In the shadow of big rocks: lithic industries from late precolonial occupations in the Diamantina region, Minas Gerais, Brazil

Abstract

The recent pre-colonial settlements in Diamantina region (Espinhaço mountain range, Minas Gerais, Central Brazil) is represented by a significant and diverse lithic industry. This article tries to establish a systemic understanding of a group of sites in this area, considering lithic raw materials availability, sites landscape insertions and morphology, artifact variability and association with others remais and features. For that, the concepts of chaîne opératoire and technological organization are combined. This study focuses on the lithic assemblages found during fieldwork in ten archaeological sites. This article tries to relate the lithic assemblages to other elements of recent precolonial occupations.

Keywords
Lithic technology; Upper Holocene; Horticulturalists; Diamantina; Central Brazil