Agricultura huarpe y conquista espa ola: discusión de recientes propuestas

Based on the archaeological record recovered at two sites located in Mendoza city, Chiavazza and Mafferra (2007) have proposed some ideas related to the subsistence system of the Huarpe, the indigenous group that inhabited the north-central Mendoza to the arrival of the Spaniards. In this article I discuss some aspects related to the database used, the origin and chronology of the contexts, and the representativeness of the analyzed sites. As a result, I conclude the lack of evidence to cast doubt on the implementation of agricultural practices by the Huarpe, as well as the persistence of the traditional model that asserted the existence of a local economy based on both extractive and productive activities.