Abstract

LLANO, Carina; SOSA, Paula; SANCHEZ, Clara  and  BARBERENA, Ramiro. Arqueobotánica de Cueva Huenul 1 (Neuquén, Argentina): selección y procesamiento de especies vegetales. Intersecciones antropol. [online]. 2019, vol.20, n.2, pp.211-223. ISSN 1850-373X.

THE ARCHAEOBOTANY OF HUENUL CAVE 1 (NEUQUÉN, ARGENTINA): SELECTION AND PROCESSING OF VEGETABLE SPECIES. In this paper the most recent archaeobotanical results from the archaeological site Huenul Cave 1, located in northern Neuquén Province (northwestern Patagonia, Argentina), are presented. The site has a discontinuous temporal sequence extending from the Pleistocene-Holocene transition to recent times. The aim of the study is to develop a diachronic analysis of the human selection of taxa and processing patterns. The results indicate that hunter-gatherer societies systematically utilized locally available wild plants throughout the occupational sequence. Changes were recorded in the diversity of taxa consumed through time and, in the case of the taxon Prosopis, in the patterns of processing and use. Some of the taxa recovered for late Holocene layers constitute proxies of seasonality that suggest summer occupations at the site. Additionally, the presence of domesticated species such as Lagenaria sp. and Zea mays was assessed. This study contributes to the broader analysis of the economy and spatial organization of the human societies that have inhabited northwestern Patagonia since its initial peopling.

Keywords : Archaeobotany; Temporal trends; Plant processing; Seasonality; Exchange of domesticated taxa.

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