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Cited by 5Historical and Cultural Archaeology StudiesAfro-Latin American StudiesColonialism, slavery, and trade

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Positioning Maroon Archaeologies to Face Racial Violence in Ecuador

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Balanzátegui Moreno, Daniela C., Delgado Vernaza, Génesis I.·2024·American Antiquity
DOI 10.1017/aaq.2024.50
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Abstract

This article presents an approach to study marronage from the perspective of critical social archaeology, which encompasses the perpetuation of several layers of racial violence endured by the Afro-Ecuadorian population as legacies of slavery and colonialism. Collaborative and community-based projects in the ancestral Afro-Ecuadorian territories of the Chota Valley and Esmeraldas, and in the city of Guayaquil, are a basis for mapping Afro-Ecuadorian resistance strategies in the hacienda, urban, palenque, and border contexts. Marronage, as a response to racial oppression and systemic exploitation, has transformed over time, demonstrating the agency of the Afro-Ecuadorian community against structural violence. Archaeology illuminates the Maroon experience and its legacy in ancestral historical memory by including a critical study of slavery in the household context of plantation settings, identifying the dynamics of oppression and resistance, mapping routes of fugitivity, and examining the networks connecting actions of marronage. This study is an essential step in reconstructing the neglected history of Afro-Ecuadorian resistance and its role in shaping Latin America.

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TL;DR

This article argues for a critical social archaeology of marronage in Ecuador that links colonial-era Afro-Ecuadorian resistance to ongoing racial violence and dispossession. Drawing on collaborative projects in the Chota Valley, Guayaquil, and Esmeraldas, it maps Maroon routes, households, and antislavery actions as interconnected rather than isolated.

Key findings

  • Excavation of an eighteenth-century Afro-descendant midden at the Jesuit hacienda La Concepción documented a feature 6 m in diameter (28.26 m²) and 80 cm deep; five units covering 28% of the midden were excavated for 8 m², recovering around 7,000 ceramic sherds and 10,000 animal bones.
  • Participatory mapping with Afro-Ecuadorian women registered three ancestral Maroon routes in the Chota Valley in 2022, including routes named for Martina Carrillo, Cipriana Cribán, and Juana María La Concepción.
  • In Guayaquil, archival research selected 40 documents and identified 58 historical sites of exploitation/resistance and palenques from the sixteenth to nineteenth centuries.
  • The article connects these histories to contemporary racial violence, noting that Afro-Ecuadorians comprise 7.2% of Ecuador’s population and that homicides in Esmeraldas increased 1,000% between 2020 and 2023.

Methods

  • The study synthesizes three collaborative research projects developed over the last decade: two in the ancestral Afro-Ecuadorian territory of the Chota Valley and one in Guayaquil, with connections to Esmeraldas.
  • Chota Valley research included archaeological surveys and excavations at the former Jesuit hacienda La Concepción (fieldwork 2013–2015), analysis of sixteenth- to eighteenth-century Jesuit inventories, zooarchaeological and ceramic analysis, and recovery of oral traditions.
  • Guayaquil research used archival analysis of sixteenth- to nineteenth-century documents, historical maps, secondary literature, oral traditions, and geospatial mapping; the broader approach is described as multiscalar, interdisciplinary, and asynchronous, combining historical archaeology, political geography, and oral-history revitalization.

Limitations

  • The paper states that the documentary record on Maroon communities in Ecuador is incomplete, that earlier research on African Diaspora archaeology in Ecuador is lacking, and that Esmeraldas still awaits archaeological research.
  • It also states that locating escape routes and palenques associated with Guayaquil remains challenging and that broader, deeper research is needed on slavery and marronage there.
  • Evident from the text: the Guayaquil findings rely on archival and secondary sources rather than excavation, and the Esmeraldas discussion is largely synthetic and calls for future archaeological investigation.

