PERSISTENCE AND TRANSFORMATIONS IN YARN PRODUCTION. ANTOFAGASTA DE LA SIERRA (VI-XIX CENTURIES)

We present the comparative analysis, throughout an extensive trajectory (6th century to the end of the 19th century), of a set of animal and vegetable fiber yarns that were recovered from archaeological excavations in Antofagasta de la Sierra, Argentine southern Puna. We focus on three themes, as "guiding threads": the raw material, the spinning modes and color use. We discuss continuities and changes over time, and we wonder about their implications in technical aspects and the worldview, especially from the impact of the Hispanic invasion. That is why, from a heuristic point of view, we consider native ontologies, as views more closely located in relation to local archaeological contexts.