Burning damage and small-mammal human consumption in Quebrada del Real 1 (Cordoba, Argentina): an experimental approach

摘要

The zooarchaeological study of small-vertebrate consumption requires a taphonomical approach todifferentiate animal bones that were incidentally incorporated from those that were intentionallyexploited in the past human subsistence. In order to make this distinction, the relationship betweenarchaeological small-rodent burned bones and prehistoric human behavior was explored using anexperimental cooking study as a modern analogue. During the cooking experiment the entire carcassesof three guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus) and two yellow-toothed cavies (Galea leucoblephara) were placed inthe coals of an open fire that simulate a real campfire, rotating their positions until the meat wascompletely cooked. Subsequently, the intensity of burning damage and the loss of skeletal elements wereanalyzed at macroscopical levels. The data was used to identify cooking evidence in the Ctenomyidae andCaviidae rodent bones recovered from Quebrada del Real 1 (ca. 6000-300 BP, Cordoba, Argentina).Remarkable similarities between the archaeological and analogical records were found, including thedistinctive burning pattern on the distal extremities of the unmeaty long bones (e.g, radii and tibiae), thehigh frequency of broken incisor teeth and the loss of autopodium elements. Based on these comparativeresults, it is suggested that the small-rodent assemblages of QR1 were primary accumulated by humansthough butchery, cooking and consumption related activities. Extending this study to other archaeologicalsites in South America may help to identify the prehistoric bone collectors of these small-animals.