Between lagoons and the sea: use of space by hunter-gatherers of a lagoon landscape on the Northern Coast of Santa Cruz

Abstract

Here we present the results of an archaeological study of a peri-coastal sector located 20 km North of the city of Puerto Deseado, Northern Coast of Santa Cruz. The analyzed area is characterized by the presence of eight endorheic lagoons, which occasionally accumulate water due to rainfall and the surface runoff. The main aim of this paper is to assess the archaeological presence, its spatial distribution and its characteristics within this lagoon landscape. This landscape is adjacent to a strip of Atlantic coastline defined in previous studies by the absence of archaeological material. Systematic surveys were carried out in the field. We recovered archaeological material from the shoreline of all these lagoons. In addition, two stratigraphic excavations and radiocarbon dating of remains was undertaken. The results obtained are discussed here within the framework of the available evidence for the study area. Finally, it is argued that past populations would have made differential but complementary use of the lagoon landscape and the adjacent maritime coast. Complementarity in the use of spaces would have been related to resources structures and to the characteristics of the available occupation substrates.