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Archaeological site Cangas I: geoarchaeological survey in the Araguaia River valley, Brazil

Rosicler Silva (Universidade Catolica de Goias)
Julio Rubin de Rubin (Universidade Catolica de Goias)
Olivia Rosa (Universidade Catolica de Goias)
Eric Faustino (Universidade Catolica de Goias)

Abstract

The Cangas geoarchaelogical project, developed by researchers from the Instituto Goiano de Pré-História e Antropologia at the Universidade Católica de Goiás, addresses the relation between prehistoric occupation and the Araguaia River dynamics. The first site, Cangas I, on the right bank of a Holocene alluvial terrace, revealed some surface ceramic evidence and human bones. There is evidence of a 3.5m thick sediment layer of coarse and fine sand on latheritic concretions. Cultural evidence as deep as 0.8m is associated with a gray colored gley soil over yellow sediments. Since this is ongoing research, only limited data has been gathered, including sediment layer thickness and occupation horizon, two depositional facies and verification of partial fluvial erosion. Disordely anthropic action compromising site integrity and location is also an obstacle to the initial geoarchaeological approach in the survey.