Wind Furnaces of the Atacama Salt Flat, Northern Chile: Copper Extractive Metallurgy at the Edge of Qhapaq Ñan

Archaeological research at the Catarpe Túnel site in northern Chile has uncovered a series of pyrometallurgical furnaces used during the Late period (AD 1400–1536) to produce unalloyed copper prills from local ores, including atacamite and chrysocolla. This discovery marks the only major archaeometallurgical site in the Atacama oasis and salt flats, offering insights into advanced metallurgical practices of the region. The study employed archaeometric analysis to determine ore types, metallic composition, and fuel characteristics, revealing a sophisticated local tradition. Notably, the proximity of these furnaces to a documented section of Qhapaq Ñan and an Inka administrative center suggests potential Tawantinsuyu influence on regional metallurgy.

Cifuentes, A., Figueroa, V., Sapiains, P., Mille, B., Grimberg, D., González-Rodríguez, C., Echenique, E., Bataille, T., Berenguer, J., & Salazar, D. (2025). Wind Furnaces of the Atacama Salt Flat, Northern Chile: Copper Extractive Metallurgy at the Edge of Qhapaq Ñan. Latin American Antiquity, 36(3), 678–697. https://doi.org/10.1017/laq.2024.39