Entre el macizo del deseado y la margen norte de la cuenca del Río Santa Cruz (Patagonia, Argentina): Análisis geoquímico de artefactos de obsidiana y modelos de circulación humana
التفاصيل البيبلوغرافية
العنوان:
Entre el macizo del deseado y la margen norte de la cuenca del Río Santa Cruz (Patagonia, Argentina): Análisis geoquímico de artefactos de obsidiana y modelos de circulación humana
The purpose of this paper is to analyze the possibility of the existence of an unknown obsidian source between the south of the Deseado Massif and the northern shore of the Santa Cruz River basin (Patagonia, Argentina). The high frequency of obsidian in some of the analyzed spaces and the information provided by local inhabitants about the existence of an unknown obsidian source in the area, pointed to the need of evaluating this hypothesis. Geochemical analysis, through X-ray fluorescence, were performed on 20 obsidian artifacts recovered in different spaces of the study area. The results indicate a geochemical composition similar to the secondary sources of Pampa del Asador, its alluvial cone, and 17 de Marzo or intermediate sectors between them, which weakens the hypothesis of the existence of an unknown obsidian source with a different composition in this area. In addition, in order to evaluate which of the obsidian sources was used, obsidian artifacts frequencies were utilized and least cost paths were modeled between canyons in the northern shore of Santa Cruz river and the known black obsidian sources. Although further analysis need to be performed, results suggest the utilization of the 17 Marzo source in easterly spaces (Yaten Guajen canyon).