  location in Peru | |
| Location | Peru |
|---|---|
| Region | Ayacucho Region |
| Coordinates | 13°02′27″S 74°13′27″W / 13.04083°S 74.22417°W |
Piki Mach'ay (Quechua piki flea, mach'ay cave,[1][2] "flea cave", also spelled Pikimachay, Piquimachay, where machay means "drunkenness", "to get drunk" or "a spindle packed with thread")[1][2] is an archaeological site in the Ayacucho Valley of Peru. Radiocarbon dating from this cave indicates a human presence ranging from 22,200 to 14,700 years ago,[3] but this evidence has been disputed and a more conservative date of 12,000 years BCE seems possible.[4]
Richard S. MacNeish was the first archaeologist to explore Piki Mach'ay.[5] Evidence of long-term human occupation has been found at the site, though that evidence still remains controversial.
The cave is part of the Ayacucho complex, a culture defined by several cave sites including Jaya Mach'ay ("pepper cave").[6]
- ^ a b Teofilo Laime Ajacopa (2007). Diccionario Bilingüe: Iskay simipi yuyayk’anch: Quechua – Castellano / Castellano – Quechua (PDF). La Paz, Bolivia: futatraw.ourproject.org.
- ^ a b Diccionario Quechua - Español - Quechua, Academía Mayor de la Lengua Quechua, Gobierno Regional Cusco, Cusco 2005 (Quechua-Spanish dictionary)
- ^ Jefferson 29
- ^ Duccio Bonavia, Perú, hombre e historia, vol. I, p. 89.
- ^ Saunders, Nick. "The Civilising Influence of Agriculture", New Scientist, 13 June 1985: 18. (Retrieved 4 June 2011)
- ^ "Ayacucho complex." Archaeology Wordsmith. (Retrieved 3 June 2011)