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| Before we, the negroes, arrived, the Indians lived here, in this same
place. The Indians lived under the ground, and ate gold from golden
plates and drank gold from golden cups, and their children played with
dolls made of gold. When we arrived the Indians fled, under the earth
toward the mountains where the rivers have their sources... But before
fleeing, the Indians took all the gold, the cups full of golden
pineapples and the golden dolls, and broke everything up with their
hands and feet, turning it alb into gold dust . . . And now we, the
negroes, must break our bodies to find the gold dust and to keep
ourselves alive in the places where the Indians used to live before.
myth of the miners of Guelmambi, Barbacoas; from Nina S. de Friedemann,
Mineria, Descendencia y Orfebreria Artesanal Litoral Pacifico, Colombia,
Bogota, 1974 The coastal strip just north of Ecuador, called the
Tumaco region, was first explored in 1526 27 by the ships of Francisco
Pizarro, on his way to the conquest of Peru. The Pacific province was
described as populous and rich: They wear short shirts which do not
cover their shameful parts, and they are tonsured like friars, except
that they cut all their hair in front and behind, but let it grow at the
sides. They wear emeralds and other things in their nostrils and ears,
and strings of gold, turquoises, white and colored stones. Francisco
Lopez de Gomara,
on the Esmeraldas, 1552
Archaeological sites have yielded a rich
haul to treasure hunters, who wash and sieve the earth in search of
little studs, nose rings, and tiny gold ornaments which are the
stock-in-trade of the Tumaco jeweler. |
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| Unfortunately, there are
very few documents that describe the lifestyle of the prehispanic
metal smiths. One Spanish document refers to the Muisca population of
Lenguazaque. According to the information provided by indigenous
witnesses, there were at least two classes of gold workers on the high
plains of the Departments of Cundinamarca and Boyacá. Some labored
producing body ornaments. Others lived apart in sanctuaries having
specialized in creating articles to be offered to the gods. In both
cases, they were highly respected members of society, whose position and
tools were passed down generation after generation, from father to son.
The document of Lenguazaque suggest that in the most complex societies
goldworking was different from the work performed by chieftains and also
in many cases, from that of the shamans. However, there is no doubt that
in other societies chiefs and shamans were involved in goldwork
production.
The former were in charge of organizing production,
particularly when raw materials had to be procured from outside sources.
When this occurred, in fact, chief were held accountable for supplying
goldworkers with materials and for storing surpluses and later for
trading the finished pieces. Shamans, on the other hand, were
responsible for deciding what type of articles should be produced. The
populace would go to the shamans sanctuaries and solicit their oracular
and curative services. After ingesting narcotic drugs, particularly
tobacco, the shamans would determine what type of figure the goldsmiths
should craft and where it should be offered. Thus, the relationship
between the goldworkers, shamans, and chieftains, was mutually
complementary. |
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