Attributes of thermal alteration in lithic artifacts, on the Meliquina Archaeological Loca- lity, Neuquén, Argentina

Abstract

The present work constitutes a "precautionary study" that will allow us to observe if the lithic artifacts and ecofacts that present evidence of exposure to high temperatures found in the sites of Lago Meliquina are the result of the thermal treatment to improve the quality of some rocks for carving; or on the contrary, it is due to the action of different thermal processes that lead to their alteration in an involuntary way. The results obtained have allowed us to infer that in Lago Meliquina, a good part of the thermal alteration attributes of the set of rocks and debris of volcanic origin such as basalts and andesites and metamorphic rocks, do not derive from treatment to improve their quality for carving.