Cueva Abra del Toro, Record of the Oldest Occupation of the Yocavil Valley, Catamarca, and its Relationship with the Largest Known Holocene Eruption

DE MEDINA, CARLOS BELOTTI LÓPEZ; WINOCUR, DIEGO; PEISKER, VERÓNICA; CARBONELLI, JUAN PABLO; CARMINATTI, NICOLÁS

Revista del Museo de Antropologia

Universidad Nacional de Cordoba, Facultad de Filosofia y Humanidades

Año: 2021 vol. 14 p. 123 - 138

1852-060X

This article presents the findings of the Cueva Abra del Toro site, a rocky shelter located south of the Yocavil Valley. The information that comes from the site is important to gainexpand knowledge ofabout the prehistoric Holocene occupation outside the Puna region. There are two pieces of evidence that support this statement. First, the Cueva Abra del Toro presents/shows the oldest occupation, in stratigraphy for this valley, and second, in the stratigraphy of the site there is evidenceare deposits of volcanic ash that comes from the most intense eruption known duringto the Holocene in the Andes. This ash deposit dividesseparates the occupations of the cave into three: distinct the occupations of the cave, a pre-ceramic one (before/prior the eruption) and a pre-ceramic and aanother ceramic one (after/post- the eruption). The information included in this new site contributes to complementing and gaining furthermaking complex the construction of scientific knowledge ofabout prehistoric occupations in the mesothermal valleys of the northwestern Argentinae Northwest.