Heidi Hammond

A Persistent Place for Hunter-Gatherers During the Late Holocene: The Case of Burials in Pit on the Coast of Lángara Bay, Argentine Patagonia

ABSTRACT In Argentine Patagonia, the type of archaeological burial “in pit” has been only identified on the coast of Lángara Bay. This modality is characterized by the presence of single and multiple primary burials. Studies on five human burials in pits are presented in this article. The aim is to compare the contexts of burials in pit at the site level and the spatial characteristics of their distribution in the Lángara Bay locality from a diachronic perspective. The approach focuses on mortuary practices and social relations of hunter-gatherer groups during the Late Holocene. A characterization of the burials, their chronologies, bioarchaeological determinations, stable isotope studies, and their spatial distribution are included. The results allow us to chronologically place the contexts between ca. 3000 and 2000 cal BP. A spatial pattern in the distribution of burials in the coastal landscape was identified. Finally, it is proposed that this part of the Patagonian coast was a persistent place of burials in pit.

LEVANTAMIENTO PLANIMÉTRICO Y ANÁLISIS LIQUENOMÉTRICO EN EL SITIO CAMPO DE CHENQUES, COSTA NORTE DE SANTA CRUZ (PATAGONIA ARGENTINA)

espanolSe presentan los resultados de dos vias metodologicas desarrolladas en el sitio Campo de Chenques, las que resultan novedosas para la arqueologia de cazadores recolectores que habitaron la Patagonia. El sitio se ubica en la costa atlantica de la provincia de Santa Cruz, Argentina, y presenta una concentracion de estructuras de entierro humanas de tipo chenque. Se realizo el levantamiento planimetrico de las estructuras de rocas que conforman el sitio a partir del uso de un GPS diferencial. Ademas, se desarrollaron estudios liquenometricos con el fin de obtener cronologias de las estructuras. Para ello se midieron liquenes del genero Rhizocarpon subgenero Rhizocarpon que crecen sobre las rocas. A partir de estos estudios se realizo un plano georreferenciado del sitio, se determino el numero y morfologia de las estructuras y se obtuvo por liquenometria una edad minima para la construccion de las mismas de 770 anos, aproximadamente, la que es concordante con las edades radiocarbonicas obtenidas para el sitio. De este modo, Campo de Chenques es el contexto arqueologico mas antiguo de Patagonia en el que se han aplicado analisis liquenometricos hasta el momento. Los resultados se discuten en relacion con la dinamica de ocupacion del area por las poblaciones cazadoras recolectoras durante el Holoceno tardio. EnglishThis paper presents the results obtained from theplanimetric survey and lichenometric analyses conducted for the first time in the hunter-gatherer archaeology of Patagonia. Campo de Chenques site is a concentration of chenque-type human burial structures located on the Atlantic coast of the province of Santa Cruz, Argentina. A planimetric survey of the structures that make up the site was performed using a differential GPS. In addition, lichenometric studies were undertaken in order to obtain minimum estimated ages for the structures. To this end, lichen genus Rhizocarpon (subgenus Rhizocarpon) that grow on the rocks were measured. Based on these studies, a georeferenced map of the site was made, the number and morphology of the structures were determined, and a minimum age of approximately 770 years for the chenque construction was obtained by lichenometry, which is consistent with radiocarbon ages obtained for the site. Thus, Campo de Chenques becomes the oldest archaeological context of Patagonia in which a lichenometric technique was applied for the first time. The results are discussed in relation to the dynamics of occupation of the area by hunter-gatherer populations during the late Holocene.