Geochronological contexts of natural and cultural events of Uruguay

The chronology studies carried out in Uruguay were reviewed, by assessing use of different techniques applied since the mid-1970s. These studies cover the temporal reconstruction of various natural and cultural events, carried out by different disciplines, as well as interdisciplinary groups. The development of geochronology in the Uruguay was closely related to archaeological research. In the last 20 years the dating techniques were expanded to other scientific disciplines, thus generating an improvement in such techniques and the implementation of new ones, the result of interdisciplinary work. In this sense, more than 100 scientific works focused on different types of geochronological reconstruction have been analyzed. Based on the background and studies undertaken, we intended to establish the guidelines to generate protocols to select the most appropriate dating technique. For this purpose, taking into account the provenance and type of sample (natural or cultural), the temporal range of study, the nature of the material (organic or inorganic), as well as the temporal resolution, the selection of the most appropriate method will be discussed. The objective of this work is to create a database as a technical reference for research aiming to establish chronologies between 500,000 years and the present, since by systematizing methodologies at the country level. Likewise, it serves as input and starting point for the implementation of a new luminescence dating laboratory and ²¹⁰Pb / ¹³⁷Cs, by the authors, in Uruguay. (author)