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PAPERS
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1) Lithic Sourcing and Late
Prehistoric Plains-Midwest Migration
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Lauren W. Ritterbush,Department
of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work, Kansas State
University
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Abstract: The Late Prehistoric period of the American
Plains and Midwestwas a dynamic period involving
movement of populations within and betweenthese
regions. Out of these shifting populations emerged reformed culturaladaptations. Recent research at Oneota sites in the Central Plains andalong
the Plains-Midwest boundary has raised interesting questions regardingpermanent and seasonal migration. Lithic sourcing, in combination withother
analyses, is used to identify movement and evaluate its permanence.
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2) Results of EDXRF Analysis of Materials from Two
Prehistoric QuarriesNear
Socorro, New Mexico
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Robert D. Dello-Russo,Escondida
Research Group
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Abstract: Recent research has demonstrated that
energy-dispersive X-rayfluorescence analysis can be
used to successfully identify trace elementvariations
in geologic sources of obsidians.While the raw
material availableat the Black Canyon and Sedillo Hill quarry sites near Socorro, New Mexicohave, in the past, been described as cherts or jaspers, geological indicationssuggest
that they could more appropriately be classified as silicifiedrhyolites.
The results of the EDXRF analysis of samples from these sitesare
reported.
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3) Debitage Analysis of
Milling-implement Production at AntelopeHill
Quarry, Lower Gila River, Arizona
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Gabrielle Duff, Statistical Research, Inc.
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Abstract: Debitage analysis of
segregated production loci at AntelopeHill, an
extremely large milling-implement quarry of arkosic
sandstonein southwestern Arizona, has documented that multiple
episodes of productionoccurred at each locus.
Furthermore, the stage-of-production debitage analysisappears to support the hypothesis that preliminary
stages of productionwere carried out near quarry
fronts and that intermediate and later stagesof
production were carried out at level work areas and preferentially atthe base of the hill. We hypothesize that success:failure rates of attemptsat milling-implement production were about
35%:65%. The area of distributionof tools made at
this quarry includes southern Arizona,
southeastern California,and northern Baja California. This paper explains our
approach to the lithicanalysis and the potential
application of the methods at other milling-implementquarries.
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4) Lithic Source Use and
Foraging Patterns in the Great Basin Paleoarchaic
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Charlotte Beck,
George T.Jones, Dept of Anthropology, Hamilton College
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Abstract: In their transversal of large subsistence
territories, theearliest occupants of the Great Basin, who we refer to as Paleoarchaicpeoples,
foraged over large territories, upwards of 400 km from north tosouth. In their movements these early peoples encountered
numerous lithicsources from which they manufactured
tools. As we demonstrate in this paper,the
representation of different raw material types reflects both mobilitypatterns and changes in those patterns through
time, as well as selectionfor functional qualities
of each material type. Further, the changes insource
representation over a 4000-year period, from late Pleistocene tothe mid-Holocene, suggests changes in Paleoarchaic foraging patterns overthis
period.
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5) The Characterization of Obsidian from Pantelleria (Italy):
TheArchaeological Significance of Multiple Island
Sources
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Barbara A. Vargo, RobertH. Tykot & Julie Bliss, University of South
Florida
Valentina Colella & Maurizio Tosi,
Universitàdi Bologna
Sebastiano Tusa, Soprintendenza ai Beni Culturalie
Ambientali di Trapani
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Abstract: The study of prehistoric obsidian sources is fundamentalto understanding socioeconomic interactions
among Neolithic communitiesin the central Mediterranean. Geoarchaeological
surveys of Pantelleriahave located obsidian in situ
in the interior of the island, in exposedlayers on
cliff-faces, and along the southern shoreline. Geochemical sourcecharacterization and the analysis of archaeological
artifacts allow usto identify which flows were
exploited. This research establishes the valueof
detailed obsidian characterization studies for the interpretation ofprehistoric socioeconomic patterns. Our results clarify
the nature of Neolithicinteractions in the south-central
Mediterranean and serve as a model forsimilar studies elsewhere.
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6) Lithic Resources of the Dakhleh Oasis Region, Western Desertof
Egypt
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Abstract: Prehistoric archaeological survey of the Dakhleh Oasis region,Western Desert, Egypt, conducted since 1978, has
included study of lithicraw materials utilized in both the
Pleistocene and Holocene cultural stratigraphicunits.
Bedrock formations (sandstones exposed in the southern Lowland andthe surrounding desert, shales
in the central Lowland and on the LibyanPlateau
Escarpment to the north, and limestones capping the
Escarpment)provide a variety of lithic
raw materials, also found redeposited intogravels and lags. Local resources were differentially
used at differenttimes and localities during the
Pleistocene, while imported raw materialsoccur in
quantity only after the mid-Holocene. Here, we discuss the evidencefor two Middle Stone Age (MSA) units, the older
generalized MSA TeneidaUnit and the later MSA Dakhleh Unit (Aterian Technocomplex), in terms ofthe
economies of usage and patterns of human preference.
