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Terras Pretas and terras mulatas in the central Amazon region: a geoarchaeological perspective

Manuel Arroyo-Kalin (Department of Archaeology)

Abstract

This paper presents the results of geoarchaeological analyses of the soil mantle from late Holocene ceramic age sites of the central Amazon region, Brazil. Geochemical, micromorphological and magnetic susceptibility data are used to assess differences between terras pretas, i.e. settlement related dark earths, and terras mulatas, i.e. anthrosols surrounding settlements. The data support inferences that the former result from the incidental accumulation of debris associated with continuous inhabitation, and that the latter track pre-Columbian practices of intensive cultivation.