Historical Archeology in the temple of Jáchal, San Juan

Abstract

The Temple of San José de Jáchal located in the department of Jáchal, province of San Juan, Argentina, was declared a National Historic Monument in 1978 by National Decree No. 2436. In 2019 a building restoration project was launched and the construction of new facilities. In these tasks, the archaeological intervention was necessary in accordance with its heritage declaration and the obligation of Provincial Law 571-F, to publicize the archaeological and historical findings that could arise in a building work. More than sixteen rescue and archaeological excavation tasks were carried out on the site, where the registration of material and spatial data was prioritized, as a way of understanding the disposition of the burials that arose in the work.

The present work is framed within the Funerary Historical Archeology, taking as a reference the burial process that occurred in Spain and throughout Spanish colonial America. In it, the characteristics and disposition of the burials and material remains found in them are analyzed.