Note: Site that gives its name to the Valdivia culture of prehistoric Ecuador. It is believed that ancient humans may have established their first South American foothold in Ecuador and that the Valdivia region is the site of the earliest datable pottery. From perhaps as early as 15,000 BCE until about 3200 BCE, pottery was known to exist at Valdivia and there was a long, steady period of development in the region. The Valdivia community arranged houses in a circle around a central plaza; they were sedentary, agricultural people.
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