Uspallata

Ok, back to Argentina :)
The next day we rent a car and drove to Uspallata: The final stop would be the Cerro Tunduqueral, a rock art site not far from Uspallata.


(c) 2011 Google Maps

 While we worked our way towards the Andes in a nice comfortable car we could see a group of people  rafting. The river was so full of sediments that it took on the colour of the surrounding mountains:

We came across military areas

passed quiet alleys

encountered curious boulders

looks a bit like an Indian chief in profile, doesn't it? Finally we reached our goal, the Cerro Tunduqueral, a hilly top where we would hopefully find some petroglyphs. There was actually a parking lot and a comfortable short walk to the cerro:

There was even a sign explaining a bit the site. As you can see, Tunduqueral is about 2000 m asl and most of the engraving are supposed to be from the Early Ceramic Period. The sign says from AD 700 - 1000. But they might well be a bit earlier

Just to give you an overview, after all you had your fill in archaeology yesterday ;)

In any case, we had a fantastic view of the Andes and their snow covered passes:

On our way back we stopped shortly at a group of shrines which are very common here:

while some were still accumulating glass bottle-offerings, most had a pile of plastic bottles next to them. Plus all the other 'offerings' including plastic toy figurines, plastic flowers, candles, food remains and cloth preferably red dyed one:

There must have been an active rail road once, but now the tracks are quite deserted:

since it was getting late we rushed home (here you can see our rental, flashing provocatively at the camera):

But the trip wouldn't be complete with a short stop at Lake Potrerillos, an artificial lake formed by a large dam and now a major recreation area for the locals:

But wait, didn't I say something about nandu feet? Of course, and here they are:

If you don't believe me, have a look at an emu track on a salt lake (the emu and the nandu are both ratite birds):

http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gro%C3%9Fer_Emu

Want to see a live nandu? Then stay tuned in for the next blog post. We are visiting Mendoza zoo....

Museum of Natural History and Anthropology Juan Cornelio Moyano

The Moyano Museum is one of the oldest museums in the interior of Argentina. The building from 1930s  itself is impressing, you saw it on yesterday' post. But the interior is much more fun. For just 5 pesos (not even one Euro) you can wander through the zoological, geological, paleontological, and anthropological section. We saw a stuffed Darwin Rhea (Pterocnemia pennata, a kind of nandu):

http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darwin-Nandu


The dinosaurs were fun, the presentation really well done (see for example the 1996 in Malargüe discovered Aerosteon):



http://www.diariouno.com.ar/galeriaFotosNota.html?url=/contenidos/2009/03/27/noticia_0009.html

but the anthropological section was more fun :) ... of course it was, at least for me. Unfortunately C had already left for Malargüe taken our cam with him. So all I can show you are som hideous photos made with M's mobile cam (which is even worse than my mobile), but anyway, you'll have to endure.

Here is a steatite pan-shaped vessel for offerings from the early Ceramic Period (ca. 500 BC to AD 600) with steatite from Santa Maria del Oro, Rivadavia, Mendoza:

The pottery of the Agrelo culture was also very interesting (you wouldn't believe eh? Just old pots). The typesite 'Agrelo' is just south of Mendoza around which the Agrelo culture flourished from AD 1 - 1000. Look for the incised lines, they are a characteristic. Sometimes just the neck is incised, but sometimes the whole vessel is incised in geometrical designs:



But the best part was the Aconcagua mummy. Not that it was on show, the mummy and the offerings like silver statues of llamas and a gilded female statue are with the university. But there were replicas and some less valuable items and of course photos. It is indeed a quite interesting story; in 1985 the mummy of a 7-year-old boy was found in the Andes at 6300 m asl at a mountain top called Aconcagua, I should have said THE mountain top, because it is the highest in Argentina. From the clothes and offering goods, it is certain that he must have lived during the Inca period, a radiocarbon date confirmed this to the late Inca period. The vomit of the poor boy was stained red by achiote leaves which were found in his stomach and which are supposed to have a hallucinogenous effect (I for some time wanted to try achiote seeds in a couple of recipes, one reason more to do so, I suspect *hehe*) and his body bound so tight that his ribs broke.

A.C. Aufderheide, The scientific study of mummies 2003, fig. 4.48



Isotope studies showed that he ate the last 1 ½ years mainly terrestial food like maize, quinoa, beans and vegetables, but before this time there was a significant input of marine food. So he probably wasn't a native to the Andean area (Fernández et al 1999). But strontium or oxygen analysis are still to be done for a more certain statement. That's all for today, tomorrow I will take you to the area of Uspallata with wild rivers, mountains, cats and nandu feet. See you then.