Explotación de recursos líticos en dos canteras prehispánicas de la provincia de La Pampa (Argentina): Meseta del Fresco y Manto Tehuelche

This paper analyzes the characteristics of two lithic quarries used steadily since the end of the Middle Holocene in the province of La Pampa: Meseta del Fresco, an extensive siliceous chert outcrop, and the Manto Tehuelche, a conglomerate composed of cobbles of different types of lithologies which presents various outcrops. It is discussed in what frequency and with what strategies were exploited the rocks of both sources. For this purpose, information from different sites located in the research micro-areas of Curaco, Lihue Calel, Bajos sin Salida, Valles Transversales and Centro-este is used. The results indicate that the rocks of the Manto Tehuelche were mostly exploited in the extreme south of the study region, with predominance of those with the best quality for knapping. The siliceous chert, on the other hand, presents its highest frequencies in the Centro-este area, and to a lesser extent in the southern region. The lowest intensity of use of the analyzed rocks takes place in the sites from the Valles Transversales area, which have an affinity with the Eastern Pampa subregion in relation to raw materials and technology employed.