Papers by Hermann Gorbahn
Lay-out & cover design: Sidestone Press Photograph cover: Stone mound (ovoo) near Ugii Lake in Ce... more Lay-out & cover design: Sidestone Press Photograph cover: Stone mound (ovoo) near Ugii Lake in Central Mongolia (photo: Birte Ahrens).
Ergrabene Welten. 40 Jahre archäologische Spurensuche auf vier Kontinenten. (hrsg. von der Kommission für Archäologie Außereuropäischer Kulturen), 2019
Excavated Worlds 40 years of archaeological research on four continents Commission for the Archaeology of Non-European Cultures Excavated Worlds 40 years of archaeological research on four continents. (ed. by the Commission for the Archaeology of Non-European Cultures), 2019
Mundos Excavados. 40 años de búsqueda arqueológica en cuatro continentes (publicado por la Comisión de Arqueología de las Culturas no Europeas), 2019
Tagungsband 10. Mitteldeutscher Archäologentag, 2018
Palaeoenvironment and the development of early settlements. (eds. Markus Reindel, Karin Bartl, Friedrich Lüth, Norbert Benecke), 2016
Diálogo andino, 2013
ABSTRACT During the Middle Archaic period, agriculture -that later played an important role- was ... more ABSTRACT During the Middle Archaic period, agriculture -that later played an important role- was established in the Central Andes. Pernil Alto was a permanent settlement of this period, dating to 5800-5000 cal BP and located in Southern Peru. The economy was already based on horticulture and was independent from the marine resources of the Pacific Ocean. Nevertheless, some foraging, especially plant collection, was conducted. Currently, the area is one of the driest in the world, but was -based on palaeoclimatic information-much more favourable during the Middle Archaic. These conditions certainly influenced the emergence of horticulture in the region.
Before the arrival of the Spaniards in Peru in 1532, many different societies flourished in the c... more Before the arrival of the Spaniards in Peru in 1532, many different societies flourished in the coastal desert of southern Peru. Of these, one of the best known is the Nasca culture (living in the area between about 260 cal BC and 640 cal BC.), which created the famous geoglyphs on the desert floor. In this paper we present a numerical chronology for the cultural development in the valleys of Palpa, in the northern part of the Nazca region, which spans the time from the Archaic Period (starting there around 3760 cal BC) to the Late Intermediate Period (terminating with the arrival of the Spaniards in 1532 AD). The chronology is based on more than 150 14 C samples collected by our project from well-documented archaeological excavations of 17 different sites in and around Palpa. Thanks to the advanced AMS-14 C dating technique, demanding only few milligrams of organic material, we could focus on samples of plants, like beans, corn, or reed, representing single years of growth or use, and also on delicate materials like straw from clay bricks (adobe) and textiles. All single 14 C dates were combined to cultural phases using a Bayesian statistical model, implementing the a priori information of the archaeological contexts, and adopting the relative ceramic chronologies available for this area.
Books by Hermann Gorbahn
Pernil Alto. An agricultural village of the Middle Archaic Period., 2020
As of yet, little is known about the emergence of agriculture in the Central Andes. The results o... more As of yet, little is known about the emergence of agriculture in the Central Andes. The results of the investigations of the Middle Archaic settlement of Pernil Alto (3800-3000 BC) presented in this volume now provide important insights for a better understanding of this development.
The site of Pernil Alto is located in the foothills of the Andes in Southern Peru. Extensive excavations were carried out here by the German Archaeological Institute. Within the scope of this research, the economic development, form of mobility and social structure were investigated. For this purpose, the discovered remains (artefacts, dwellings, burials, botanical and faunal remains, and human remains) were analyzed and numerous 14C-analyses and Sr-analyses were carried out. The results were combined in a multi-proxy analysis and evaluated in relation to paleo-environmental findings. The result is a six-phase settlement with intra-site burials. During the first phase (ca. 3800-3300 BC), it was a settlement of foragers that relied on food collection, but already cultivated domesticated plants in an additional low-level food production. From the second phase (ca. 3300 BC) onwards, the settlement had developed into a permanent, structured village in which agriculture constituted the basis of subsistence.
This is hitherto one of the oldest documented villages in the Americas where agriculture formed the basis of subsistence. The results of the research conducted at Pernil Alto thus contribute to a better understanding of the formation of slightly later first complex, marine-agricultural societies on Peru‘s central coast.
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Papers by Hermann Gorbahn
Books by Hermann Gorbahn
The site of Pernil Alto is located in the foothills of the Andes in Southern Peru. Extensive excavations were carried out here by the German Archaeological Institute. Within the scope of this research, the economic development, form of mobility and social structure were investigated. For this purpose, the discovered remains (artefacts, dwellings, burials, botanical and faunal remains, and human remains) were analyzed and numerous 14C-analyses and Sr-analyses were carried out. The results were combined in a multi-proxy analysis and evaluated in relation to paleo-environmental findings. The result is a six-phase settlement with intra-site burials. During the first phase (ca. 3800-3300 BC), it was a settlement of foragers that relied on food collection, but already cultivated domesticated plants in an additional low-level food production. From the second phase (ca. 3300 BC) onwards, the settlement had developed into a permanent, structured village in which agriculture constituted the basis of subsistence.
This is hitherto one of the oldest documented villages in the Americas where agriculture formed the basis of subsistence. The results of the research conducted at Pernil Alto thus contribute to a better understanding of the formation of slightly later first complex, marine-agricultural societies on Peru‘s central coast.
The site of Pernil Alto is located in the foothills of the Andes in Southern Peru. Extensive excavations were carried out here by the German Archaeological Institute. Within the scope of this research, the economic development, form of mobility and social structure were investigated. For this purpose, the discovered remains (artefacts, dwellings, burials, botanical and faunal remains, and human remains) were analyzed and numerous 14C-analyses and Sr-analyses were carried out. The results were combined in a multi-proxy analysis and evaluated in relation to paleo-environmental findings. The result is a six-phase settlement with intra-site burials. During the first phase (ca. 3800-3300 BC), it was a settlement of foragers that relied on food collection, but already cultivated domesticated plants in an additional low-level food production. From the second phase (ca. 3300 BC) onwards, the settlement had developed into a permanent, structured village in which agriculture constituted the basis of subsistence.
This is hitherto one of the oldest documented villages in the Americas where agriculture formed the basis of subsistence. The results of the research conducted at Pernil Alto thus contribute to a better understanding of the formation of slightly later first complex, marine-agricultural societies on Peru‘s central coast.