Indigenous strategies of cattle catching and handling in the Northern Sierras of Buenos Aires Province: the drystone structures Cerro Guacho I and Cerro Guacho II

Abstract

This paper contributes to the analysis of capture, handling and care practices of introduced livestock carried out by the indigenous groups that inhabited the Tandilia mountain range during the post Spanish period, while they still kept their territorial autonomy. This period of the regional history begins with the arrival of the Spaniards to the Río de la Plata basin in the 16th century and ends with the Creole’s society occupation of that area, that consolidated towards the middle of the next century. From a review of anthropological and historical production about the transformations in the indigenous economy linked to the incorporation of domestic livestock, some proposals concerning the functioning of poles of specialized activities are considered. In particular, the results of our archaeological investigations developed in the central portion of Tandilia are presented, focusing on two drystone wall constructions called Cerro Guacho I and Cerro Guacho II. It is discussed the use of both sites as places of capture and safeguard of wild horses, sheep enclosures, human rooms and monitoring points, on the basis of the information collected from several documentary sources, along with cartography and the material evidence.