Mobility and raw material procurement by Fishtail people in Uruguay: Evaluation of silcrete long distance transport between campsites and outcrops during the late Pleistocene (ca. 12,900–12,250 cal BP)

Abstract

Lithic artifacts from late Pleistocene manufactured in silcrete are used to understand Fishtail behaviors linked to mobility, land use and raw material acquisition during early prehistory in Uruguay. The data analyzed here include three categories of silcrete evidence: (1) a database of Fishtail points, (2) regional outcrops of these lithic resource, (3) debitage and unifacial tools from campsites. We calculated the cumulative cost of movement between campsites and the nearest lithic resources in space, located within the silcrete area, the distances involved in such movements, and the possible connection routes between campsites and silcrete resources. We analyzed the raw materials, density and spatial distribution of Fishtail points, and generated a Predictive Model of Transit Pathways. The results obtained indicate that silcretes were transported over long distances in mobility networks by an extensive Paleoamerican social landscape from outcrops located in the western and southwestern to campsites in northwestern Uruguay at distances ranging between ∼ 179 and 482 km. This new data confirms long distance displacements, the high social value, and the preference of this lithic resource for the production of tool assemblages by the Fishtail peoples of Uruguay.