Climate and settlement in southern Peru

Based on data gathered by an archaeological long-term project of the German Archaeological Institute, 3,000 years of settlement history of the Palpa Region at the Andean west flank in South Peru (14.5° S) are being reconstructed. The question is pursued whether past climate changes in this arid region may have triggered the observed substantial changes in settlement behavior. The general trend suggests that a causal relation can be stated only for a few periods.