Abstract

DURAN, Víctor et al. Impacto del volcanismo y glaciarismo holocénicos en el poblamiento humano de la cordillera sur de Mendoza (Argentina): una perspectiva geoarqueológica. Intersecciones antropol. [online]. 2016, vol.17, suppl.2, pp.33-46. ISSN 1850-373X.

A prolonged period of decreased human occupation has been proposed for Mendoza Province, provoked by conditions of increasing aridity during the mid-Holocene. It has also been suggested that the systematic human peopling of the high-altitude Andean environments started ca. 2000-1500 years BP, because of a process of economic intensification in lowland areas with higher availability of resources. In this paper, we present the results of a project designed to assess the role of volcanic activity and glacial advances as the main cause for archaeological discontinuities recorded in the archaeological record of the high Andes. This study covers a latitudinal range between 35º-37ºS. We present geochemical and chronological results for tephras recorded in archaeological and geological sites, attempting to define the volcanic sources and their impact on the landscape. The analysis includes a geoarchaeological study of the Valenzuela River, which shows the magnitude of the volcanic activity in the Planchón-Peteroa complex, as well as the extent of Holocene glacial processes. The results presented allow suggesting alternative explanation for the temporal sequences of the archaeological record, inasmuch as highlighting the contribution of geoarchaeology.

Keywords : Geoarchaeology; Volcanism; Human Colonization; Andes Mountain Range; Mendoza Province.

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