Estudo geoarqueológico no Parque Nacional dos Sempre-Vivas: sítios arqueológicos como elementos constitutivos dos lugares, das paisagens e dos territórios

Abstract

The thesis entitled "Geoarchaeological Study in Sempre-Vivas National Park: Archaeological Sites as Constituent Elements of Places, Landscapes, and Territories" aimed to investigate natural rock shelters and various traces of human presence, as well as their interactions with geoarchaeological processes. Based on this foundation, the study sought to understand the different modes of occupation over time in the shelters located within the Sempre-Vivas National Park. The research was grounded in a literature review, spatial analyses using Geographic Information Systems (GIS), field surveys, and laboratory analyses. As a result of these activities, fourteen archaeological sites in rock shelters were recorded for the first time in the park, two of which underwent systematic excavations. Furthermore, this thesis proposed an interpretative approach that recognizes archaeological shelters as spaces of hybrid interactions, which, over time, have contributed to the formation of Landscapes, Places, and Territories. The findings indicate human occupations—pre-colonial, historical, and contemporary—in the same shelters. Additionally, the data generated fills a significant gap in the archaeological knowledge of the region and contributes to understanding the occupation dynamics that occurred during the Late Holocene in the central area of the Espinhaço Protected Areas Mosaic: Alto Jequitinhonha - Serra do Cabral, which is part of Espinhaço Meridional Range’s Biosphere Reserve.