Procurement and transport of lithic resources during the late Holocene in the south-central sector of the Interserrana plains (Pampas region, Argentina)

BARROS, M. P.; TORINO, R. F.; MASSIGOGE, A.

Buenos Aires

Simposio; 11th Symposium on knappable materials. From toolstone to stone tools; 2017

IMHICIHU-CONICET e INAPL

Procurement and transport of lithic resources during the Late Holocene in the south-central sector of the Interserrana plain (Pampas region, Argentina)Agustina Massigoge, Rocío Torino, María Paula BarrosIn the Interserrana plain (Pampas region, Argentina), sources of stone with good flaking qualities are extremely scarce and of restricted distribution. Consequently, hunter-gatherer populations obtained most lithic raw materials in the mountain ranges that surround the plain (Tandilia and Ventania), where these resources are abundant and of high quality. The aim of our study was to evaluate the strategies for procurement and transport of lithic resources employed by hunter-gatherers in the sector of the Interserrana plain located between the Claromecó stream and the Quequén Grande River during the Late Holocene (3500-1000 C14 years BP). A comparative analysis of the lithic assemblages from three stratigraphic sites (i.e., Cortaderas, Las Brusquillas 1, and Las Brusquillas 3) and two surface sites (i.e, Laguna La Vizcacha, and Las Toscas 3) was carried out. These assemblages are composed by cores, flakes, and retouched flakes manufactured mainly in quartzite from the Tandilia mountain range. Diverse raw materials from the Ventania mountain range and the Atlantic coast were also utilized, but in a lower proportion. Lithic resources were transported to these sites most often in the form of extensively reduced cores, blanks and finished tools, probably as part of a transported toolkit used to provision individuals.