LA EXPLOTACIóN DEL ALFAR DE LA TROYA EN EL TIEMPO: CASUALIDAD O MEMORIA (DEPARTAMENTO TINOGASTA, CATAMARCA, ARGENTINA)

oral tradition is an important mechanism for transmission of knowledge and belief in prehistoric societies where memory has an outstanding role. different investigations carried out in the andean region have demonstrated that diverse cultural practices are maintained through social memory. we present and discusses the results from a neutron activation analysis of potsherds and clay deposits which demonstrate that clay raw material from la troya, located at the bolsón de fiambalá, was used for the manufacture of ceramic artifacts. these artifacts supplied puna instalations as well as others at the abaucán basin (tinogasta department, catamarca, argentina) from the formative epoch to the inka arrival in the region. based on these results, we think that exploitation and appropriation of the same clay for a long period of time is not fortuitous, but rather is the consequence of a long process of social memory reproduction