An Early Hispanic-Indigenous Contact Event at the Los Viscos Archaeological Site in the South-Central Andes: A Zooarchaeological Perspective

Abstract

Los Viscos, a multicomponent rockshelter in the high-altitude valley of El Bolsón, South-Central Andes, was occupied intermittently over the last 1200 years. One brief occupation dates to the early Hispanic-Indigenous contact period (ca. 1450–1630 cal CE), when European fauna were present but Hispanic political control was unestablished. Zooarchaeological analyses from this occupation are presented (NSP = 233; NISP = 83). Camelids were primarily exploited for meat and few other taxa were consumed, implying continuity with previous late pre-Hispanic occupations. Discontinuities include an apparent lack of camelid secondary product and dried meat exploitation. This is one of few studies documenting early Indigenous-European interactions in the area.