The
Machalilla were a
prehistoric people in
Ecuador, in southern
Manabí and the Santa Elena Peninsula. The dates when the culture thrived are uncertain, but are generally agreed to encompass 1500
BCE to 1100 BCE.
[1] Machalilla also refers to
Machalilla National Park in Manabí near
Puerto López and the town of Machalilla, a small fishing village in the vicinity of the park.
The Machalilla were an agricultural people who also pursued fishing, hunting and gathering. Like many prehistoric cultures of coastal Ecuador, the people practiced artificial cranial deformation by using stones to flatten and lengthen their skulls.[2]
The date range of the culture is obscured. It is sometimes listed as early as 1800 BCE and as late as 800 BCE.[4][3]. One of the problems with determining the proper date range is the method of cultural termination. According to archaeologists Betty Meggers and Clifford Evans, the Machalilla culture was altered by Mesoamerican contact until it blended into the Chorrera culture.[5]
Universidad de Especialidades Espíritu Santo UEES in Guayaquil, Ecuador has a collection of Machalilla artifacts.
