Guanacos engravings in the interfluvium of the Gallegos-Chico rivers (Santa Cruz, Argentina): its southernmost distribution in Patagonia

This paper characterizes the techniques and morphologies of a newly found set of rock engravings recorded in the Pali Aike volcanic field (Province of Santa Cruz, Argentina), composed by the representation of gua-nacos with different morphologies. These designs are contextualized within the variety of rock art motifs previously recognized in the area and assigned to the Rio Chico style, comprised mainly of painted geometric abstract designs. The variability in the design of engraved guanaco motifs is described by the morphology of the body, neck and leg, execution technique, orientation, representation plane, and dimensions, among others. A discussion follows on the manufacturing process or constructive design standards and, finally, chronological estimates are proposed based on regional comparisons, foreseeing that this set of representa-tions could correspond to the earliest rock art of southern Patagonia (ca. 5000 BP).