Raven Garvey

Use of Patagonia's forests by hunter-gatherers remains relatively poorly understood. Regional archaeological records indicate initial forest colonization during the middle Holocene, infrequent use until late prehistory, and, even then, fairly sparse occupation, likely in conjunction with use of the adjacent steppe. Recent excavations at Río Ibáñez-6 West in Aysén, Chile, provide a new perspective for understanding the prehistoric use of Patagonian forests, particularly regarding timing of the initial occupation and the potential for development of a forest-specific adaptation. We provide chronological, lithic, archaeofaunal, and macrobotanical data that show use of the Ibáñez River valley at least a millennium earlier than previously documented. These data indicate increased dietary breadth in late prehistory, supporting the established hypothesis that the valley became a closed system at that time. From our data we develop hypotheses regarding prehistoric forest use in Aysén that have implications for the broader understanding of the suitability of the forest for prehistoric human foragers.

At the global scale, conceptions of hunter-gatherer economies have changed considerably over time and these changes were strongly affected by larger trends in Western history, philosophy, science, and culture. Seen as either “savage” or “noble” at the dawn of the Enlightenment, hunter-gatherers have been regarded as everything from holdovers from a basal level of human development, to affluent, ecologically-informed foragers, and ultimately to this: an extremely diverse economic orientation entailing the fullest scope of human behavioral diversity. The only thing linking studies of hunter-gatherers over time is consequently simply the definition of the term: people whose economic mode of production centers on wild resources. When hunter-gatherers are considered outside the general realm of their shared subsistence economies, it is clear that their behavioral diversity rivals or exceeds that of other economic orientations. Hunter-gatherer behaviors range in a multivariate continuum from: a focus on mainly large fauna to broad, wild plant-based diets similar to those of agriculturalists; from extremely mobile to sedentary; from relying on simple, generalized technologies to very specialized ones; from egalitarian sharing economies to privatized competitive ones; and from nuclear family or band-level to centralized and hierarchical decision-making. It is clear, however, that hunting and gathering modes of production had to have preceded and thus given rise to agricultural ones. What research into the development of human economies shows is that transitions from one type of hunting and gathering to another, or alternatively to agricultural modes of production, can take many different evolutionary pathways. The important thing to recognize is that behaviors which were essential to the development of agriculture—landscape modification, intensive labor practices, the division of labor and the production, storage, and redistribution of surplus—were present in a range of hunter-gatherer societies beginning at least as early as the Late Pleistocene in Africa, Europe, Asia, and the Americas. Whether these behaviors eventually led to the development of agriculture depended in part on the development of a less variable and CO2-rich climatic regime and atmosphere during the Holocene, but also a change in the social relations of production to allow for hoarding privatized resources. In the 20th and 21st centuries, ethnographic and archaeological research shows that modern and ancient peoples adopt or even revert to hunting and gathering after having engaged in agricultural or industrial pursuits when conditions allow and that macroeconomic perspectives often mask considerable intragroup diversity in economic decision making: the pursuits and goals of women versus men and young versus old within groups are often quite different or even at odds with one another, but often articulate to form cohesive and adaptive economic wholes. The future of hunter-gatherer research will be tested by the continued decline in traditional hunting and gathering but will also benefit from observation of people who revert to or supplement their income with wild resources. It will also draw heavily from archaeology, which holds considerable potential to document and explain the full range of human behavioral diversity, hunter-gatherer or otherwise, over the longest of timeframes and the broadest geographic scope.

