildings: polity owned Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Irrigation System	Present	800 CE 1149 CE
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Food Storage Site	Present	800 CE 1149 CE
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Drinking Water Supply System	Present	800 CE 1149 CE
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Transport Infrastructure Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Canal	Present	800 CE 1149 CE
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Special-purpose Sites Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Mines or Quarry	Present	800 CE 1149 CE
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Enclosure	Present	800 CE 1149 CE
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Ceremonial Site	Present	800 CE 1149 CE
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Burial Site	Present	800 CE 1149 CE
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Information / Writing System Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More

Information / Kinds of Written Documents Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More

Information / Money Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Precious Metal	Present	800 CE 1149 CE
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Information / Postal System Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More

Information / Measurement System Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More

Warfare Variables (Military Technologies)

Fortifications Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More

Military use of Metals Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More

Projectiles Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More

Handheld weapons Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More

Animals used in warfare Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More

Armor Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More

Naval technology Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More

Economy Variables (Luxury Goods)

Religion Variables

Moralizing Supernatural Punishment and Reward Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More

Human Sacrifice Late Tiwanaku (bo_tiwanaku_2)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More