Archaeological Site Museums in Latin America

320 Pages·2006·22.81 MB·English

by  Helaine Silverman

“Archaeologists everywhere, as well as
Archaeological Site Museums
government officials and community leaders
Some of the greatest archaeological sites in the world
interested in having a local site museum, Silverman
are found in Latin America, and archaeological
Helaine Silverman is professor of anthropology will find this collection inspiring, full of
tourism is widely touted as a solution to the poverty
at the University of Illinois at Urbana- practical ideas and potential pitfalls, and
that plagues much of this region. Site museums
Champaign. She is the author of four books, containing lots of tough questions to ponder,
are playing an important role in the presentation
including Ancient Nasca Settlement and Society, and maybe even resolve.”—Karen D. Vitelli,
of these finds to the public. Whether created by
and editor of six volumes, including an Andean Indiana University
national agencies, by the archaeologists working at
Archaeology series. A in
these sites, or in response to local people’s awareness
r
c of the potential development and economic benefits
h
of tourism, site museums are major educational
a
“A significant contribution to the broad e venues, promoting a sense of ownership of the past
literatures of museum anthropology, o among resident or nearby populations, as well as
l Latin America
archaeological heritage and conservation, o greater local interest in cultural heritage and its
and Latin American archaeology and g preservation. At the same time, they constitute
i
anthropology in general.”—Jonathan Haas, c a major heritage management strategy; they can
Field Museum, Chicago ia mitigate looting and site destruction, thereby serving
n
l
as a first line of defense in site preservation.
LS
ai Archaeological Site Museums in Latin America is
tt the first edited volume to deal in depth with this
ie
n subject. Complicated on many levels, the creation of
M
A a site museum is addressed in thirteen case studies by
u
m the contributors to this “how to,” “what to expect,”
s
ee and “what not to” primer. Nine of the authors
ru have actually built or rehabilitated site museums
im
c and/or created a development project at one. Their
as undertakings have involved significant interaction

with the local community in a highly equitable
University Press of Florida
rather than top-down endeavor.
15 Northwest 15th Street
This handbook for archaeologists and heritage
Gainesville, FL 32611-2079
managers can readily be incorporated into museum,
http://www.upf.com
heritage, and ethics courses, and actual field
strategies.
edited
University Press of Florida by
ISBN 0-8130-3001-3
,!7IA8B3-adaabc! Helaine Silverman
upf
Archaeological Site Museums in Latin America
Cultural Heritage Studies
University Press of Florida
Florida A&M University, Tallahassee
Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton
Florida Gulf Coast University, Ft. Myers
Florida International University, Miami
Florida State University, Tallahassee
New College of Florida, Sarasota
University of Central Florida, Orlando
University of Florida, Gainesville
University of North Florida, Jacksonville
University of South Florida, Tampa
University of West Florida, Pensacola
Cultural Heritage Studies
Edited by Paul Shackel, University of Maryland
The University Press of Florida is proud to announce the creation of a new series devoted to the
study of cultural heritage. This thematic series brings together research devoted to understanding
the material and behavioral characteristics of heritage. The series explores the uses of heritage and
the meaning of its cultural forms as a way to interpret the present and the past. The series highlights
important scholarship related to America’s diverse heritage.
Books include important theoretical contributions and descriptions of significant cultural resources.
Scholarship addresses questions related to culture and describes how local and national communi-
ties develop and value the past. The series includes works in public archaeology, heritage tourism,
museum studies, vernacular architecture, history, American studies, and material cultural studies.
Heritage of Value, Archaeology of Renown: Reshaping Archaeological Assessment and Significance,
edited by Clay Mathers, Timothy Darvill, and Barbara J. Little (2005)
Archaeology, Cultural Heritage, and the Trade in Antiquities, edited by Neil Brodie, Morag M. Kersel,
Christina Luke, and Kathryn Walker Tubb (2006)
Archaeological Site Museums in Latin America, edited by Helaine Silverman (2006)
Authors interested in contributing to the Cultural Heritage Study Series
should send inquiries to:
Paul A. Shackel
Department of Anthropology
1111 Woods Hall
University of Maryland
College Park, MD 20742
Phone [phone]
Fax [phone]
Email: [email protected]
Archaeological Site Museums
in Latin America
Edited by Helaine Silverman
Foreword by Paul Shackel
University Press of Florida
Gainesville/Tallahassee/Tampa/Boca Raton
Pensacola/Orlando/Miami/Jacksonville/Ft. Myers/Sarasota
Copyright 2006 by Helaine Silverman
All rights reserved
A record of cataloging-in-publication data is available from the
Library of Congress.
ISBN 978-0-8130-3001-2 (cloth: alk. paper)
ISBN 978-0-8130-3774-5 (e-book)
The University Press of Florida is the scholarly publishing agency
for the State University System of Florida, comprising Florida A&M
University, Florida Atlantic University, Florida Gulf Coast University,
Florida International University, Florida State University, New College of
Florida, University of Central Florida, University of Florida, University of North
Florida, University of South Florida, and University of West Florida.
University Press of Florida
15 Northwest 15th Street
Gainesville, FL 32611-2079
http://www.upf.com
For Edward M. Bruner, a pioneer in the anthropology of tourism

