FUNERARY URNS IN LAKE AMANÃ, MIDDLE SOLIMÕES, AMAZONAS: CONTEXTS, CONSERVATION PROCESSES AND GESTURES

Abstract

The Lake Amanã, located near the junction of the Japurá and the Solimões rivers, is in a still poorly known archaeological region. However, since 2006, surveys and excavations have been conducted with the support of the Instituto de Desenvolvimento Sustentável Mamirauá (IDSM). This pa­per presents preliminary data on the funerary contexts of that region as well as on the potentials of the recovered material. The results obtained from the study of some funerary urns from Bom Jesus do Baré and São Miguel do Cacau indicate unique burial practices. The presence of accompa­nying mortuary furniture inside the vessels, the possibility of being primary burials, the proximity of the urns within the sites, and the vessels’ character­istics suggest a high degree of uniformity during the Caiambé phase, related do the Incised Rim Tradition or Barrancoid Series. Keywords: Funerary urns, Lake Amanã, taphonomy.