Abstract

RODRIGUEZ, María Fernanda. Los grupos humanos y las plantas en la Puna meridional argentina: arqueobotánica de Antofagasta de la Sierra. Intersecciones antropol. [online]. 2013, vol.14, n.2, pp.315-339. ISSN 1850-373X.

This paper summarizes the archaeobotanical research carried out at Antofagasta de la Sierra, southern Argentinean Puna, since 1993. Physical and environmental characteristics are appropriate for this kind of analysis due to the aridity that allows for the perfect conservation of plant species remains at archaeological sites. A large number of sites that could have been inhabited by hunter-gatherer human groups was recorded in the area. The study of their archaeobotanical record revealed the transition between the gathering of plant species and incipient agriculture. The radiocarbon dates obtained to date indicate that the human occupation of the area took place between ca. 10000 and 400 years BP, corresponding to the earliest dates recorded in Argentina. The aims of this paper are to offer an overview and synthesis that reflects the use of plant species as resources during the prehistoric past in this sector of the Puna region; to analyze the ways in which these activities impacted settlement systems in the area; to establish links to other regions; and to understand the transition from an economy based on hunter-gathering, to one that combines hunter-gathering with some plant species cultivation. The goal is that the methodology implemented in the study be used to carry out future research.

Keywords : Archaeobotany; Crops; Paleoenvironment; Southern Puna; Gathering; Vegetable resources.

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