The '''Machalilla''' were a [[Prehistoric man|prehistoric people]] in [[Ecuador]], in southern [[Manabí Province|Manabí]] and the Santa Elena Peninsula. The dates when the culture thrived are uncertain, but are generally agreed to encompass 1500 [[common era|BCE]] to 1100 BCE.<ref name="met">[http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/ht/03/sa/ht03sa.htm Timeline of Art History: South America, 2000–1000 b.c.] Met. Accessed [[August 2]] [[2007]]</ref> 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.
==Machalilla Culture==
The Machalilla were an [[agriculture|agricultural]] people who also pursued [[fishing]], [[hunter-gatherer|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.<ref name="lonely">[http://www.lonelyplanet.com/shop_pickandmix/previews/ecuador-the-galapagos-background-information-preview.pdf Ecuador/The Galapagos Background] ''[[Lonely Planet]] Accessed [[August 2]] [[2007]].</ref>
[[Archaeologist|Archaeologists]] focus on the unusual [[cemetery|cemeteries]] of the Machalilla, in which bodies were settled beneath a ceramic turtle shell,<ref name="exploring">[http://www.exploringecuador.com/museum_bce/machalilla.htm Exploring Ecuador: Machalilla] Accessed [[August 2]] [[2007]]</ref> and on their [[ceramics (art)|ceramic work]] in general, which represented artistic and technological advances in the art.<ref name="cultural">[http://www.ecuador.org/cultural.htm Pre-Columbian Art] Embassy of Ecuador in Washington DC. Accessed [[August 2]] [[2007]].</ref> The Machalilla are credited with adding to the ceramic bottle the stirrup spout, in which two spouts join together into one opening: an invention that would be prominent in northwest [[South America|South American]] [[pottery]] for centuries.<ref name="met"/> Archaeologists have also excavated ceramic pots, pitchers, whistles, candlesticks and human figures from Machalilla digs.
The date range of the culture is obscured. It is sometimes listed as early as 1800 BCE and as late as 800 BCE.<ref name="cultural"/><ref name="exploring"/>. 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 [[Mesoamerica|Mesoamerican]] contact until it blended into the Chorrera culture.<ref>Meggers, Betty J. and Clifford Evans. "The Machalilla Culture: An Early Formative Complex on the Ecuadorian Coast." ''American Antiquity'', Vol. 28, No. 2 (Oct., 1962), pp. 186-192.</ref>
Universidad de Especialidades Espíritu Santo [[UEES]] in Guayaquil, Ecuador has a collection of Machalilla artifacts.
==Machalilla National Park==
Established in [[1979]], Machalilla National Park near Puerto Lopéz rests along the Pacific coast. It incorporates beaches, [[Cloud forest|fog forest]], [[Tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests|dry forest]], small islands and two larger islands, Salango and Isla de la Plata, the latter named for a legendary hoard of silver left by [[Francis Drake|Sir Francis Drake]].<ref name="smith">Smith, Julian. [http://www.planeta.com/planeta/98/0598machalilla.html Machalilla National Park and Vicinity]. May, 1998. Accessed [[August 2]] [[2007]].</ref>
In [[1990]] the park was named an internationally important [[wetland]] under the [[Ramsar Convention]]. Wildlife includes [[Armadillo|armadillos]], two species of monkeys and birds of more than 270 species.<ref name="smith"/><ref name="dry">[http://www.nature.org/wherewework/southamerica/ecuador/work/art5119.html Dry Tropical Forests of Ecuador]. Accessed [[August 2]] [[2007]]</ref> Many of the large mammals in Machalilla National Park are regionally and locally [[Endangered species|endangered]]. Machalilla National Park is the only [[habitat]] outside of the [[Galapagos Islands]] of [[Waved Albatross|waved albatross]]. The ocean regions of the park also provide a breeding ground for [[humpback whale]]s. Vegetation includes [[Opuntia|opuntia cactus]], [[Palo santo|palo santo trees]], [[Kapok|kapok trees]] and the algaroba tree.<ref name="smith"/> Most of the tropical scrub desert and forest of western Ecuador, once 25% but now only 1%, can be found in the park.<ref name="dry"/>
Machalilla National Park has been threatened by a number of factors, including [[deforestation]], [[fishery|commercial fishing]], [[poaching]] and the ecological impact of the [[tourism|tourist industry]]. In [[1991]], [[The Nature Conservancy]], the [[United States Agency for International Development]] and a group of partner organizations across [[Latin America]] and the [[Caribbean]] began contributing funds for conservation as part of the [[Parks in Peril]] (PiP) program. Machalilla National Park opened an on-site center for educating visitors about the ecology of the park and conservation issues. The park also hired locals to serve as guards, increasing local awareness of the issues impacting the park. Machalilla's partner organization, [[Fundación Natura]], has also worked with local communities to provide training on environmentally [[sustainable agriculture|agricultural]] and fishing practices.
== See also ==
*[http://www.exploringecuador.com/museum_bce/chorrera.htm Chorrera Culture]
== References ==
{{reflist}}
== Sources and external links ==
*[http://www.utpl.edu.ec/museo/arqueologia/faceta09.html Patrimonio Artistico del Ecuador]
*[http://www.edufuturo.com/educacion.php?c=1724 Machalilla]
*[http://www.usfq.edu.ec/1PROFESORES/Hoeneisen/Ecuador_2050/raices.htm Raíces culturales del Ecuador]
*[http://www.puertolopez.net/paginas/machalilla.htm Parroquia Machalilla]
*[http://www.exploringecuador.com/museum_bce/machalilla.htm Exploring Ecuador: Machalilla]
*[http://www.ecuador-travel.net/biodiversity.parks.machalilla.htm Machalilla National Park]
*[http://parksinperil.org/wherewework/southamerica/ecuador/protectedarea/machalilla.html Parks in Peril: Machalilla National Park]
[[category:Prehistory]]
[[category:Pre-Columbian cultures]]
[[category:Archaeological cultures]]
[[category:National parks of Ecuador]]
[[ca:Cultura Machalilla]]
[[es:Machalilla]]
[[qu:Machalilla mama llaqta parki]]
[[fi:Machalillan kulttuuri]]
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