Cranial Vault Modification and Ethnicity in Middle Horizon San Pedro de Atacama, Chile1

During the first few years of life, the bones of the skull are quite malleable and with persistent shaping by adult caretakers will eventually retain a form created through manipulation. The permanently modified head that results is not only an aesthetic feature; it also conveys social information. Cranial vault modification must be performed during infancy. As a result, it is not associated with rites of passage and contrasts in this respect with other forms of body modification that mark important social transitions (Brain 1979:91). Instead, early in life, cranial vault modification becomes a fundamental part of a person’s identity. It serves as a powerful, constant, and visually salient symbol of social identity. In some important respects our bodies are a creation of the society within which we exist. It is this interaction between society and the body that is critical in understanding the social context of body modifications. Cranial vault modification has long been viewed by anthropologists as a cultural feature, “one that marks territory or social boundaries, reaffirms ethnicity, and maintains and strengthens exchange networks” (Gerszten 1993:87). It can serve as a permanent symbol of within-group solidarity and of cultural differences between groups. Since patterns of body modifications are cultural artifacts, they can change in response to external influences. This suggests a possible bioarchaeological approach to a controversy regarding the cultural influence of the Bolivian altiplano state of Tiwanaku (a.d. 400–1000) on people living in the Atacama Desert of