Rare 6 Type distribution

In her dissertation, Brooks (1998: 443) notes that Glascock identified the Uyo Uyo samples as matching the "Rare 6 Type" obsidian that had been previously encountered in Burger's earlier work with Lawrence Berkeley Lab (Burger and Asaro 1977: 56). However, Glascock cautions that the calibrations are not perfect between the LBL and the MURR results, particularly with small sample sizes. In recent communications Glascock (2006, pers. comm.) is not confident that the Uyo Uyo and Rare 6 Type are the same type and he believes a re-analysis would be required to confirm it.

In Burger's earlier study he identified Rare 6 type from two projectile points in Cuzco and Puno (Burger, et al. 2000: 312-313). One sample was from the surface of the site of Chinchirmoqo that lies 2 km from Pomacanchi in the department of Cuzco. The other Rare 6 Type sample was a projectile point found on the surface of the site of Taraco on the north side of Lake Titicaca. These surface samples are difficult to assign to a specific time, though Burger et al. placed both samples in the "latter part of the Early Horizon and Early Intermediate Period", a period that roughly corresponds to the Middle to Late Formative using the chronology of the present project. Excavation work currently underway by Charles Stanish and colleagues at the site of Taraco may reveal additional Rare 6 Type obsidian artifacts.