﻿680 
  SOUTH 
  AMERICAN 
  INDIANS 
  [B. 
  A. 
  E. 
  Bull. 
  143 
  

  

  The 
  presence 
  of 
  bedrock 
  mortars 
  is 
  the 
  best 
  proof 
  that 
  these 
  sites 
  were 
  

   occupied 
  in 
  aboriginal 
  times. 
  

  

  A 
  typical 
  cave 
  dwelling 
  (pi. 
  152) 
  was 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  valley 
  of 
  La 
  

   Punilla, 
  at 
  Piedras 
  Grandes, 
  near 
  the 
  town 
  of 
  Huerta 
  Grande. 
  It 
  is 
  

   a 
  large, 
  eroded 
  cavity 
  in 
  granite, 
  and 
  can 
  shelter 
  several 
  people. 
  The 
  

   opening 
  is 
  well 
  oriented, 
  facing 
  north. 
  On 
  the 
  western 
  and 
  eastern 
  

   sides, 
  fissures 
  have 
  been 
  closed 
  with 
  dry 
  masonry. 
  The 
  most 
  notable 
  

   feature 
  of 
  the 
  cave, 
  which 
  demonstrates 
  its 
  aboriginal 
  occupation 
  by 
  

   natives, 
  is 
  nine 
  bedrock 
  mortars 
  in 
  the 
  two 
  large 
  stone 
  blocks 
  forming 
  

   the 
  floor 
  of 
  the 
  dwelling. 
  Nearby 
  there 
  are 
  11 
  other 
  mortars 
  as 
  well 
  

   as 
  smaller 
  shelters 
  which 
  have 
  also 
  been 
  occupied. 
  

  

  Another 
  similar 
  shelter 
  is 
  located 
  at 
  the 
  southern 
  tip 
  of 
  the 
  Sierra 
  

   de 
  Comechingones 
  (figs. 
  69, 
  70), 
  near 
  the 
  city 
  of 
  Achiras. 
  Although 
  

   " 
  stone 
  houses" 
  exist 
  throughout 
  the 
  Sierras 
  de 
  C<5rdoba, 
  they 
  are 
  

   especially 
  numerous 
  in 
  this 
  southern 
  Sierra 
  de 
  Comechingones 
  region. 
  

   In 
  the 
  entire 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  Sierra 
  visited, 
  the 
  author 
  found 
  no 
  shelter 
  

   lacking 
  evidence 
  of 
  former 
  occupation. 
  

  

  Also 
  near 
  Achiras 
  is 
  the 
  hill 
  of 
  In 
  tihuasi, 
  which 
  has 
  long 
  been 
  famous 
  

   for 
  its 
  rock 
  paintings. 
  There 
  are 
  many 
  typical 
  cave 
  dwellings 
  on 
  its 
  

   slopes 
  (Aparicio, 
  1936, 
  figs. 
  1-5). 
  

  

  The 
  chroniclers 
  refer 
  to 
  curious 
  underground 
  dwellings 
  in 
  this 
  region 
  

   which 
  are, 
  obviously, 
  not 
  the 
  natural 
  or 
  modified 
  shelters. 
  They 
  are 
  

   described 
  by 
  Cieza 
  as 
  follows: 
  "Those 
  who 
  returned 
  from 
  the 
  expe- 
  

   dition 
  say 
  that 
  they 
  [the 
  natives] 
  dug 
  out 
  the 
  ground 
  until 
  they 
  ob- 
  

   tained 
  two 
  walls 
  on 
  which 
  they 
  put 
  a 
  wooden 
  frame 
  and 
  thatch-like 
  

   huts." 
  This 
  information 
  is 
  confirmed 
  by 
  the 
  "Relacidn" 
  of 
  Cabrera: 
  

   "The 
  houses 
  are 
  low 
  and 
  half 
  of 
  their 
  height 
  is 
  underground. 
  They 
  

   enter 
  them 
  like 
  cellars. 
  They 
  do 
  this 
  to 
  protect 
  themselves 
  against 
  

   the 
  cold 
  and 
  because 
  of 
  the 
  lack 
  of 
  wood 
  in 
  these 
  regions." 
  Father 
  

   Pablo 
  Cabrera 
  (1932) 
  found 
  in 
  a 
  judiciary 
  document 
  of 
  1594 
  a 
  confir- 
  

   mation 
  of 
  the 
  above 
  quoted 
  passages. 
  In 
  the 
  course 
  of 
  the 
  document 
  

   are 
  such 
  sentences 
  as, 
  "The 
  old 
  house 
  or 
  hole 
  which 
  was 
  shown," 
  or, 
  

   "The 
  site 
  of 
  an 
  abandoned 
  house, 
  the 
  hole 
  of 
  which 
  is 
  half 
  a 
  league 
  

   away." 
  

  

  Archeological 
  research 
  has 
  encountered 
  no 
  vestiges 
  of 
  such 
  houses, 
  

   and 
  in 
  C6rdoba 
  there 
  is 
  no 
  tradition 
  of 
  them, 
  but 
  in 
  San 
  Luis 
  such 
  

   tradition 
  still 
  exists. 
  

  

  DRESS 
  

  

  Cieza 
  gives 
  the 
  first 
  information 
  about 
  Comechingdn 
  dress: 
  

   In 
  summer 
  they 
  wear 
  tunics 
  [camisetas] 
  not 
  very 
  long 
  and 
  in 
  winter 
  long 
  capes 
  

   [manias] 
  of 
  coarse 
  wool. 
  The 
  women 
  also 
  are 
  dressed 
  in 
  the 
  same 
  clothes. 
  

  

  Matienzo 
  describes 
  them 
  briefly 
  as 
  "people 
  dressed 
  like 
  the 
  Diagui- 
  

   tas." 
  The 
  "Kelacidn" 
  of 
  Cabrera 
  is 
  more 
  explicit: 
  

   Most 
  of 
  them 
  are 
  dressed 
  with 
  wool 
  and 
  some 
  with 
  well 
  worked 
  skins 
  like 
  the 
  

   guadamecis 
  of 
  Spain. 
  Most 
  of 
  them 
  have 
  rods 
  of 
  metal 
  with 
  heads 
  like 
  spoons 
  

  

  