Logistic mobility on plateaus in center-west Santa Cruz, Argentina. An anthracological, technology and archaeofaunal approach

PASQUALINI, S; CASSIODORO G.; DELLEPIANE J.

Conferencia; 4th Southen Deserts Conference; 2014

In Patagonia as a critical resource, the water is distributed heterogeneously in the landscape. In this sense, become important not only lake basins but also those spaces that have groundwater outcrops, such as basaltic plateaus. This ecological peculiarity would have implications for mobility strategies developed by hunter-gatherer groups. Earlier work has suggested that during late Holocene occurred in the center-west of Santa Cruz province (Argentina) a decrease in regional moisture which resulted in a concentration of populations in areas of permanent water located at altitudes below 300 masl. This reduction in residential mobility was accompanied by a process of extensification. It involves the acquisition of resources in other areas, such as those above 900 masl, extending the range of action in terms of logistics and / or seasonal movements. Thus, environmental conditions have affected mobility and settlement pattern and subsistence of human groups. So, areas at higher altitudes have been used in a logistic way and areas at lower altitudes have been used residentially. This paper presents the results obtained in different archaeological sites located on the plateau of Pampa del Asador- Guitarra Lake. The aim is to characterize land use during the past 2500 years, by specifying the supply of biotic and abiotic resources that have taken place in this plateau. For this, emphasis will be on linking anthracological, technological and archaeofaunal evidence. The discussion will focus on the scheduled use of the plateaus from the low basins, such as Lake Cardiel and Salitroso. Thus, it seeks to focus on mobility strategies implemented by hunter-gatherer groups, with particular emphasis on the logistics component.