This study presents a discriminant analysis of projectile points (n=44) from late Holocene contexts (~3100–400 cal BP) in the Argentine Andes (29–37°S). About two thousand years ago, the groups that inhabited the regions north and south of 34°S began divergent cultural histories. To the north, groups developed mixed economies that included domestic plants and animals. To the south, Patagonian hunters maintained their nomadic lifestyle until European contact. This study explores the geographic vectors and pace of the initial spread of the bow and arrow, if the bow replaced or coexisted other weapon systems, and how these trends dif-fered north and south of 34°S. We use Shott’s formula to metrically distinguish darts and ar-rows. Current data suggest that the bow was an innovation in the central Andes that rapidly spread south along the Andes to around 29°S at 3500–3000 cal BP. At this point, the tempo slowed dramatically. It was adopted by groups at 32°S around 1300 cal BP. At 37°S it arrived shortly after 1000 cal BP. Over the next two to three centuries, it was rapidly adopted by more sedentary food-producing groups north of 34°S as well as more mobile hunter-gatherers to the south. There is no evidence the bow was ever abandoned once adopted, and except in the case of Patagonia, it seems to have replaced previous weapon systems. This speaks to its versatility regardless of ecology, economic system, or cultural preferences.

Nuestro objetivo es estudiar las estrategias de uso del espacio por parte de sociedades humanas móviles en un paisaje andino de Patagonia caracterizado por una marcada heterogeneidad topográfica, climática y ecológica (localidad de Barrancas-Buta Ranquil, provincia del Neuquén, Argentina). Inicialmente, se analiza la estructura del paisaje desde una perspectiva biogeográfica, desarrollando un modelo de estacionalidad mediante sistemas de información geográfica. Nuestro enfoque dis-tribucional combina una prospección sistemática para caracterizar la estructura espacial del registro en superficie y eviden-cias que han sido obtenidas bajo otras estrategias de muestreo. Sobre la base de la distribución de artefactos líticos y cerámicos y de motivos rupestres, se evalúan patrones de intensidad ocupacional, diversidad funcional y circulación de infor-mación en sectores del espacio con propiedades biogeográficas diferentes. Los resultados sugieren una delimitación funcional del espacio en escala temporal promediada, en la cual los espacios intermedios habrían funcionado como lugares centrales desde donde se articulan movimientos logísticos hacia otros sectores del paisaje. Dado que la unidad de muestreo captura variación biogeográfica que se expresa en forma regional más amplia, el modelo de uso del espacio propuesto es relevante para la comprensión de la arqueología del noroeste de Patagonia en general. Palabras clave: arqueología distribucional, Andes del sur, estacionalidad, ecotonos topográficos, demarcación del paisaje The objective of our research presented here is to study the spatial organization of mobile societies from Patagonia. In particular , we focus on a region characterized by sharp contrasts in topography, climate, and ecology (Barrancas-Buta Ranquil Locality, Neuquén Province, Argentina). We begin by analyzing the biogeographic structure of the landscape, presenting a GIS-based model of seasonally available resources. Our approach combines systematic surface survey with the analysis of evidence produced by other sampling strategies, such as excavation and rock art analysis. Based on the spatial distribution of lithic and ceramic artifacts and rock art motifs, we characterize patterns of occupational intensity, functional diversity, and information flow in areas with different biogeographic properties. The results suggest a functional delimitation of space, which operates in an averaged temporal scale, where the areas of intermediate altitude would have been used as central places from where the use of other areas was articulated. Because our sampling unit captures biogeographic variation that is widely expressed, this model of spatial organization would be useful for the archaeology of northwestern Patagonia at large.

Northwestern Patagonia is located in a tectonically active part of the southern Andes (Argentina), which has facilitated the formation of obsidian, including pyroclastic deposits that have been affected by geomorphic processes, resulting in a complex obsidian landscape. To date, the geomorphic relocation of obsidian in the landscape has not been a focus of systematic research, and this hampers our understanding of prehistoric human mobility. We present an updated assessment of the regional availability of different obsidian types based on results from our research program, which combines geoarchaeological survey and geochemical characterization to understand the properties and distribution of obsidian. This robust "source-scape" provides the foundation for reconstructing patterns of lithic provisioning and discard. Our results suggest that interpretations of obsidian availability across the landscape should be more nuanced than is typically acknowledged. Based on our improved "source-scape," we discuss the patterns observed in an archaeological X-ray fluorescence database. When compared with the geoarchaeological reconstruction of obsidian availability, the archaeological record conforms to a distance-decay pattern. Contrary to previous interpretations, we suggest that the distribution of obsidian types is not isomorphic with human Geoarchaeology. 2018;1-12. wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/gea

