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This paper analyses the petroglyphs from Curapil site, located on the northern piedmont of the Somuncurá plateau. The objective is to characterize motifs and their contexts, and to compare them with the rock art from the plateau in order to evaluate mobility paths and the occupational redundancy of sectors with different water availability. Results point towards weak links with sites from the eastern portion of Somuncurá plateau. Future studies of recently detected sites on the western portion may determine their relationships with Curapil. Although all the analysed contexts bear signs of reoccupation, these are stronger in Somuncurá, where water sources are more punctually distributed than in the piedmont. Despite these intensity differences, Curapil may be considered as a place that persisted until present times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this paper is to provide new data about prehispanic occupations in the vicinity of the Sauce Grande shallow lake (Monte Hermoso, province of Buenos Aires). The results of the research about the Laguna Sauce Grande II and Laguna Sauce Grande III archaeological sites are presented. Furthermore, the subsistence, technology and mobility of hunter-gatherers during the late Holocene are discussed. In relation to subsistence, the abundant record of Amarilladesma mactroides (yellow clam) remains is a remarkable fact, which indicates that this bivalve was transported for 6 km from the Atlantic coast and used as foodstuff. The estimated size of the shells retrieved demonstrates homogeneity in selecting adult individuals. In regard to technology, 12 different rock varieties from diverse sources were identified, which means there were various transportation distance ranges involved. The artifacts were produced by knapping and by picking; those intended to resource processing are predominant. The material evidence, particularly that of archaeofaunae, presents novel information for the Pampean region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the general characteristics of this research aimed to studying the mechanisms used to collect wood by hunter-gatherers, living on the northern shore of San Matías gulf during the last six thousand years. The collected wood was used to build ires where these groups would crack the shells of the collected shellish. This paper also shows a synthesis of the irst results obtained in three archaeological localities. The results obtained through the charcoal analysis will be discussed taking into account the new data available through pollen analysis. The aim is to evaluate the mechanisms applied to the collection of irewood used during the environmental conditions depicted through the palynological techniques. These mechanisms range from a "random gathering" to a thorough "selection" of the wood types according to the properties that make them optimal to be used as fuel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main objective of this paper is to describe the late Holocene behaviour of rivers using an interdisciplinary approach combining fluvial geomorphology and subfossil trunk dendrochronology. The subfossil wood material collected along the rivers was investigated for dendrometric and dendrochronologic parameters. The research methods in these fields helped us to understand the effect of the fluvial environment on riparian trees and their records and helped in reconstructing the riparian palaeoenvironment. The study area consists of two rivers with different typologies but comparable sizes: the Moldova River, which features a braided to wandering channel in its lower reach, and the Siret River, which features a sinuous-meandering channel. Along the 100-km-long floodplain of the former and the 144-km-long floodplain of the latter, we found and sampled 77 subfossil trunks, of which 26 were subjected to 14 C dating. The resulting data consist of floodplain facies mapping data, electric resistivity measurements, absolute dates, and dendrometric and dendrochronologic data. The results indicate that during a 100-year period, the two rivers were sensitive to climate change and anthropogenic effects, particularly a narrowing of the active channel by 76% in the braided channel and 38% in the sinuous-meandering channel. During the past 3300–3000 YBP, the Moldova River maintained its braided style, whereas the sinuous-meandering style has been characteristic of the Siret River for the previous 6800–4600 YBP. The two distinct fluvial environments are recorded in the dendrometric structure of the trunks buried in the channel-fill sediments. The braided fluvial environment was more effective in uprooting riparian trees and incorporating them in the floodplain deposits, whereas the sinuous-meandering style of stream effectively buried tree trunks in lateral accretion lobes. Absolute and dendrochronologic dating allowed for the reconstruction of timelines of the felling of the trees and estimates of the magnitude of the responsible hydrological event. The flood events on the Siret River with a recurrence interval of 200 years ( Q max ~ 2500–2800 m 3 /s) were those most effective in destroying riparian forests, and the events on the Moldova floods with a 100-year recurrence interval ( Q max ~ 1200–1400 m 3 /s) were the most effective. Dendrochronology allowed for identification of wet phases (i.e., 3500–2900 YBP, 2200–2075 YBP, and 1000–800 YBP) and dry phases (e.g., 3200–3150 or 2775–2700 YBP, 1400 YBP). Finally, we draw attention to the potential for creating a highly replicable dendrochronological series spanning at least 7000 YBP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]