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Crossref · 10.1017/aaq.2024.50

Cites

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  • It may state two separate claims as one. 42
  • Probably not a substantial claim. 36
68 of 68

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Slavery was officially abolished in Ecuador in 1852, but forced work, particularly in rural areas, continued until 1965, when it was ended by the Agrarian Reform.

    “Slavery was officially abolished in 1852, but forced work, particularly in rural areas, continued until 1965, when it was ended by enactment of the Agrarian Reform.”

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The 1998 Ecuadorian Constitution recognized the Afro-Ecuadorian population as part of the Ecuadorian nation but did not concretely recognize their territorial and other collective rights.

    “Thirty years later, the 1998 Ecuadorian Constitution recognized the Afro-Ecuadorian population as part of the Ecuadorian nation, but there was no concrete recognition of their territorial and other collective rights.”

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    In 1767, the Jesuits were expelled from the Americas, and their properties were passed to the colonial state through Temporalidades, which sold the haciendas to private owners.

    “In 1767, the religious order was expelled from the Americas, and their properties were passed to the colonial state through the transitional institution Temporalidades, which sold the haciendas to private owners.”

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The Agrarian Reform in 1965 gave most of the peasant population the right to land ownership.

    “Nonetheless, it was only through enactment of the Agrarian Reform in 1965 that most of the peasant population gained the right to land ownership.”

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Esmeraldas is one of Ecuador's largest Maroon settlements.

    “Lastly, we discuss the connections generated with Esmeraldas, one of Ecuador's largest Maroon settlements.”

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The archival documents used accurately record the events they describe.

    “These legal cases record tensions in the post-Jesuit context regarding the Maroon experiences of Martina Carrillo, Juana Maria La Concepción, and Cipriana Cribán.”

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The oral traditions used accurately transmit historical knowledge about Maroon routes and settlements.

    “These places of resistance and oppression were located based on spatial references within the documents that were then corroborated with existing oral tradition.”

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Understanding historical marronage can help address modern racial violence in Ecuador.

    “This section considers the connections discussed earlier and expands on the transformation of the Maroon landscape into the borderland of survival and modern violence.”

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Despite 500 years of African inhabitation, the ancestral territories have not been officially recognized.

    “despite 500 years of African inhabitation, the ancestral territories have not been officially recognized”

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The provinces of Esmeraldas, Guayas, and the Chota Valley are places where marginalized communities of diverse ethnicities are still subject to historical silencing, isolation, and lack of land-ownership recognition.

    “the provinces of Esmeraldas, Guayas, and the Chota Valley are places where marginalized communities of diverse ethnicities are still subject to historical silencing, isolation, and a lack of land-ownership recognition.”

  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The institution of enslavement and its legacy still affect the lives of Black people in the Americas, Africa, and Europe.

    “the institution of enslavement and its legacy still affect the lives of Black people in the Americas, Africa, and Europe.”
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    The text cites page 34, but the reference lists the chapter on pages 37-55.

  • Picozza citation points outside the listed article

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    The note cites page 11, but the reference lists the article on pages 101-124.

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Metadata

Authors
Balanzátegui Moreno, D. C., & Delgado Vernaza, G. I.
ORCID
Venue
American Antiquity
Publisher
Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Published
2024-10
Volume
89
Issue
4
Pages
664-682
ISSN
  • 0002-7316 (ISSN-L)
  • 2325-5064
DOI
10.1017/aaq.2024.50
OpenAlex
W4408121031
Semantic Scholar
6abdf126c0812cb94f377418030f0de2c028241a
Cited by
5
References
6
Citations by year
2026: 2 · 2025: 2 · 2024: 1
FWCI
4.43
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
American Antiquity (publishedVersion, cc-by)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Anthropology › Historical and Cultural Archaeology Studies
  • Social Sciences › Cultural Studies › Afro-Latin American Studies
  • Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › History › Colonialism, slavery, and trade
Keywords
marronage, Afro-Ecuadorian communities, racial violence, slavery, colonialism, resistance, fugitivity, Palenque, haciendas, household archaeology, historical memory, Chota Valley, Esmeraldas, Guayaquil, Latin American history

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