Fire structures in the Buenos Aires coastline (Bahía San Blas, provincia de Buenos Aires, Argentina): A physical–chemical analysis interpretation

Archaeological investigations carried out in the area of San Blas Bay revealed a great number of surface concentrations of shells, lithic artifacts and in lesser amount, ceramic remains. These places have been occupied by hunter–gatherers from the middle Holocene to recent times. In some cases, cultural materials and combustion structures have been reported in stratigraphic position. In this paper, we present the analysis of a hearth in a cup shape structure located in a sand aeolian deposit, in the La Serranita archaeological site, dated from 5300 BP, compared with another hearth from Las Olas 5 site, dated from 500 BP. The aim is to infer the activities that could be carried out in relation to the combustion structures, by physical–chemical analysis of sediments, and by identifying and quantifying the microremains. An attempt is made to determine the intensity of use of the fire structures.