'Terra Preta' (Black Soil) sites, so called from massive midden deposits, mark the location of later prehistoric settlements in the Amazon basin.
In these the houses themselves were built of perishable wood, frequently taking the form of large communal structures raised on piles above the annual flood waters.
One such site was Manacupuru in the middle Amazon, occupied from around AD 425. Like most major settlements this was strung out along the banks of the river, the midden stretching 1.25 mls (2 km) along the river but only extending quarter of a mile (400 m) inland.
The settlement probably housed several hundred people. Griddles for making bread show that manioc was still the main staple, along with fish and meat.
Among the finds from the site were many spindle whorls for spinning cotton to make cloth. Fragments of vessels decorated with adornos - small modelled decorative clay additions depicting people or animals - were probably burial urns, showing that there was a cemetery connected to the village.
