| Zusammenfassung: | This article takes the localized theory of exchange across cultural boundaries in Melanesia as the point of departure in considering a specific Andean analysis of exchange. Recent developments in Melanesian ethnography are seen as having implications for exchange theory in general and thereby as stimulating new perspectives on Andean exchange in particular. Insights into the relational aspects of value in the Melanesian context generate a critical view of Andean reciprocity. Within the context of the Andean institutional exchange called prenda, relations of dominance and submission are articulated through the manipulation of objects. This instance raises the question as to whether the egalitarian emphasis in theories of reciprocity in the Andean paradigm needs to be re-examined. Further, it is suggested that the present discussion of gift and value in Melanesia, with its emphasis on physical objects, might be enhanced by incorporating productive values.
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