Location: Colombia, more exactly in the regions of Risaralda, Caldas, and Quindío.
History: There is little information about
Quimbaya culture. It is not clear what period of time this culture arose, but it is believed they existed for a very long time (about 2 millennia), that is until the Spanish conquest. In a period of less than a century the Spanish extinguished most of the Quimbaya. Many Quimbaya leaders did not resist the Spanish invasion, which led to recognition of part their territory peacefully, and therefore the culture was not completely eradicated during that time. Though little is known about them, remains recently found suggest they had a very advanced cultural development.
Daily Life:They were organized in what is known as cacicazgos, which is a social system typical in this region during that time. Each cacicazgo had a leader known as the cacique and had a population of about 200 people. There were about 100 cacicazgos. Each cacicazgo used to send the leader to meet the other caciques to discuss economic and military issues and make decisions as a whole. It is believed the leadership was hereditary.
They used to harvest corn, yucca (cassava), beans, and various fruits. Fish was an important part of their diet, along with honey. They were hunters as well, usually hunting deers, rabbits, and other mammals found in the region. They were also very spiritual; many objects recovered from this culture reflected a strong religious tradition which included several Gods. The inhabitants also believed water had healing powers and they used to take baths repeatedly when they were suffering an illness. They also had the idea of life after dead and used to place corn, fish, and weapons along the bodies before burying them.
Best known features:The Quimbaya culture is best known for their work with gold, which included a large number of sculptures and other objects. Their gold creations are characterized by their perfection and intricate design. Many of their objects can be seen at the gold museum in Bogota, Colombia as well as other museums around the globe. Most of their creations were composed of a mix usually of 70% gold and 30% cupper due the scarcity of the material in their land.
Though this page has been carefully researched, the author does not claim expertise on the Quimbaya.
Please send questions, comments, and corrections to emuseum@mnsu.edu and include the URL.
Cultura Quimbaya. Electronic document,
http://www.quimbaya.gov.co, accessed May 14, 2009.
Quimbaya, la Gente y el Oro en el cauca medio. Electronic document,
http://www.banrep.gov.co/museo/esp/s_quimbaya.htm, accessed May 15, 2009.
Images are courtesy of Banco de la Republica, museo del oro – Bogota D.C.
Link: http://www.banrep.gov.co/museo/eng/o_quim_O0001509.htm
By Julian Bernal