Obsidian sources explotation in the La Payunia Volcanic Field (Mendoza Province, Argentina)

ADOLFO F. GIL, MARÍA LAURA SALGÁN Y GUSTAVO NEME

Sacramento

Congreso; Society for American Archaeology, 76 Annual meeting; 2011

Society for American Archaeology

Geochemical studies of obsidian south central Andes of Argentina and Chile was able to detect and analyze the role of obsidian sources in the circuits of production and circulation in large spatial and temporal scales. This paper explores in a bounded spatial and temporal scale, the ranges of action and ways of this raw material supplies in the Payunia, emphasizing technological aspects. The extra Andean volcanic field of Payunia, would have been effectively occupied by the second half of the Late Holocene (ca. 2000-1200 years BP). Based on environmental characteristics and the archaeological record proposed a model of differential use and occupancy of the areas north (Área El Nevado-AEN) and south (Área El Payén-AEP). Differences in the availability of water resources between the two areas have favored in AEN to more stability occupational and intensive use and stable sites, in relation to AEP. Based on a simple model of lithic procurement, reduction, and use, we generate expectations about the characteristics of lithic artifacts in case of acquiring raw material in different ways. Here, we explore the directionality of the trends, the range of action and strategies of this raw material procurement from different environments.