A Study of the Distribution of Burial Structures among Hunter-Gatherer Populations of the North Coast of Santa Cruz (Argentine Patagonia)

Abstract

In this work a systematic survey of structures of rocks was performed, which by their morphology similar to others already studied in different sectors of Patagonia, could be defined as burials of type «chenque». This type of burial is characteristic of hunter-gatherer populations that inhabited Patagonia during the late Holocene. Spatial analysis of these structures in an archaeological locality (Oso Marino Bay, north coast of Santa Cruz) allowed us to determine that they are distributed unevenly, as they are absent in some areas, while in others they are isolated or forming concentrations up to tens of structures. The latter is an unusual pattern in Patagonia and in other contexts of hunters-gatherers. The results are contextualized with archaeological and ethnohistorical backgrounds, and discussed with the known information of similar burial structures in Patagonia.