Located in an area 20 km south of the city of Mendoza, Argentina, Agrelo and several related sites are thought to represent the agriculture-pottery threshold in this marginal semi-arid area. No evidence of irrigation is discernible, even though it would have been necessary to any cultivation strategy. Simple pottery, generally in the form of deep, wide-mouthed pots, has been found; it has a rough grey-black body and is usually decorated by incision, punctuation or small appliqué nodes (sometimes in the shape of a human face). Pottery spindle whorls and crude figurines also occur, as do labrets, clubheads, triangular projectile points and beads in stone. Pit inhumations are marked by a circle of stones. Nearby coastal pottery styles (e.g. Cienega and El Molle) may be precursors to Agrelo and are major factors in dating it to the early centuries of the Christian era.
The Macmillan dictionary of archaeology, Ruth D. Whitehouse, 1983Copied