Pottery, Livelihoods, and Landscapes

This chapter presents the concepts, background information, and methods used to study the livelihoods and exchange practices of the potters of San Bartolomé de los Olleros. It draws on theory, concepts, and advances from the two broad fields of Andean Studies and Development Studies. In Andean Studies, it particularly considers the themes of ecological complementarity and exchange. From Development Studies, it engages with concepts of diversification of livelihoods and nonagricultural or off-farm rural livelihood activities. This study is also placed in the context of studies of pottery production in the Andes more generally. Specifically, it stems from a larger survey of pottery production in the Northern Peruvian Andes (see especially Ramón 2008; Ramón and Bell 2013), which provides important background information about regional practices. This chapter also includes a basic introduction to pottery production in Olleros, and explains the relationship between pottery and other livelihood activities. Finally, the chapter concludes with a presentation of the research and analytic methods used in this study.

This chapter describes the pottery distribution methods used in San Bartolomé de los Olleros. The most important ways that pots are distributed are: (1) trading tripsto other communities to barter pots for the products of those communities; (2) sale/barter of pots to customers who visit potters’ homes, including: customers within the community (community-based exchange), customers purchasing for their own use (ad hoc trade) and bulk purchases by middlemen and women who take the pots to other communities to redistribute. The methods employed less frequently are annual fairs, itinerant production, and markets (weekly and daily). Maps of each trade method are presented and specific trade routes are explained.

This chapter interprets the pottery distribution methods and trade destinations presented in Chap. 2. It explains the decisions Olleros potters and pottery traders make regarding the marketing of their product in terms of goods sought in exchange, ecological and agricultural patterns, regional cuisine preferences, exchange rates, measurement systems, life cycles, household capabilities, and individual and community social relations. It concludes with observations of the unique spatiality of pottery exchange as a livelihood activity.

This concluding chapter assesses pottery production and exchange as a livelihood strategy. It looks at the ecological, social, and economic motivations for the continued practice of pottery exchange. It offers an interpretation on how pottery practices have changed over time, as well as potential trajectories for the future of this craft. Finally, it indicates the broader significance of this study in terms of understanding livelihood diversification and the spatiality of livelihoods.