Símbolos na arte rupestre sob o olhar da Arqueologia Cognitiva: Considerações analíticas sobre o sítio Conjunto da Falha, Cidade de Pedra, Rondonópolis, Mato Grosso

Abstract

The large number of archaeological sites at Cidade de Pedra/Rondonópolis (MT) and the formal variety, themes and techniques that characterize its rock art strongly mark the landscape of the region. In this article,the Conjunto da Falha rock art site is analyzed in relative detail from the perspective of Cognitive Archaeology, reinforcing the importance of the structural relation between support/graphic records in the construction of a symbolic language. Putting together the materiality of the Conjunto da Falha rock art site with theoretical proposals from the cognitive sciences, a discussion of socially organized rock art records is presented here. Rock art reflects cultural beliefs and choices of past groups who were responsible for its organization. In close relationship with the material media, as essential part in the construction of the message, those beliefs and choices constitute a semantic category together with the painted units.