Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
An indigenous
toldería,
or encampment. The prominence of horses and the adoption of cattle
hides to make their
toldos
show the impact on these indigenous people of contact with the
Spanish.
(Carlos Enrique Pellegrini, 1830, courtesy of Emece Editores)
status of the warriors, and the families of the best war leaders evolved
into a line of tribal leaders. Group and tribal councils did not give way
to authoritarian kings, but great battle leaders and those with oratorical
skills consolidated rule over larger and larger conglomerations of indig-
enous peoples. Successful warriors and families also began to amass
wealth in the form of horses, herds of cattle, and numerous personal
followers and captives. Among the southern hunters of the Pampas
and Patagonia, an important leader could acquire up to seven wives,
each of whom linked him in political alliance to other warrior families.
Hunting bands stressed capturing women and children, especially from
settler communities, who could be used as slave laborers and concu-
bines and for trade.
Likewise, the indigenous groups of the Gran Chaco soon were
influenced by the European presence at Asunción. Through trade, they
obtained desirable new commodities such as textiles, iron weapons and
kitchenware, and alcoholic beverages. They adopted pork and beef into
their diets and learned to weave cloth from wool, giving up their skin
garments. These important changes in their material culture included
the increased use of
yerbamate
and the horse. The arrival of the Jesuit
