The other side of the paradise: new data and reflections about violence among pre-colonial fisher-hunters

Abstract

The studies about acute traumas and violence among Brazilian precolonial coastal groups are rare. Difficulties due to taphonomic and methodological factors, besides the inexistence of iconographical data, are the main causes of the shortage of research on the theme. Given this scenario, the goal of this article is to contribute with new data about violence among southern fisher-hunters, which point to an increase of the aggression episodes when compared to the period of the coastal occupation by sambaqui builders. Finally, it is proposed the development of new approaches to understand this phenomenon, combining climatic events and specific socio-economic contexts.