Zooarchaeology in Central Western Argentina. A taphonomic Perspective

CLARA OTAOLA

Denton, Texas

Conferencia; UNT Spring Seminar: The Latin American Countryside Past and Present; 2014

Universidad de North Texas, Departamento de Geografía

Zooarchaeology in Central Western Argentina: A Taphonomic Perspective Archaeologists have concluded in previous studies that prehistoric human hunter-gathers in southern Mendoza, Argentina intensified use of animal resources from the middle to late Holocene.  This interpretation has become paradigmatic; however, it has important limitations.  Taphonomy is the study of processes that influence preservation of organic matter in archaeological deposits.  Weathering, carnivore damage, and other processes that fragment bone influence the ability of zooarchaeologists to identify animal remains to species, genus, and at times family.  Importantly, a taphonomic perspective was not adopted in previous studies of resource intensification in southern Mendoza.  Results of the analyses presented here indicate that adopting a taphonomic perspective clarifies limitations of previous studies.  Conclusions from those previous studies are reformulated based on the results of this new taphonomic research.