THE EARLY EXPLORATION AND COLONIZATION OF SOUTHERNMOST PATAGONIA. WHAT CAN LITHIC ARTIFACTS TELL US?

In this paper I use ethnoarchaeological information and Borrero´s ecological model of peopling of Patagonia to derive regional expectations for the lithic archaeological record of early hunter-gatherers of southernmost Patagonia. These expectations are discussed in relation to the available information for the Atlantic and Pacific slope of Patagonia. At the Atlantic slope, the analysis allowed to the differentiation between two different groups. The first one corresponds to my expectations for an exploratory moment, while the second one has some different characteristics, and can probably be related to an early colonization moment. The lithic archaeological record of the Pacific slope is different from the one of the Atlantic slope, and can probably be attributed to an exploratory moment. I believe that the utilization of an organization of technology approach along with ethnoarchaeological information and theoretical models can provide important clues to our understanding of the early inhabitants of Patagonia.