Contents
List of Illustrations ix
Foreword xiii
Preface xvii
Part 1. Introduction
1. Archaeological Site Museums in Latin America 3
Helaine Silverman
Part 2. Site Museums at Monumental Sites/Sites with Monuments
2. The Site Museums at Teotihuacan, Mexico: The View of Art Historians
versus the View of Archaeologists 21
Linda Manzanilla
3. Community Museums in the San Lorenzo Tenochtitlán Region,
Mexico 30
Ann Cyphers and Lucero Morales-Cano
4. Experiencing Copán: The Authenticity of Stone 47
Lena Mortensen
5. The Kuntur Wasi Museum in Northern Peru 64
Yoshio Onuki
6. The Tourist Circuit Project at Pukara, Peru: Perspectives from a Local
Site Museum 72
G. Rolando Paredes Eyzaguirre, Graciela Fattorini Murillo, and
Elizabeth Klarich
7. Building the Community Museum at Chiripa, Bolivia 85
Christine A. Hastorf
Part 3. Site Museums at Nonmonumental Sites
8. Community Involvement in the Development of the Museum of the
Lovers of Sumpa in Coastal Ecuador 101
Karen E. Stothert
9. Proyecto Las Costeñas: A Program for Training Tour Guides in the
Cultural Heritage and Ecology of Coastal Ecuador 120
Elka Weinstein
10. Modular Site Museums and Sustainable Community Development at
San José de Moro, Peru 130
Luis Jaime Castillo Butters and Ulla Sarela Holmquist Pachas
Part 4. The City as Site Museum
11. The Historic District of Cusco as an Open-Air Site Museum 159
Helaine Silverman
Part 5. Museums for the Landscape/The Landscape as Museum
12. Using the Past to Forge the Future: The Genesis of the Community Site
Museum at Agua Blanca, Ecuador 187
Colin McEwan, María-Isabel Silva, and Chris Hudson
13. The Sicán Museum: Guardian, Promoter, and Investigator of the Sicán
Culture and the Muchik Identity 217
Carlos G. Elera and Izumi Shimada
14. Landscape Site Museums and Adventurers in Peru’s Cotahuasi
Valley 234
Justin Jennings
Part 6. Comments
15. The Museums’ Object(ive)s 249
Lawrence S. Coben
16. Exhibiting Archaeology: Site Museums and Cultural Resource
Management in Latin America 256
K. Anne Pyburn
Bibliography 267
List of Contributors 291
Index 297
Illustrations
Figures
1.1. Location of site museums discussed in this volume 5, 6
2.1. Location of Teotihuacan’s two museums 23
2.2. The Museum of Teotihuacan Culture 24
2.3. Museum of Mural Painting at Teotihuacan 24
3.1. The southern Gulf Coast with the San Lorenzo Tenochtitlán region 31
3.2. The first community museum in Potrero Nuevo 35
3.3. Discovery of the tenth colossal head at San Lorenzo 36
3.4. Second museum in Potrero Nuevo, built around the first museum 38
3.5. Construction of the Tenochtitlán Community Museum 38
3.6. The Tenochtitlán Community Museum when finished in 1995 39
3.7. Inauguration of the Potrero Nuevo Community Museum 39
3.8. Inauguration of the Tenochtitlán Community Museum 40
4.1. Location of Copán 48
4.2. Magazine ad featuring Copán stela 49
4.3. Stela H, Copán 50
4.4. Select sculpture pieces featured in the Copán Sculpture Museum 51
4.5. Location of Copán Ruinas and the archaeological park 52
4.6. Rosalila replica in the Copán Sculpture Museum 58
4.7. Appropriate decay: Temple 11 at Copán 59
4.8. Copán’s West Acropolis and Temple 11 61
5.1. Kuntur Wasi Museum 65
5.2. Meeting of the Kuntur Wasi Cultural Association 66
5.3. Assemblage of a Kuntur Wasi tomb with gold ornaments 67
5.4. Kuntur Wasi restoration and preservation 68
5.5. The restored temple above the Kuntur Wasi Museum 69
6.1. Location of the town of Pucará and the archaeological site of Pukara 73
6.2. Peñon and the upper platforms of the Qalasaya architectural complex at
Pukara 74
6.3. Examples of prehistoric Pukara and modern Pucará pottery 78
6.4. Drawing and painting competition for Pucará students 80
6.5. Festival of the Decapitator on the terraces of the Qalasaya complex in
2000 81