Nuestro objetivo es estudiar las estrategias de uso del espacio por parte de sociedades humanas móviles en un paisaje andino de Patagonia caracterizado por una marcada heterogeneidad topográfica, climática y ecológica (localidad de Barrancas-Buta Ranquil, provincia del Neuquén, Argentina). Inicialmente, se analiza la estructura del paisaje desde una perspectiva biogeográfica, desarrollando un modelo de estacionalidad mediante sistemas de información geográfica. Nuestro enfoque dis-tribucional combina una prospección sistemática para caracterizar la estructura espacial del registro en superficie y eviden-cias que han sido obtenidas bajo otras estrategias de muestreo. Sobre la base de la distribución de artefactos líticos y cerámicos y de motivos rupestres, se evalúan patrones de intensidad ocupacional, diversidad funcional y circulación de infor-mación en sectores del espacio con propiedades biogeográficas diferentes. Los resultados sugieren una delimitación funcional del espacio en escala temporal promediada, en la cual los espacios intermedios habrían funcionado como lugares centrales desde donde se articulan movimientos logísticos hacia otros sectores del paisaje. Dado que la unidad de muestreo captura variación biogeográfica que se expresa en forma regional más amplia, el modelo de uso del espacio propuesto es relevante para la comprensión de la arqueología del noroeste de Patagonia en general. Palabras clave: arqueología distribucional, Andes del sur, estacionalidad, ecotonos topográficos, demarcación del paisaje The objective of our research presented here is to study the spatial organization of mobile societies from Patagonia. In particular , we focus on a region characterized by sharp contrasts in topography, climate, and ecology (Barrancas-Buta Ranquil Locality, Neuquén Province, Argentina). We begin by analyzing the biogeographic structure of the landscape, presenting a GIS-based model of seasonally available resources. Our approach combines systematic surface survey with the analysis of evidence produced by other sampling strategies, such as excavation and rock art analysis. Based on the spatial distribution of lithic and ceramic artifacts and rock art motifs, we characterize patterns of occupational intensity, functional diversity, and information flow in areas with different biogeographic properties. The results suggest a functional delimitation of space, which operates in an averaged temporal scale, where the areas of intermediate altitude would have been used as central places from where the use of other areas was articulated. Because our sampling unit captures biogeographic variation that is widely expressed, this model of spatial organization would be useful for the archaeology of northwestern Patagonia at large.

Nuestro objetivo es estudiar las estrategias de uso del espacio por parte de sociedades humanas móviles en un paisaje andino de Patagonia caracterizado por una marcada heterogeneidad topográfica, climática y ecológica (localidad de Barrancas-Buta Ranquil, provincia del Neuquén, Argentina). Inicialmente, se analiza la estructura del paisaje desde una perspectiva biogeográfica, desarrollando un modelo de estacionalidad mediante sistemas de información geográfica. Nuestro enfoque dis-tribucional combina una prospección sistemática para caracterizar la estructura espacial del registro en superficie y eviden-cias que han sido obtenidas bajo otras estrategias de muestreo. Sobre la base de la distribución de artefactos líticos y cerámicos y de motivos rupestres, se evalúan patrones de intensidad ocupacional, diversidad funcional y circulación de infor-mación en sectores del espacio con propiedades biogeográficas diferentes. Los resultados sugieren una delimitación funcional del espacio en escala temporal promediada, en la cual los espacios intermedios habrían funcionado como lugares centrales desde donde se articulan movimientos logísticos hacia otros sectores del paisaje. Dado que la unidad de muestreo captura variación biogeográfica que se expresa en forma regional más amplia, el modelo de uso del espacio propuesto es relevante para la comprensión de la arqueología del noroeste de Patagonia en general. Palabras clave: arqueología distribucional, Andes del sur, estacionalidad, ecotonos topográficos, demarcación del paisaje The objective of our research presented here is to study the spatial organization of mobile societies from Patagonia. In particular , we focus on a region characterized by sharp contrasts in topography, climate, and ecology (Barrancas-Buta Ranquil Locality, Neuquén Province, Argentina). We begin by analyzing the biogeographic structure of the landscape, presenting a GIS-based model of seasonally available resources. Our approach combines systematic surface survey with the analysis of evidence produced by other sampling strategies, such as excavation and rock art analysis. Based on the spatial distribution of lithic and ceramic artifacts and rock art motifs, we characterize patterns of occupational intensity, functional diversity, and information flow in areas with different biogeographic properties. The results suggest a functional delimitation of space, which operates in an averaged temporal scale, where the areas of intermediate altitude would have been used as central places from where the use of other areas was articulated. Because our sampling unit captures biogeographic variation that is widely expressed, this model of spatial organization would be useful for the archaeology of northwestern Patagonia at large.

