Pre-Hispanic use of edible Geoffroea decorticans fruits in central Argentina - first approximations based on an integrated morphoanatomical and archaeobotanical approach

SAUR PALMIERI, VALENTINA; DELBON, NATALIA; TRILLO CECILIA; LÓPEZ MARÍA LAURA

16176278

Springer

Año: 2023

The edible drupe of Geoffroea decorticans (Fabaceae) has been used in South America since ancient times. However, anddespite its great current cultural importance, there are no details about the past modes of use. In the central mountains ofArgentina, micro- and macrobotanical remains of this wild species were recovered from archaeological sites within threesubregions. This evidence indicates that the taxon was part of the plants used as food by the communities who inhabitedthe area in the Late Pre-Hispanic period (LPP, 1,500 − 350 bp). Identifying the culinary practices involving these remainsin the past requires an interpretive model built from processing activities currently performed with these fruits, as well asdetailed knowledge of the anatomy of these fruits. As part of a major archaeological-ethnobotanical research project, inthis work we present a micro-morphological and histological characterization of G. decorticans drupes and describe thecharred carpological remains recovered from the study area to date. We use these anatomical data, as well as ethnographicinformation from previous studies, to infer the possible activities and processes that formed the archaeological specimens.The results indicate differences in the processing of G. decorticans during LPP at both local and subregional scales andenhance our knowledge about the interrelation between the LPP societies and wild edible plants.