SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, 17 Oct. (EUROPE PRESS) –
The journal ‘Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences’ has just published an article that relates the geoarchaeological study carried out by a team from the Micromorphology and Archaeological Biomarkers Laboratory (AMBI Lab) of the University of La Laguna (ULL) at the Guanche site of the volcanic tube of Los Roques de García (Las Cañadas del Teide, Tenerife), which has made it possible to identify and characterize their human occupations.
Thus, applying high-resolution techniques, the possible use of juniper wood as fuel in an environment where this species is not currently present has been documented; the cohabitation between aboriginal groups and their goat and sheep herd and the possible seasonal nature of these occupations, probably associated with the summer months.
This is the first study published in the Canarian archaeological context that combines different high-resolution geoarchaeological techniques: soil micromorphology, the analysis of sedimentary lipid biomarkers and the study of stable isotopes in specific compounds.
In addition, the first lipid reference collection of endemic plants from the Las Cañadas environment is incorporated, collects a note from the ULL.
Based on this novel multi-proxy methodological approach, the team has been able to characterize the Guanche occupation model in one of the sites located at the highest altitude in Las Cañadas del Teide, at 2,290 meters above sea level.
According to the data obtained, the Guanche populations probably occupied the site seasonally in summer accompanied by their goats and sheep, with which they shared the domestic space.
In addition, they possibly preselected the fuel they were going to exploit before reaching the site, as evidenced by the presence of burnt juniper wood.
This study provides a better understanding of the dynamics of occupation, resource management and use of natural spaces by the aboriginal groups of Tenerife.
INHOSPITE SETTLEMENT
This is especially interesting in an environment like Las Cañadas, inhospitable at many times of the year due to the altitude and its climatic and hydrological regime.
Thus, it provides relevant data that contributes to enriching extensive debates on archeology in the Canary Islands, such as the seasonality of occupations, the functioning of pastoral activity and the mobility of aboriginal populations.
In addition, it has made it possible to verify the potential of high-resolution geoarchaeological techniques to study the aboriginal populations of the Canary Islands and understand how they lived, how they organized themselves as a society and how they related to the environment they inhabited, as well as to reconstruct the paleoenvironmental conditions with those who lived together
This research has been carried out at the AMBI Lab directed by the researcher Carolina Mallol, located at the Antonio González University Institute of Bio-Orgáncia.
The research has been possible thanks to the HAR2015-68323-P project; MINECO-FEDER, directed by Matilde Arnay de la Rosa and the Fundación Obra Social Caja Canarias 2018 PATRI19 project, directed by Carolina Mallol, as well as the predoctoral contract awarded to Laura Tomé, who is the main author of the article, financed by the Government of Canary Islands (ACIISI) THESIS2021010119.