Northwestern Patagonia is located in a tectonically active part of the southern Andes (Argentina), which has facilitated the formation of obsidian, including pyroclastic deposits that have been affected by geomorphic processes, resulting in a complex obsidian landscape. To date, the geomorphic relocation of obsidian in the landscape has not been a focus of systematic research, and this hampers our understanding of prehistoric human mobility. We present an updated assessment of the regional availability of different obsidian types based on results from our research program, which combines geoarchaeological survey and geochemical characterization to understand the properties and distribution of obsidian. This robust " source‐scape " provides the foundation for reconstructing patterns of lithic provisioning and discard. Our results suggest that interpretations of obsidian availability across the landscape should be more nuanced than is typically acknowledged. Based on our improved " source‐scape, " we discuss the patterns observed in an archaeological X‐ray fluorescence database. When compared with the geoarchaeological reconstruction of obsidian availability, the archaeological record conforms to a distance‐decay pattern. Contrary to previous interpretations, we suggest that the distribution of obsidian types is not isomorphic with human

ABSTRACT The importance of obsidian from the northern Patagonian source at Las Cargas is reflected in its early use (�8000 years B.P.) and extensive geographic diffusion but is nonetheless surprising in light of the source’s high altitude (located in the Andes Cordillera), which makes it both difficult to access under ideal conditions and inaccessible for much of the year. Prehistoric use of the Las Cargas source can inform us about mobility, subsistence choices, economics of stone consumption, trade, and territoriality. Here we present the results of various lines of evidence (surface survey, X-ray fluorescence and instrumental neutron activation analyses, artifact morphometry, and obsidian hydration dating) used to characterize obsidian from Las Cargas and its prehistoric use during the Holocene. Results indicate that Las Cargas obsidian occurs at the source as blocks and nodules, which are chemically homogeneous and of variable quality. Use of the source was nearly continuous through time, and the primary knapping activities performed there were the production of blanks and preparation of cores

