Coming to our senses at chavín de huantar

Study of the sensory interface between bodies, artifacts, and archaeological sites produces new kinds of information that may more closely approximate the lived experience of past actors. This approach may be especially useful in the study of non-Western, precapitalist societies, whose perceptual practices differed from our own. Study of sensory interfaces at the Formative Peruvian site of Chavín de Huantar allows us to recognize the idiosyncratic site plan and “poor visibility” of designs carved on monumental stones as intentional practices on the part of their makers. Parallels between these interfaces point to recursive, intentional practices on the part of the site’s builders and to differences between actors at the site.