In defense of the soils. A hybrid perspective of archaeology of agriculture in the Andean high valleys (Catamarca, Argentina)

It may state two separate claims as one.

Rodeo Gerván, El Bolsón, and Los Morteritos-Las Cuevas are three high-altitude valleys (~3,000 masl) with a semi-arid, extreme, and highly contrasting climate, dynamic geomorphology, and a rural population that has depended on agriculture and livestock raising for the past 1,200 years.

“Rodeo Gerván, El Bolsón, and Los Morteritos-Las Cuevas (Figure 4) are three high-altitude valleys (∼3,000 masl), characterized by a semi-arid, extreme, and highly contrasting climate (both daily and seasonally), a highly dynamic geomorphology, and a rural population that has depended on agriculture and livestock raising for the past 1,200 years-with shifts and continuities, of course-as establis”

• cites Korstanje, 2005Not matched

  Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

• cites Korstanje et al., 2017Not matched

  Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

• cites Kulemeyer et al., 2013 sourcePartly supported

  Split into 2 atoms — 0 confirmed, 2 partially supported, 0 disputed, 0 misattributed, 0 unverifiable. Expand the claim to see per-atom verdicts.

  Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. It may state two separate claims as one.

Territory is the product of the network of social relationships woven daily between human beings and nature, and is the socio-political shaping of the environment generating a particular sense of identity.

“Broadly speaking, in the social sciences, it is defined as the product of the network of social relationships woven daily between human beings and nature.Territory is thus the socio-political shaping of the environment in which people live and unfold as social beings, generating a particular sense of identity (Ther Ríos, 2011).”

• cites Ther Ríos, 2011 sourceSupported

It may state two separate claims as one.

The limited pedological development in the area makes it difficult to define soils in the strictest sense; the most common profiles are of the A/C or A/C/2C types.

“The limited pedological development in the area makes it difficult to define soils in the strictest sense; the most common profiles are of the A/C or A/C/2C types.”

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. The paper may give no reason why it holds.

The proposed soilscape is material, vital, and agentive, with its corporeal, physical, and socio-symbolic foundation in the SET Complex.

“This is the concept of a material, vital, and agentive soilscape that I propose-one whose corporeal, physical, and socio-symbolic foundation lies in the notion of the SET Complex.”

Probably not a substantial claim.

Soil constitutes an autonomous sphere that behaves as an open system, with inputs and outputs of matter and energy.

“Soil constitutes an autonomous sphere that behaves as an open system, with inputs and outputs of matter and energy (Porta Casanellas et al., 2003, p. 84).”

• cites Porta Casanellas et al., 2003Not matched

  Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. It may state two separate claims as one.

Assemblages are not governed by a central head, but each member contributes its own vitality to allow the assemblage to generate things while simultaneously retaining some of its own vitality.

“assemblages are not governed by a central head, but each member contributes its own vitality to allow the assemblage to generate things-while simultaneously retaining some of its own vitality”

• cites Bennett, 2022Not matched

  Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. The paper may give no reason why it holds.

The etymological definition of soil suggests a corporeal relationship and vital contact between the person and the material essence of the soil.

“This etymological definition is already quite eloquent, as it suggests a corporeal relationship and vital contact between the person and the material essence of the soil.”

Probably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. It may state two separate claims as one.

All soils can be sediments, but not all sediments can be soils.

“all soils can be sediments, but not all sediments can be soils.”

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence.

Practical knowledge arises from the convergence of inherited and practiced common sense with the personal, embodied experiences of each social subject in relation to the material world.

“Practical knowledge arises from the convergence of inherited and practiced common sense with the personal, embodied experiences of each social subject in relation to the material world.”

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. The paper may give no reason why it holds. It may state two separate claims as one.

In agriculture, soils function simultaneously as both a support and a provider for plant life and contribute to a complex assemblage that transforms them into a locus of fertility, nurturing a caregiving environment.

“In agriculture, they function simultaneously as both a support and a provider for plant life and, in turn, contributes to a complex assemblage that transforms them into a locus of fertility, nurturing a caregiving environment.”

Probably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. The paper may give no reason why it holds.

Soil constitutes the broadest and most ubiquitous material category archaeologists work with.

“soil constitutes the broadest and most ubiquitous material category we work with.”

Probably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.

The pedosphere represents the synthesis of the biosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere, and atmosphere, which constitute the soil-forming factors.

“The pedosphere thus represents the synthesis of these four spheres, which-broadly speaking-constitute the soilforming factors.”

• cites Conti, 2005Not matched

  Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

Probably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. It may state two separate claims as one.