Obsidian is abundant in archaeological sites throughout Mendoza Province, Argentina but no obsidian hydration rates exist to date these assemblages. Direct dating of obsidian artifacts is particularly important in west-central Argentina because the surface record is extensive but well-defined time marker artifacts are lacking. The costs of non-optical hydration dating techniques currently preclude their regular use in the region, however. We present and evaluate 12 models for age estimation based on optical hydration rim measurements for the two most commonly used obsidian types in the region (Las Cargas and Laguna del Maule). Age estimation equations are derived for each source using observed hydration rim-radiocarbon date pairs, and parameterized by variables known to influence obsidian hydration in experimental settings. The equations advanced here are currently best at predicting the known ages of artifacts independently dated by radiocarbon, and can be cautiously used to estimate the ages of obsidian artifacts. Las obsidianas son abundantes en los sitios arqueológicos de la provincia de Mendoza (Argentina). Sin embargo, hasta el momento no existen estimaciones para las tasas de hidratación de estas rocas que puedan utilizarse para fechar esos conjuntos líticos. La realización de fechados directos sobre artefactos de obsidiana resulta particularmente importante para esta región, dado que existe un vasto registro arqueológico de superficie –compuesto principalmente por artefactos líticos– y solo se cuenta con tipos morfológicos cronológicamente sensibles para el Holoceno Tardío. Aquí se presentan y evalúan 12 modelos para estimar las edades de los artefactos de obsidiana basados en la medición óptica de los anillos de hidratación. Específicamente estos modelos fueron desarrollados para las dos obsidianas más comunes en los contextos arqueológicos de la región, procedentes de las fuentes de Las Cargas y Laguna del Maule. Las edades estimadas son derivadas para cada fuente a partir de pares de medición del espesor de la corteza de hidratación-fechado radiocarbono, y calibradas con variables cuya influencia sobre la hidratación ha sido es-tablecida experimentalmente. Las ecuaciones que presentamos son actualmente las que mejor predicen las edades conocidas de artefactos que han sido fechados independientemente por radiocarbono y, por lo tanto, pueden utilizarse con cautela para estimar la antigüedad de los artefactos de obsidiana procedentes de la región. Palabras claves: hidratación de obsidianas, estimación de edades arqueológicas, Argentina.

Northwestern Patagonia is located in a tectonically active part of the southern Andes (Argentina), which has facilitated the formation of obsidian, including pyroclastic deposits that have been affected by geomorphic processes, resulting in a complex obsidian landscape. Until now, the geomorphic relocation of obsidian in the landscape has not been a focus of systematic research, and this hampers our understanding of prehistoric human mobility. We present an updated assessment of the regional availability of different obsidian types based on results from our research program, which combines geoarchaeological survey and geochemical characterization to understand the properties and distribution of obsidian. This robust ‘source-scape’ provides a robust foundation for reconstructing patterns of lithic provisioning and discard. Our results suggest that interpretations of obsidian availability across the landscape should be more nuanced than is typically acknowledged. Based on our improved ‘source-scape’, we discuss the patterns observed in an archaeological XRF database. When compared to the geoarchaeological reconstruction of obsidian availability, the archaeological record conforms to a distance-decay pattern. Contrary to previous interpretations, we suggest that the distribution of obsidian types is not isomorphic with human home ranges. This geoarchaeological research program provides a basis for integrating the archaeological records of different Andean regions.

A B S T R A C T We studied the organization of mobility of hunter-gatherers groups of northwestern Patagonia (Argentina) from an interdisciplinary perspective. We combined geochemical and technological characterization of obsidian assemblages from surface and stratigraphic contexts spanning the Holocene, and a preliminary geoarchaeolo-gical study of the sources. The goals were to assess the provenance, mode of supply, use, and discard of obsidian artifacts on the basis of information on the structure of the two main regional sources: Cerro Huenul, located in the lowlands, and Laguna del Maule, located in the Andean highlands. We conducted geoarchaeological field sampling at different altitudes of the Barrancas River fluvial deposits to study the geomorphic impact on the secondary structure of the highland source. Preliminary geoarchaeological results allow extending the area of availability up to 90 km towards the lowlands from the outcrops. In addition, we performed non-destructive XRF analyses on 266 lithic artifacts, which were placed along a continuum of reduction. 89% of the artifacts corresponded to the local Cerro Huenul source, while 11% to Laguna del Maule. While the artifacts made on Cerro Huenul obsidian were represented by the full reduction sequence, those from Laguna del Maule are only represented by advanced stages. We integrate these results with information on the frequencies of projectile points, ceramics, and rock-art motifs for the two main archaeological sites in the region: Cueva Huenul 1 and Cueva Yagui. These proxies indicate that the sites have different place use histories, providing a scheme for the analysis of human use of the regional landscape.