Radiocarbon dating indicates Late Archaic occupation at the coastal site of Áspero beginning around 3700 BCE, providing an early chronological anchor for Norte Chico settlement and public architecture near the Supe River mouth.
Radiocarbon evidence places preceramic occupation at Huaricanga in the Fortaleza Valley beginning by roughly 3220 BCE, supporting its role among the earliest monumental centers in the Norte Chico sphere.
A major set of 95 new radiocarbon dates from 13 sites (Fortaleza and Pativilca valleys) confirmed the emergence and development of Norte Chico monumental centers during the Late Archaic, broadly 3000–1800 calibrated BCE.
Published radiocarbon dates from Caral indicate that monumental architecture, urban settlement, and irrigation agriculture were established by 4090 BP (2627 cal BCE), providing a key calibrated benchmark for Norte Chico chronology.
Radiocarbon dating from a temple structure at Huaricanga supports construction around 2560 BCE, indicating early ceremonial architecture that predates later highland traditions often compared to it (e.g., Mito).
Syntheses of radiocarbon evidence place Áspero’s dated range extending to about 2420 BCE, documenting a prolonged coastal occupation contemporaneous with inland centers such as Caral and supporting models of coastal–inland complementarity.
The Caral radiocarbon series reported in Science extends down to 3640 BP (1977 cal BCE), helping define the late portion of Caral’s main preceramic occupation in calibrated time.
Multiple regional chronologies place the decline of the major Late Archaic Norte Chico monumental centers around 1800 BCE, broadly marking the end of the main florescence documented by large radiocarbon datasets.
The INTCAL98 calibration curve (0–24,000 cal BP) became a widely used standard for converting radiocarbon ages to calendar ages, and was among the calibration resources cited in early Norte Chico radiocarbon syntheses.
A landmark paper reported Caral’s radiocarbon chronology (with calibrated dates including 2627–1977 cal BCE) and argued for early urbanism and monumental construction in the Supe Valley based on directly dated organic materials.
A major radiocarbon program (Fortaleza and Pativilca valleys) was published, presenting 95 new dates from 13 sites and reinforcing a regional Late Archaic chronology centered on 3000–1800 cal BCE for Norte Chico monumental centers.
The IntCal20 Northern Hemisphere radiocarbon calibration curve (0–55 cal kBP) was published, providing an updated global standard used to recalibrate older radiocarbon determinations (including Late Archaic Andean sequences) with improved data and methods.
Chronology and radiocarbon calibration of Norte Chico sites (c. 3500–1500 BCE)