Soil functions as both a support and a provider of plant life.

“Within soil sciences-especially those concerned with the relationship between soil and agriculture, such as edaphology and agronomy-soil is recognized to possess two fundamental qualities that define its identity: it functions as both a support and a provider of plant life.”

• cites Porta Casanellas et al., 2003Not matched

  Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

Probably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.

During August in the Andean region, the earth is considered thin, open, and hungry, and requires nourishment.

“During this period in the Global South, particularly in the Andean region, the earth is considered thin, open, and hungry, and requires nourishment (Van Kessel and Condorí Cruz, 1992, p. 86).”

• cites Van Kessel and Condorí Cruz, 1992Not matched

  Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

It may state two separate claims as one.

Quinoa cultivation was enabled again in the last 15 years through quinoa reintroduction projects promoted by national government agencies, leading to planting on family plots.

“Some components of this assemblage became available againdue to their vital potentials and affordances-to be re-assembled with other vibrant matter, enabling quinoa cultivation once more in the last 15 years, though under different conditions and circumstances.These include quinoa reintroduction projects promoted by national government agencies, whose local representative-an agronomist deeply”

It may state two separate claims as one.

Soil is not merely a receptacle for what enters it; it does not play a passive role, and its material vitality stimulates human perception, sensory apprehension, and corporeal contact.

“Yet this does not imply a unidirectional relationship: soil is not merely a receptacle for what enters it.It cannot be understood solely through its accumulative capacity.It does not play a passive role; rather, its material vitality stimulates human perception, sensory apprehension, and corporeal contact-through gesturewhich then becomes a personal experience.”

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. The paper may give no reason why it holds.

Conceptualizing soil as an artifact leads to a certain reification, overlooking the agentic aspects of its ontic nature.

“conceptualizing soil as an artifact leads to a certain reification, overlooking the agentic aspects of its ontic nature”

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. The paper may give no reason why it holds.

An Archaeology of Agriculture that incorporates the SET Complex necessarily includes temporal and spatial depth, as well as its many constituent vital materials, all in dynamic relationship with what occurs on and through them, without imposing arbitrary temporal boundaries.

“An Archaeology of Agriculture that incorporates this concept necessarily includes temporal and spatial depth, as well as its many constituent vital materials-all of which are in dynamic relationship with what occurs on and through them, without imposing arbitrary temporal boundaries.”

• AssumptionRests on an assumption: Archaeologists already extract information from soils and sediments to support archaeological interpretations, but have not paused to ask what this complex materiality entails.

It may state two separate claims as one.

People have cultivated and continue to cultivate in these poorly developed soils through practices aimed at stimulating and enhancing vital potentials for crianza.

“Nevertheless, people have cultivated-and continue to cultivate-in these poorly developed soils.This has been possible because, over time, they have established relationships with soil-earth in agricultural contexts through a range of practices aimed at stimulating and enhancing its vital potentials for the creation of spaces of crianza -nurture, care and cultivation- (Grillo, 1994;Lema, 2014).”

• cites Grillo, 1994Not matched

  Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

• cites Lema, 2014 sourceNot checked yet

  Checked before — its earlier verdict is held back until a new check runs.

Probably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. It may state two separate claims as one.

Soil is an open, three-phase, and heterogeneous system, composed of solid, liquid, and gaseous phases.

“From a material standpoint, soil is defined as an open, threephase, and heterogeneous system, composed of three physically and chemically distinct phases: a solid phase, a liquid phase, and a gaseous phase (Porta Casanellas et al., 2003, p. 91;Jaramillo, 2002, p. 157).”

• cites Porta Casanellas et al., 2003Not matched

  Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

• cites Jaramillo, 2002Not matched

  Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence.

The social fabric that constitutes territory is often constructed upon soil-earth rather than within it.

“However, it often seems that this social fabric which constitutes territory is constructed upon soil-earth rather than within it.”

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. It may state two separate claims as one.

The SET Complex is intelligible as archaeological materiality and contributes to a complex approach to its central role as both articulator and enabler of social relationships within agricultural landscapes, understood as taskscapes.

“Thus defined, the SET Complex becomes intelligible as archaeological materiality and contributes to a complex approach to its central role as both articulator and enabler of social relationships within agricultural landscapes, understood as taskscapes.”

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. It may state two separate claims as one.

Landscapes are materially and vitally constituted, deep, and taskscapes.

