The obsidian in the late landscape of Hualfín Valley (department of Belén, Catamarca province)

Abstract

In this paper we address the comparative analysis of obsidian found at different sites of Hualfín valley (Department of Belén, Catamarca) highlighting its relevance in the network of relationships among spaces, people and objects that shaped the regional Late landscape. Obsidian artifacts have been found in fortifiedsites, onlow hills and spurs, at the bottom of the hills and on the ravines of rivers occupations. The analysis allows us to pro-pose intensive consumption of obsidian from Antofagasta de la Sierra (Catamarca) and its preferential use for the manufacture of projectile points. Given the presence of obsidian in the different contextsstudied, its wide spatial distribution, and the general similarities in their treatment and use, it can be argued that its consumption transcen-ded the limits of complexity and organization of each particular site to become a general resource in the valley, which materializes relationships and shared knowledge. Moreover, the provenience of obsidian and the existence of other evidence -as Belén pottery-, reflecting the movement of goods and people between the valley and the highlands (Puna), ledus to analyze the absolute chronology of the two regions and wonder about the chronological limits of the “Late Period” in the valley and the question of the “origin” of “Belén”.