Abstract

The communities of Toconce, Caspana, and Ayquina in the Salado River Valley (II región, Chile) share the same area, a similar set of production practices and sociopolitical structures. However, differ in the stories about their origins and their position between being “restos de gentiles"—that is, prehispanic—or more recent “modernities". Here, I propose that these narratives, which do not correspond to archaeological evidence, are the result of a symbolic use of time, as a signifier of different local identities