Human Occupation of the Central Mountains of Argentina during the Pleistocene-Holocene Transition (11.000-9000 RCYBP)

RIVERO, DIEGO EDUARDO

Southbound. Late Pleistocene Peopling of Latin America. Special Edition of Current Research in the Pleistocene

Center for the Study of the First Americans

Lugar: Bryan, Texas; Año: 2012 p. 87 - 91

8755-898X

The aim of this paper consists in the analysis of the archaeological evidence of the Central Ranges of Argentina corresponding to the Pleistocene-Holocene Transition (11,000 - 9,000 BP) and Early Holocene (9,000 - 6,000 AP) and its implications for the knowledge of the initial peopling process of this area of Argentina.  In this sense, we propose that the human presence during the Pleistocene-Holocene Transition is scarce and that the intensity of this occupation increases remarkably after ca. 8,000 BP. The evidences suggest that from the arrival of the first groups to the Central Ranges ca. 11,000 BP until the effective colonization of the area (sensu Borrero 1989-1990), after ca. 8,000 BP, a process of exploration, characterized by very low densities of population that could well include failed colonizations, took place. These conclusions alert on the use of peopling models that assume biological-cultural continuity throughout the entire Holocene.