Department of Geological Sciences

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Browsing Department of Geological Sciences by Subject "Anthropology"

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    EVALUATING MOBILITY, MONUMENTALITY, AND FEASTING AT THE SAPELO ISLAND SHELL RING COMPLEX
    (Cambridge University Press, 2011) Thompson, Victor D.; Andrus, C. Fred T.; University System of Ohio; Ohio State University; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
    Two of the most salient anthropological questions regarding southeastern shell ring sites are related to the season(s) that they were occupied and whether or not the deposits represent monumental constructions and/or feasting remains. This paper addresses these questions through the analysis of growth band of clams (Mercenaria spp.) (N = 620) and stable oxygen isotope ratios of clam and oyster shells (Crassostrea virginica) (N = 58) at the Sapelo Island Shell Ring complex located on the Georgia coast, USA. The season of death and the samples' position in the shell matrix at Sapelo provide important information on the rate of shell deposition and the season(s) the site was occupied. These data support the view that at least some portion of the human population at Sapelo occupied the site year-round. Additionally, while it appears that two shell rings at the site formed through the gradual deposition and accumulation of daily subsistence, other areas evidence short term, large-scale, shellfish processing and may lend credence to the view that at some point shell rings become monuments, commemorating rituals and gatherings.
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    SCLEROCHRONOLOGICAL MEASURES OF SEASONALITY AT A LATE WOODLAND MOUND ON THE MISSISSIPPI GULF COAST
    (Cambridge University Press, 2014-10) Blitz, John H.; Andrus, C. Fred T.; Downs, Lauren E.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa; University of Alabama Birmingham
    Seasonality of site occupation has been an important issue in the archaeology of precolumbian coastal populations in the U.S. Southeast. Sclerochronological oxygen isotope measurements to estimate season of capture were performed on marsh clam (Rangia cuneata) and oyster (Crassostrea virginica) shells from a Late Woodland platform mound in coastal Mississippi. This study is the first oxygen isotope analysis of archaeological Rangia cuneata. The results of the study, supported by vertebrate faunal and plant seasonal indicators and depositional circumstances, indicate that mound trash deposits were generated by short-term activities during the spring and summer months. Factors that could reduce the precision of the seasonal estimates are identified.