Prehistoric hunters and gatherers of Brazil

Although carbon-14 dates prior to 13,000 B.P. have been obtained from several sites east and south of Amazonia, their reliability is uncertain. By about 11,000 B.P., however, two lithic traditions were widespread. The Uruguai tradition, characterized by bifacial stemmed projectile points, was associated with open vegetation in the south; the Itaparica tradition, emphasizing well-formed unifacial artifacts, had dispersed over the eastern tropical parklands. An enormous amount and variety of rock paintings and/or engravings are associated with the latter. Around 7000 B.P., two new traditions emerged to exploit new habitats. The Humaitá tradition, characterized by large bifacial tools and an absence of stone projectile points, expanded over the broad-leaved forests in the south, leaving the open landscapes dominated by the projectile point-using Umbu tradition. The sambaqui (shell midden) tradition, also emphasizing large bifaces, developed along rugged portions of the southern coast. By 4000 B.P., groups along the coast of Rio de Janeiro and Espírito Santo were using domesticated or semidomesticated plants, perhaps sweet manioc. Maize was being grown in Minas Gerais by about 3500 B.P. Carbon-14 dates from numerous sites indicate, however, that the hunter-gatherer way of life persisted in many places long after the advent of pottery-making horticulturalists. The existence of large temporal and spatial gaps even in regions with considerable investigation makes it difficult to reconstruct the process of evolution reflected in these archaeological complexes. Correlations between cultural traditions and environmental fluctuations indicate, however, that adaptation to changing conditions was a significant challenge faced by prehistoric Brazilian populations.     

Archaeology, History, and Historical Archaeology in South America

This paper discusses the relationship between history and archaeology in general, their common concerns and links with historical archaeology. It deals with the development of historical archaeology in three related South American countries, Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay, and pays attention to recent trends in the theory and practice of the discipline in the area.     

Governance and cooperation in Euroregions: border tourism between Spain and Portugal

There are several obstacles to establish tourism governance policies in a border area and to improve the conceptualization of tourism in border territories transcending the transnational level, using territorial delimitation at Euroregional level. At borders, tourism usually works as a strategic policy tool to strengthen the regional image, shape common identity narratives and facilitate interactions, becoming these regions, nowadays, challenges for the actors of the territory, representing a priority area for the application of territorial development strategies at local level and at the level of the European Union itself. A qualitative analysis was based on performed semistructured interviews with key tourism stakeholders. From the interviewee? perspective, cooperation should be achieved through cooperation agreements between the business sector and economic agents to develop natural, cultural and heritage resources.     

Reviews of books

Satire in Colonial Spanish America: Turning the New World Upside Down. By Julie Greer Johnson. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1993. Pp. xvii, 224.

La Araucana. Por Alonso De Ercilla Y Zuniga. Edición de Isaias Lerner. Madrid: Editorial Cátedra, 1993. Pp. 1026.

Diente del Parnaso (Manuscrito de la Universidad de Yale). Por Juan Del Valle Y Caviedes. Edición, introducción y notas de Luis Garcia‐Abrines Calvo, con la colaboración de SYDNEY JAIME MUIRDEN. Jaén: Diputación Provincial, 1993. Pp. 481.

Catálogo concordado de la Biblioteca ie Hernando Colón. Tomo 1, 1–400. By Tomas Marin Martinez, Jose Manuel Ruiz Asencio and Klaus Wagner. Madrid: Fundación MAPFRE América, Cabildo de la Catedral de Sevilla, 1993. Pp. 717.

The People of Quito, 1690–1810: Chan, ‘e and Unrest in the Underclass. By Martin Minchom. Boulder, Colorado: Westview Press, Dellplain Latin American Studies, 1994. Pp. xvii, 297.

Los encomenderos de Quito, 1534–16C 0. Origen y evolución de una élite colonial. By Javier Ortiz De La Tabla Ducasse. Sevilla: Escuela de Estudios Hispano‐Americanos, 1993. Pp. xvi, 377.

Word from New Spain: The Spiritual Au obiography of Madre María de San José (1656–1719). Critical edition and introduction by Kathleen Myers. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 1993. Pp. x, 234.

