Abstract

FERNANDEZ, Pablo Marcelo et al. The peopling of North-Central Patagonia forest: new data from Lago Puelo National Park (Chubut province, Argentina). Rev. Mus. Antropol. [online]. 2020, vol.13, n.3, pp.07-22. ISSN 1852-060X.  http://dx.doi.org/10.31048/1852.4826.v13.n3.29348.

Abstract The occupational history of the Andean Forest from North-Central Patagonia, Argentina, reveals temporal and spatial variations in the human responses to the peopling of this environment. To deepen the knowledge about this variability, we evaluate the population model we proposed for SW Río Negro - NW Chubut forest, at Lago Puelo National Park-Río Turbio Provincial Park. The area is characterized by an extensive fluvial-lacustrine network, low mountain passes that connect to the Pacific coast, and different forest types that are a result of the sharp precipitation gradient. We dated the archaeological sites at the end of the late Holocene, and the rock art style is congruent with this time. It is similar to the paintings recorded in neighbors’ areas, but some local variations were identified. Evidence of terrestrial circulation predominates, and no evidence of navigation was collected. The sites are spatially concentrated, and the excavation of two of them provided scant archaeological evidence. However, they indicate the use of local (Hippocamelus bisulcus) and non-local (obsidian, marine shell) resources. These results indicate coincidences with other areas of the forest and some particularities. The research’s next steps will aid clarified the meaning of the differences.

Keywords : Late Holocene; Hunter-gatherers; European-native interactions; Rock art; Navigation and pedestrian transit.

        · abstract in Spanish     · text in Spanish     · Spanish ( pdf )