ABSTRACT
The Orinoco River system is subdivided into two sections, with detailed descriptions of Anadenanthera use provided for representative native groups selected from each area. The Tunebo, Chibcha speakers, inhabited a territory that extended from the northern borders of Muisca territory on the eastern slopes of the Cordillera Oriental, along the Arauca River in the present-day Departments de Boyaca and Norte de Santander in Colombia. The first notice of psychoactive inhalants by the Otomacs, nomadic hunter-gatherers of the Meta, Apure, and Orinoco rivers, was made by Joseph Gumilla. Analysis of Gumilla's statement reveals aspects of the snuffing complex relevant to this study. The Guahibo occupy the territory south of the Otomac, between the Meta and Vichada rivers. The territory encompassed by the right-bank tributaries of the Orinoco River in its middle and upper course is inhabited by several groups reported to utilize Anadenanthera preparations. Wichi communities are relatively isolated from one another and each accordingly has developed specific characteristics.
