DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1319099.

Abstract. Pedra do Cantagalo I is an archaeological site located in a rural area of the municipality of Piripiri, Piauí state, Brazil. It consists of a sandstone shelter decorated with more than 1,950 rock paintings representing abstract figures, spear-throwers, human handprints, and anthropomorphic and zoomorphic figures in polychromatic patterns. In addition to the high density of prehistoric inscriptions and polychrome paintings, this site also stands out due to the recurrence of painted motifs and that overlap each other. We found evidence of ceramic materials, lithics and ochres in the sediments. In this work we report the field and laboratory analytical strategies used in the investigation of this important archaeological site and the evidence of prehistoric human activity contained within or collected from the site. Our fundamental investigative techniques included physical examinations of the site, chemical-mineralogical characterization of the materials, monitoring of the environmental conditions and prospecting in nearby areas.

Keywords: Rock painting, Rock engraving, Lithic, Ceramics, Ochre, Archaeology.

Reference:

Sousa Bezerra da Silva, H. K., L. C. Duarte Cavalcante. 2017.
Estratégias de campo e de laboratório utilizadas na investigação do sítio arqueológico Pedra do Cantagalo I. Arqueología Iberoamericana 33: 35-41. http://purl.org/aia/335.

Publication date: February 17, 2017.