1. Cinerary urn
Anthropomorphous figurine
End of Quimbaya period

2. Anthropomorphous figurine
End of Quimbaya period

The first traces of man’s presence in Colombia date to about 12,000 BC. Different hunter-gatherer groups arrived by way of the Isthmus of Panama, and continued onward to the interior where they settled on the high plateaux of the cordillera.

Pottery was invented on the Caribbean coast at the same time as agriculture was first introduced to the region, namely around the 4th millennium BC. Later, during the first centuries of the Christian era, regional societies formed in various parts of present-day Colombia. These cultures stand out for producing a large quantity of metalwork, weaving and pottery objects, and for building immense public works — channels, roads and landscaping.

On their arrival, the Spaniards found a mosaic of distinct cultures speaking diverse languages and whose social organization varied in complexity. These cultures came into contact with one another through barter networks involving raw materials, products and services, and through war.

Museo Universitario, Universidad de Antioquia

Santiago Ortiz Aristizabal
Anthropologist

University Museum, University of Antioquia, Medellín, Colombia

Anthropology Collection of the University of Antioquia, Medellín, Colombia

Photographs: Isabel Escobar, Anthropologist, University Museum, University of Antioquia.


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