The mobility of shepherds in the Upper Pyrenees: A spatial analysis of pathways and site-location differences from medieval times to the 20th century

This paper investigates ancient pastoral mobility in a high mountain area of the Pyrenees. Firstly, modern transhumant routes were analysed using GIS tools in order to understand possible determinant factors (such as terrain slope and altitude, water courses and possible nodes) in the layout of a ro...

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Detalhes bibliográficos
Autores: García-Casas, David, Gassiot Ballbè, Ermengol
Formato: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2023
País:España
Recursos:Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)
Repositorio:DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC
OAI Identifier:oai:digital.csic.es:10261/338364
Acesso em linha:http://hdl.handle.net/10261/338364
https://api.elsevier.com/content/abstract/scopus_id/85166281834
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palavra-chave:Transhumant routes
GIS
Least-cost paths
Pastoralism
Pyrenees
Descrição
Resumo:This paper investigates ancient pastoral mobility in a high mountain area of the Pyrenees. Firstly, modern transhumant routes were analysed using GIS tools in order to understand possible determinant factors (such as terrain slope and altitude, water courses and possible nodes) in the layout of a route used for seasonal livestock movements. The observations obtained were then used to model optimal paths which may have been used by ancient shepherds. Subsequently, an analysis was made of the spatial relationship between the simulated paths and the dispersion pattern of archaeological sites in two time periods: Late Antiquity-Medieval (3rd-14th centuries AD) and Modern-Contemporary (18th-20th centuries AD). The results show significant differences in the spatial distribution of the sites throughout both periods in terms of accessibility and proximity to possible pathways. This variability provides information concerning historical changes in the social structure of pastoral alpine landscapes over long periods of time.