Geoarchäologie

PaleoAndes

Cuncaicha Rock Shelter, Peru
Puna landscape with Cuncaicha Rockshelter (4480masl). More information at www.paleoandes.com

Chronology, seasonality, and inter-zonal connections in a Terminal Pleistocene-Early Holocene settlement system, southern Peru

C. Miller and S. Meinekat studying anthropogenic features at Quebrada Jaguay-280. Photo: K. Rademaker

PaleoAndes

PI: Kurt Rademaker (Michigan State)

The geoarchaeological investigations are focused on the site formation of Cuncaicha Rockshelter (4480masl) and Quebrada Jaguay-280 (40masl). Samples were collected during the excavations at Cuncaicha in 2012, 2014, and 2015 at Quebrada Jaguay during the excavation in 2017.
The results of the geoarchaeological analyzes from Cuncaicha were used for Sarah Meinekat 's master thesis: A geoarchaeological investigation of the site formation of Cuncaicha Rockshelter, Peru (2017).

Sunset over the camp at Cuncaicha Rockshelter

Goals:

  1. Resolve chronology at early archaeological sites at the Pacific Coast and Andes of western South America
  2. Determine functional relationships among linked early sites
  3. Better understand the evolution of humane adaptations in the high andes

More information: 

https://www.researchgate.net/project/Chronology-seasonality-and-inter-zonal-connections-in-a-Terminal-Pleistocene-Early-Holocene-settlement-system-southern-Peru

New archaeological investigation of human ecology in the Puna of Junín, Peruvian Andes

Panaulauca

PaleoAndes​​​​​​​

PI: Kurt Rademaker  (Michigan State)

Following a micro-contextual approach, block samples for micromorphology and bulk samples for complementary analyzes were collected in the summer of 2019. The geoarchaeological investigation seeks to focus on constructing formation models for both sites that will be tightly linked to the chronologies.

 

Micromorphological sampling at Panaulauca. White tags are corresponding samples for AMS dating.
Pachamachay

Goals:

  1. Pachamachay and Panaulauca, in the Punas of Junin of central Peru, originally excavated in the 1970s and early 1980s
  2. Build high-resolution chronologies for Pachamachay and Panaulauca
  3. Use geoarchaeological analysis to study site formation processes
Micromorphology samples and loose sediment sampling at Pachamachay. Photo: K. Rademaker

More Information:

https://www.researchgate.net/project/New-archaeological-investigation-of-human-ecology-in-the-Puna-of-Junin-Peruvian-Andes