Una partecita del cielo. La vida de Santa Rosa de Lima narrada por Don Gonzalo de la Maza a quien ella Ilamal a padre. Versión paleográfica de Luis Millones. Ensayos de Luis Millones y Fernando Iwasaki. Lima, Perú: Editorial Horizonte, 1993. Pp. 217.

Poema Heroyco al merecido aplauso de Soror Ivana Inés de la Crvz. De Ioseph Zatrilla Y Vico. [Barcelona, 1696]. Edición facsímile de Aureliano Tapia Mendez. Monterrey, N.L.: Talleres Gráficos de Cultura de la Ciudad de México, 1993. Pp. xi, 38.

Carta de Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz a su confesor. Autodefensa espiritual. Estudios y notas de Aureliano Tapia Mendez. Monterrey, N.L.: Imprenta Madero (Ciudad de México) para Producciones al Voleo El Troquel, 1993. Pp. 253.

Reading Columbus. By Margarita Zamora. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1993. Pp. xvi, 247.     

A Report on Historical Archaeology Publications in Latin America

Historical archaeology is today widely practiced in Latin America. Scholars not living or working in the region often are unaware of the research conducted in the countries south of the United States. This brief report outlines some of the historical archaeology conducted in Latin America and provides a brief bibliography.     

Effect of organic and inorganic consolidation agents on Tlaltecuhtli monolith

A huge monolithic piece corresponding to the first years of the sixteenth century has been discovered in Mexico City. It represents the earth goddess Tlaltecuhtli. The preservation of such a magnificent piece is imperative. Therefore, the surface has to be characterized and the interaction of consolidants with the rock has to be understood.Some of the consolidation methods are impregnation of the mineral with nopal or silicic acid derivatives. In this work we compare the physico-chemical effects of organic and inorganic consolidants. Original and impregnated samples are characterized with a series of original techniques: X-ray diffraction, nuclear magnetic resonance, nitrogen adsorption and small angle X-ray scattering. Fractal dimension, specific surface area and pore size distribution clearly differentiated the samples. The organic materials, nopal gum or slobber, cover the mineral particles with a smooth layer. The KSE solutions react and lead to microporosity.     

3D modelling of magnetic data from an archaeological site in north-western Tlaxcala state,Mexico

In Archaeology, geophysical methods had been applied usually in a qualitative form, limited only to the use of filters that enhance the data display. The main objective in this work is the implementation of a modelling technique that allows us to reconstruct the geometry of buried bodies and the determination of their depths. This is done by means of the estimation of the magnetic moments of archaeological objects using a three-dimensional mesh of individual magnetic dipoles using the least squares method and the singular value decomposition of a weighted matrix to solve the linear problem. The distribution and shape of the underlying archaeological remains can be inferred. This methodology was applied to an archaeological site called Los Teteles de Ocotitla, in the state of Tlaxcala, Mexico. A high-resolution magnetic prospection was carried out in three selected areas (terraces). The most important total field anomalies found on each area were inverted, obtaining results that were corroborated by archaeological excavations. This investigation demonstrates the potential of quantitative geophysical methods for the characterization of archaeological structures, in extension and in depth.     

The Transformation of Retail Markets in Lisbon: An Analysis through the Lens of Retail Gentrification

The relationship between cities and retail is strong and historical. This article focuses on the analysis of traditional retail markets, a retail concept that has lost its relevance in previous decades. However, more recently there has been a reversal of this trend following increased interest in the rehabilitation of these markets. This reinvestment follows the divestment stage and is characterised by the active role that private interests play in the management and operation of these retail precincts. This evolutionary process challenges the capacity of traditional retailers to continue their operations in these markets and the ability of disadvantaged customers to continue shopping there. Furthermore, this development may be indicative of retail gentrification. In this article, the ongoing process of market rehabilitation in Lisbon is analysed to determine whether evidence of retail gentrification has occurred. The use of case studies forms a significant part of the methodology. In addition, eleven retailers were interviewed in three traditional retail markets in Lisbon. The article concludes that direct displacement did not occur in the markets studies. However, because of the divestment in these retail precincts, indirect displacement did affect several retailers.