New Insights into the Tiwanaku Style of Snuff Trays from San Pedro de Atacama, Northern Chile

is today northern Chile, part of northwestern Argentina, and the Bolivian altiplano, including the inter-Andean valleys (Figure 1). During prehistory, this area was characterized by lower population densities compared to the Central Andes, with relatively small populations living off the most productive ecosystems, separated by wide stretches of hyperarid deserts, high mountains, and salt lakes (Nielsen 2013). As in other regions of the Andes, ecological complementarity was essential for social and biological reproduction in this area, as has been attested from the very first colonization of this part of the continent (Latorre et al. 2013). From the Formative period onwards (ca. 1000 B.C.–A.D. 1500), there is ample archaeological evidence of increased social interaction and complementarity NEW INSIGHTS INTO THE TIWANAKU STYLE OF SNUFF TRAYS FROM SAN PEDRO DE ATACAMA, NORTHERN CHILE