Abstract

CRUZ, Pablo. Monte Adentro: Approaches To The Pre-Hispanic Occupation Of The Calilegua Mountains. Intersecciones antropol. [online]. 2010, vol.11, n.1, pp.129-144. ISSN 1850-373X.

Early Colonial sources indicate the multi-ethnic nature of the eastern Andean piedmont of Jujuy Province before, during and after the Spaniards' arrival. However, the historiography shows us that the region was considered as marginal in respect to the great "core areas" of the Argentine northwest; a meeting place, a point of articulation, or a boundary between the Andes and the Chaco. This article presents results obtained from archaeological investigations of the region. The new data confirm much of the historical information that attests to the intense occupation of the region in pre-Hispanic times, which resists the classical image of a border zone. The intense and prolonged occupation is explained by the agricultural potential of the area, as well as the operation of numerous mines and the exploitation of wildlife, which had a high economic and symbolic value among pre-Hispanic Andean peoples.

Keywords : Sub-Andean Eastern mountainous region; Pre-Hispanic mining; Wild resources.

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