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Sambaquis Shell Mounds, Archaeology of

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Encyclopedia of Global Archaeology

Introduction

The Brazilian coast was settled by groups of fisher-gatherers who built mounds known as sambaquis. These mounds (Fig. 1) are the main archaeological evidence of these groups, known as sambaquieiros or shell mound people. Sambaqui is a word of Tupi etymology, the language spoken by farmers and ceramic-making groups that occupied the Brazilian territory when Europeans arrived. Tamba means shell, and ki means mound, which are the most important visual features of these sites.

Sambaquis Shell Mounds, Archaeology of, Fig. 1
figure 1922 figure 1922

Santa Marta Sambaqui, Santa Catarina, Brazil

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departamento de Antropologia, MUSEU NACIONAL / UFRJ, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Maria Dulce Gaspar

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  1. Maria Dulce Gaspar
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Correspondence to Maria Dulce Gaspar .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Archaeology, Flinders University, Adelaide, SA, Australia

    Claire Smith

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Gaspar, M.D. (2014). Sambaquis Shell Mounds, Archaeology of. In: Smith, C. (eds) Encyclopedia of Global Archaeology. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-0465-2_967

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