“Now, if we consider, based on everything outlined in this section, that landscapes are materially and vitally constituted-and deep (a dimension granted by the bodies of soil as soilscapes)and finally, as taskscapes, we can then conceive of agricultural landscapes as in motion, formed by the continual generation of contact and mutual perception among vibrant, vital matters.”

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. It may state two separate claims as one.

The SET Complex framework helps understand the constitution of soils as individual bodies, their assemblages as soilscapes, their dual role as support and provider of vegetal life, and the ways people have historically related to and assembled with them.

“This framework helps us understand the constitution of soils as individual bodies, their assemblages as soilscapes, their dual role as support and provider of vegetal life within agricultural landscapes, and, finally, the ways in which people have historically related to and assembled with them-co-configuring individual and collective identities through practice over the long term.”

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence.

The ongoing activation and reactivation of assemblages of vibrant matter generates topographic variation in vitality, interpretable as an agrarian landscape that breathes and continually reinvents itself.

“This ongoing activation and reactivation of assemblages of vibrant matter generates topographic variation in terms of vitality-which can be interpreted as an agrarian landscape that breathes and continually reinvents itself, grounded in the STT.”

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. It may state two separate claims as one.

The SET becomes perceptible and apprehensible as earth, and its liminalities grant it identity as a vital material in itself.

“In this way, the SET becomes perceptible and apprehensible as earth-mineral yet organic, solid yet porous, concrete yet kneadable or friable.These liminalities are what grant it identity as a vital material in itself, composed in turn of assembled vital materials.”

Probably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. It may state two separate claims as one.

There is a shared awareness of a mutual nurturing network: a well-fed soil-earth is healthy and will produce healthy seeds and good pastures for livestock.

“There is a shared awareness of a mutual nurturing network: A well-fed soil-earth is a healthy one, that will produce healthy seeds and good pastures for fattening the livestock, which will also remain healthy and safe.”

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. The paper may give no reason why it holds.

The Soil-Earth-Territory Complex (SET) is a valid archaeological materiality.

“Following the theoretical framework developed so far, I now propose to approach as an archaeological object of study what I define as the Soil-Earth-Territory Complex (SET), emphasizing its validity as an archaeological materiality.”

It may state two separate claims as one.

The processes within the SET Complex can be interrupted, halted by a seal, restarted, or sustained continuously.

“Second, as a consequence of these varying rhythms, the processes that occur within it can be interrupted, halted by a seal, restarted, or sustained continuously.”

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. It may state two separate claims as one.

The object of study that the SET Complex approaches is difficult to fit within classical categories of analysis in archaeology, yet is undeniable and valid as archaeological materiality.

“The concept of the SET Complex is a proposal for approaching an object of study that is difficult to fit within the classical categories of analysis in our discipline-yet which is, at the same time, undeniable and valid as archaeological materiality.”

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence.

Agricultural landscapes are in motion, formed by the continual generation of contact and mutual perception among vibrant, vital matters.

“Now, if we consider, based on everything outlined in this section, that landscapes are materially and vitally constituted-and deep (a dimension granted by the bodies of soil as soilscapes)and finally, as taskscapes, we can then conceive of agricultural landscapes as in motion, formed by the continual generation of contact and mutual perception among vibrant, vital matters.”

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.

Territory entails the weaving of a social fabric structured by kinship and familiarity ties, a shared awareness of life, diverse forms of solidarity, and situations of tension and conflict.

“In this framework, territory entails the weaving of a social fabric structured by kinship and familiarity ties, a shared awareness of life, diverse forms of solidarity, and of course, situations of tension and conflict (Pease, 2015).”

• cites Pease, 2015Not matched

  Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

Probably not a substantial claim. It may state two separate claims as one.

Bennett's vital materialism proposes matter as active, dynamic, unpredictable, and capable of agency.

“she proposes a view of matter as active, dynamic, unpredictable, and capable of agency (Manccioni and Jorge, 2022)”

• cites Manccioni and Jorge, 2022Not matched

  Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

Probably not a substantial claim.

The constituents of the world can be viewed as vibrant matter's assemblages, including the SET, seed, manures, offering/ritual, animal, and person with tools.

“We can now begin to view the constituents of the world as vibrant matter's assemblages (Bennett, 2022)”

• cites Bennett, 2022Not matched

  Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. It may state two separate claims as one.

The SET Complex is complex, multidimensional, and hybrid.

“the SET itself (complex, multidimensional, and hybrid)”

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence.

Soil is territory, insofar as its material and vital essence, assembled with the human, gives rise to relationships and representations that confer mutual identity and belonging.

“Soil is territory, insofar as its material and vital essence, assembled with the human, gives rise to relationships and representations that confer mutual identity and belonging.”

