Survey archaeology and regional analysis. A conceptual model on the selection of past dynamics during the Holocene in Wadi Abiod, Aures, Eastern Algeria

This paper inserted within a geoarchaeological study, provides a model for the investigation and the support of past dynamics of a mountainous landscape in the Aures region (Algeria) during the Holocene. It introduces the first analysis based on the detailed mapping of morphological features of the study area in relation with a typomorphology theoretical model that was confronted with data from archaeological research. Our results suggest that the choice of the prehistorical movement processes has been driven by the outcrop of some deposits and the presence of specific landforms, such as high and low-relief areas. This approach was applied to a sector with controversial archaeological evidences (the valley of Wadi Abiod), where geological and morphological analyses support archaeological research in the reconstruction of the ancient pathways during the Holocene. This integrated approach can help archaeologists to understand and then discover ancient courses crossing complex in impervious landscapes such as the intramountain Lands.