A significant component into pre-historic canoeists' passages: heuristic implications of shell middens in the Fuego-Patagonia Landscape

Abstract

In this paper we advance the first results of research project related to the detection and recognition of peculiar evidences: Pre-historical canoeists' passages. In this context, we are especially interesting in the statistical relationship (positive, negative or random) among passages and the presence of shell middens in its vicinity. The determination of canoeists passages like expeditious access to inland, or transitional roads avoiding coastal shipping- are related to extensive sets of ecological and social components. The presence (or absence) of shell-middens in the vicinity of a possible passage, may be a significant variable in positive determination case for canoeists' passage location that meets environmental requirements. From this perspective, the heuristic value of certain shell-middens could be more like an optimal position for certain coastal resources management. Now in relation with passages proximity, the shell-midden could a high significance in matters of visibility and epistemological implications about what was a passage. In the other hand, these heuristic implications maybe are also relevant when proposing models of littoral resource management in other pre-historical problematic like Mesolithic in Europe.