Por uma história de ocupação humana da várzea: utilização de sensoriamento remoto para pensar prospecção arqueológica

Abstract

Few archaeological sites are known in the whitewater floodplain lands in the Brazilian Amazon, which are marked by a strong dynamism due to erosion and deposition river processes. These processes influence the age of the sediments of these floodplains (which are not homogeneous), and may affect the preservation of the places occupied by ancient indigenous societies. Theorizing about the history of human occupation in the Amazon region, ideas from Cultural Ecology (based on premises of environmental determinism and ecological equilibrium) led some researchers to think of societies that lived in floodplain (várzeas) areas as culturally superior to those that lived on dry lands (terras firmes), because of the differences between these two environments. Historical Ecology has brought a new vision, where human beings have the power to transform environments (instead of merely adapting to them), and have been doing this for millennia. Currently, this paradigm shift has allowed Amazonian Archeology to work with new perspectives, being able to tell different stories through different visions. However, few archaeological researches have been carried out within the floodplain areas in the Brazilian Amazon.The whitewater floodplains (with kilometer extension) undeniably have archaeological potential, and it is important to know what they can add to the long-lasting indigenous history of the Amazon. Thus, the objectives of this work involved: a brief bibliographic review on the history of human occupation of the Brazilian Amazon floodplains, and how ideas based on different ecological assumptions influenced the construction of this history; as well as the elaboration of a proposal to study whitewater floodplain areas from an archaeological point of view, focused on surveying sites and anthropogenic modifications in the landscape. More specifically, the possibility of using remote sensing as a tool to assist in the archaeological survey of a whitewater floodplain region between Curuá/PA and Alenquer/PA was investigated. We sought to identify river scroll bars and think of a hypothetical deposition sequence (in an attempt to distinguish between old and recent areas), as well as to locate areas of high floodplain forest in order to find potentially more stable and preserved locations.The procedures included satellite imagery acquisition, use of a Geographic Information System, comparison of historical and recent seasonal images, map production and field verification. The bibliographic survey and indications by community members allowed an archaeological survey, with some identified sites. Finally, some directions were given to improve the research in future moments. Among them, the spatial and temporal refinement of satellite images, the acquisition of radar images and the use of unmanned aerial vehicles, as well as archaeological surveys and excavations. We also recognize the importance of talking to the inhabitants of the floodplains to locate archaeological sites.