Critique: Surovell did not core the primary Monteverde 2 site. Surovell took geological cores in areas up and down the ravine, not at the primary site The primary archaeological site is identified as Monteverde 2 (MV2) Arbuthnot notes artifacts at Monteverde are in secure context with good dates and are intact
Monte Verde's antiquity raises a puzzle: how did people reach southern Chile with the ice-free corridor closed? Possible routes include coastal skirting, transpacific open-ocean travel, or passage through ice. Arbuthnot also argues complex sedentary societies, like the Chumash and Kwakiutl, could develop without agriculture, showing maritime richness can support chiefdom-level organization and advanced watercraft.
Key Facts
- Surovell took geological cores in areas up and down the ravine, not at the primary site
- The primary archaeological site is identified as Monteverde 2 (MV2)
- Arbuthnot notes artifacts at Monteverde are in secure context with good dates and are intact
- Surovell's paper was published in Science journal
- Surovell himself acknowledges the need to revisit Monteverde and further investigate his claims
Related site: Monteverde — view location, images, and history on the Ancient Nerds map.
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