Recycled Fishtail points in the Argentinian Pampa. Everyday tools on distinctive Paleoamerican objects?

CELESTE WEITZEL; NATALIA MAZZIA; SALOMÓN HOCSMAN; FRANCO PAZZI; NORA FLEGENHEIMER

PaleoAmerica

Taylor & Francis

Año: 2022

2055-5563

In this paper, we present the caseof recycled Fishtail points from a Late Pleistocene site in the PampeanTandiliaranges, Argentina. Detailed descriptions of the recycled tools are integratedwith previous breakage and fatty acids analysis. We assess if the practice ofrecycling was related to a specific task, a conservative strategy, functionalreasons, and if other non-economic reasons may have played a significant role.Results show a marked selection of certain fragments to manufacture burin-liketools and few other tool types. We propose that Fishtail points recyclingplayed a role in making and repairing weapons, and that different factors mustbe considered to explain the reasons behind this practice.