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. It may state two separate claims as one.

People exercise and modify practical knowledge every time they use it, thereby transforming the world.

“People exercise and modify that practical knowledge every time they use it-thereby transforming the world”

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. The paper may give no reason why it holds.

The SET Complex, far from being merely soil in agronomic terms, possesses additional material, social, and symbolic dimensions that render it more complex.

“Far from being merely soil in agronomic terms, it possesses additional material, social, and symbolic dimensions that render it more complex.”

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence.

The assemblages that constitute the SET Complex inherently carry a temporal dimension-or multiple temporalities.

“We thus also come to understand that these assemblages inherently carry a temporal dimension-or rather, multiple temporalities.”

It may state two separate claims as one.

Individual soils are not discrete bodies; lateral changes in morphology and pedological properties occur gradually.

“However, the individual soils represented in these pedons are not actually separated from one another-they are not discrete bodies.Lateral changes in morphology and pedological properties occur gradually, which allows the definition of polypedons (Porta Casanellas et al., 2003, p. 22, 23), although identifying their boundaries remains complex.”

• cites Porta Casanellas et al., 2003Not matched

  Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

It may state two separate claims as one.

Among highland farmers, agricultural crianza is not solely aimed at food production; inhabitants raise plants, animals, and soils while raising themselves, enacting socially constructed heritage.

“Moreover, among the highland farmers, what takes place within the spaces of agricultural crianza (the plots) is not solely aimed at food production-or at least not in strictly economic terms from a Western capitalist standpoint.Beyond that, the inhabitants of the high valleys raise plants, animals, and soilswhile simultaneously raising themselves through the processenacting that which has been”

• cites Cáceres, 2000Not matched

  Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

It may state two separate claims as one.

The temporalities of the SET Complex operate across different scales, some following seasonal or annual cycles, others unfolding over hundreds or even thousands of years.

“In addition, we must consider that, first and foremost, the temporalities of the SET Complex operate across different scales (Elizalde, 2009;Linderholm, 2010): some follow seasonal or annual cycles, while others unfold over hundreds or even thousands of years.”

• cites Elizalde, 2009Not matched

  Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

• cites Linderholm, 2010Not matched

  Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

It may state two separate claims as one.

The practices of fertilizing, feeding, and convidar are performed on the material dimension (earth), affect the corporeal depth (soil), and have a component associated with the socio-symbolic dimension (territory) of the SET.

“Although these practices differ in terms of time, materials offered, and who promotes them, they all have one thing in common: they are performed on the material dimension (earth), affecting the corporeal depth (soil), but with a component associated with the socio-symbolic dimension (territory) of the SET.”

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. The paper may give no reason why it holds.

Soils are the foundation of peasant landscapes, synthesizing a complex interplay of physical, chemical, biological, environmental and social processes.

“Soils are the foundation of peasant landscapes, synthesizing a complex interplay of physical, chemical, biological, environmental and social processes.”

Probably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it. The paper may give no reason why it holds.

Soils require a sufficiently long period of environmental stability so that formative factors converge and give rise to particular pedological processes that enable pedogenesis.

“soils require a sufficiently long period of environmental stability so that formative factors converge and give rise to particular pedological processes that enable pedogenesis.”

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.

Territory is the intersection of matter and practice, of the object upon which one acts and the subject that acts.

“Here, territory becomes the intersection of matter and practice, of the object upon which one acts and the subject that acts (Monnet, 2010;D'Angelo, 2019).”

• cites Monnet, 2010Not matched

  Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

• cites D'Angelo, 2019 sourceNot checked yet

  Checked before — its earlier verdict is held back until a new check runs.

Probably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.

The taskscape is highly dynamic and never complete.

“the taskscape is highly dynamic and never complete (Ingold, 1993, p. 194-195).”

• cites Ingold, 1993 sourceNot checked — no full text of the source

Probably not a substantial claim.

Soil manages inputs and outputs of matter and energy through pedological processes, which give a specific soil its unique identity.

“I propose that these inputs and outputs of matter and energy, understood in terms of material vitality, are managed by the soil itself through properly pedological processes (physical, chemical, and biological additions, translocations, transformations, and losses), which give a specific soil its unique identity (Figure 2).”

Probably not a substantial claim. It may be too vague to check against evidence.

Landscape is a relational field, where its forms emerge as condensations of beings' activity within that field.

“Landscape, then, is a relational field, where its forms emerge as condensations of beings' activity within that field.”

• cites Ingold, 2000Not matched

  Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.