Recognition of post-harvest processing of algarrobo ( Prosopis spp.) as food from two sites of Northwestern Argentina: a
- PDF / 1,585,015 Bytes
- 22 Pages / 595.276 x 790.866 pts Page_size
- 84 Downloads / 166 Views
ORIGINAL PAPER
Recognition of post-harvest processing of algarrobo (Prosopis spp.) as food from two sites of Northwestern Argentina: an ethnobotanical and experimental approach for desiccated macroremains Aylen Capparelli & Verónica Lema
Received: 28 September 2010 / Accepted: 18 January 2011 / Published online: 19 February 2011 # Springer-Verlag 2011
Abstract Ethnobotanical and experimental approaches were used to: (a) analyse modern Prosopis (algarrobo) food production at the Hualfin valley (Catamarca Province, Argentina) in order to establish food production and processing patterns; and (b) characterise the qualitative and quantitative morphological attributes of the food products and residues that may reach the archaeological record as macrobotanical remains. These approaches were applied to the study of archaeobotanical remains from two archaeological sites from the Argentinean Northwest (Huachichocana and Puente del Diablo). It was concluded that the analysis of Prosopis macrobotanical remains potentially allows the identification of intermediate and final products, by-products and residues of different food/ drink preparations. Patay (bread) is the only final product that can be confirmed, but only if the bread itself is recovered. The other algarrobo preparations are jam and beverages and therefore do not leave records. The proportions of fragmented seeds, seeds with fissured testas and endocarps may indicate the production of unrefined and refined flour. Añapa (beverage) and aloja (alcoholic beverage) residues are characterised mainly by a rolling or folding of the epicarp or testa (also by the loosening of the testa). Aloja can be distinguished from añapa only if certain processes, such as the use of hot water and the chewing of the pods, were used, which produced diagnostic characteristics such as thick black patinas on endocarps or heavily twisted fine threads of epicarp fibres. Arrope (syrup) residues are identified by the presence of closed endocarps A. Capparelli (*) : V. Lema Departamento Científico de Arqueología, Museo de Ciencias Naturales de La Plata, Paseo del Bosque s/n, (1900), La Plata, Argentina e-mail: [email protected]
with thin black patinas and twisted ribbons of epicarp. Flour- and aloja-making were recognised from Huachichocana III contexts and añapa and flour production at Puente del Diablo. Keywords Archaeobotany . Northwestern Argentina . Algarrobo . Prosopis . Food products
Introduction The genus Prosopis (Family: Fabaceae), together with the genus Acacia, dominates a large part of the arid or semi-arid earth’s surface (Beresford-Jones 2005: 45). Its 44 taxonomically recognised species (Burkart 1940, 1952, 1976)1 are distributed along southwest Asia, north and tropical Africa (four species) and in America, where they occur from the southwest USA to Patagonia (40 species). Most Prosopis species are crucial within their ecosystems, linking and integrating abiotic and biotic constituents, including human inhabitants (Beresford-Jones 2005: 45). People have exploited
Data Loading...
