The Sequence of Late Formative Ceremonial Structures at Salango, Coastal Ecuador: A Reconstruction and Interpretation

The Late Formative site of Salango, on the central coast of Ecuador, functioned as a sacred centre of increasing influence from 600 BC to 100 BC. This period saw eight main episodes of construction and use of an elaborate sequence of Middle and Late Engoroy phase ceremonial floors, houses, and platforms. Complementing the author's previous work 'Cultural Identity, Transition, and Interaction at Salango, Coastal Ecuador' (BAR S3109, 2022), this book presents previously unpublished data concerning the front halves of those structures, reconstructs the complete structure design for each episode, and offers an interpretation of the overall sequence. As well as details of the architecture, descriptions are given of human burials, artefact offerings including anthropomorphic figurine depositions, and other associated features. Readers familiar with earlier treatments of the site will now be able both to see how the original field data were used to make the reconstructions, and to appreciate more fully the complexity and richness of this unique and important site.