CONICET | Buscador de Institutos y Recursos Humanos

Ceramic remains of archaeological origin contain multiple types of paleoethnobotanical information, primarily as a result of two processes: manufacture and use. In order to ascertain the potential of recovering different types of information from ceramic material, a comparative study was made of two groups of samples. The first group comes from hunter and collector occupation sites (Cueva Tixi, Cueva El Abra, Amalia Sitio 3 and La Cautiva Sitio 2), and dates to approximately 1,000 years B.P., while the second group dates to the second half of the 18th Century (Localidad Amalia Sitio 2). Samples of material were taken from the surface of the ceramic shreds, and compared to material contained within the ceramic matrix, in order to develop a methodology to differentiate microremains of different origins. One portion of the samples was disintegrated and the material was observed “raw” without any further processing. In the other portion of the samples, surrounding sedimentary matrix was ground and processed following standard procedures for obtaining silicophytoliths from sedimentary material. The results were heterogenous, with the exception of fragments from similar manufacturing activities. The results established guidelines for three general methodological procedures: processing surrounding sedimentary matrix, processing ceramic matrix, and processing ceramic surface. These were processed following standard procedures for obtaining silicophytoliths in sedimentary material. Material obtained from flotation of the initial wash was set aside and analyzed to verify the presence of organic remains. Material that did not undergo processing was observed, to check the easy elimination of components such as sodium chloride.