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7) Discussant - RobertTykot,
Department of Anthropology, University
of South Florida
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8) A Perspective on the New England-Maritimes Paleoindian Regionfrom the Neal
Garrison Site
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Abstract: A defining characteristic of the New
England-Maritimes PaleoindianRegion is the use of
certain lithic resources available within the region.Recent excavations at the Neal Garrison Paleoindian site in extreme southernMaine
revealed the almost exclusive use of Munsungun-type
chert known tooccur over
300 kilometers overland to the north. Comparisons with othersites in Maine
shows an almost mutually exclusive use of either Munsungun-typechert
or Mt. Jasper-type
rhyolite from northern New Hampshire. This patternsupports
the concept of a distinct Paleoindian cultural
region, but alsosuggests smaller-scale cultural and
social relationships within the region.
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9) The Mashantucket Petrographic
Thin-Section Library Project
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Patricia Coombs, University of Connecticut
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Abstract: The Archaeology Department of the Pequot Museum
and ResearchCenter has begun to assemble a petrographic thin-section reference library.The
library consists of stone materials recovered from sites excavatedover
the past fifteen years on the Mashantucket Pequot Reservation, aswell as samples from a number of regional quarry
locations. The goals ofthe thin-section library effort are threefold. First is to identify lithicraw materials used at Mashantucket; second is to
identify potential sourcesof rock types found; and
third is to assess diachronic changes in lithicmaterial
use at Mashantucket and explain this within the framework of dynamicprehistoric social and settlement systems. Initial
results of the project,including
numerous thin-section micrographs, have been made available tothe public at the Northeast Lithic
Database (NELD) web site.
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10) Intra-site Artifact Patterning, Lithic
Reduction Strategiesand Settlement Patterns at the Snaggy Ridge, South
Mountain MetarhyoliteQuarries.
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Kurt W. Carr,Bureau for
Historic Preservation, Pennsylvania
Historical & MuseumCommission
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Abstract: Metarhyolite from the South Mountain
region of Pennsylvaniaand Maryland has been used by Native Americans
since Paleoindian timesand
studied by archaeologists since the 1890's. This presentation willdescribe the investigations of the Snaggy Ridge/Carbaugh Run
region ofthese quarries. This report
includes the results of mapping different typesof
sites associated with this outcrop, profiles of several quarry pits,experimental knapping of
the metarhyolite and the results of one of thefew, controlled test excavations conducted at a
prehistoric metarhyolitequarry pit in the region.
It would appear that surfacial outcrops werenot suitable for use by Native flint knappers and mining excavations werethe
only alternative. There are differences in the horizontal distributionof
artifacts suggesting different types of reduction activities. The diagnosticprojectile points recovered from this
excavation and radiocarbon dateshave implications
concerning the use of these Native American excavations.
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11) Prehistoric Quarries in the Washington, DC
Metropolitan Area
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Elizabeth
A. Crowell,Parsons
Engineering Science
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Abstract: During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries,William Henry Holmes
and avocational archaeologists associated with theAnthropological Society of Washington discovered
several prehistoric quarriesin Washington, DC
and vicinity. These sites represented quartzite, quartzand
steatite quarries. In some instances, the quarry locations were merelyidentified; in other cases, excavation occurred at
the quarries. Artifactsassociated with some of
these sites are present in the collections of theSmithsonian
Institution. Some of these site locations are extant. Otherswere
destroyed by subsequent development. This paper will discuss the quarriesand their relationship to archaeological sites in
the Nation’s Capital.
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12) Metarhyoliteuse during the Transitional Archaic in
Eastern North America
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Gregory Bondar, Departmentof
Anthropology, Penn
State University
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Abstract: Throughout the prehistory of eastern North America,metarhyolite served as an
important lithic material. The use of this materialincreased dramatically with the intensification
of trade relationshipsduring the Late and
Transitional Archaic periods. This paper will reportthe
current results of an extensive inter-regional research project studyingmetarhyolite sources and the archaeological
distribution from the Southeastand Mid-Atlantic
regions. In particular, geochemical characterization byneutron
activation analysis will be used to trace metarhyolite
artifactsfrom the Transitional Archaic period to
their geologic sources to identifylong-distance
routes of exchange and social interaction.
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13) Prehistoric Quarries in the Blue Ridge and Ridge
and Valleyof Virginia:
Lithics at the Local Level
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Michael B. Barber,
GeorgeWashington and Jefferson National Forest
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Abstract: The USDA-Forest Service has managed culturalresources within the George Washington &
Jefferson National Forestsfor more than 20 years.
Due to the mountainous nature of Forest Servicemanagement,
most resources are procurement encampments of one sort or anotherwhether
for subsistence or lithic exploitation. While
certain resourcesare ubiquitous in nature, such as
the Erwin/Antietam quartzites, othersincluding
jasper, Mount Rogers
rhyolite, and ferruginous quartzites
arenot so widespread. Nor due these material appear to be sought after ona
regional scale. As such, the distribution of these materials may lendinsight into settlement patterning, particularly
during the Archaic period,as
well as some indication of territorial parameters.
This paper will use data based on Phase I surveys,Phase II evaluations,
and the site form information housed at the VirginiaDepartment
of Historic Resources. Using these sources of varied levelsof
acuity, an overall prediction of material bounds, territory size, andregional scaling will be examined.
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14) A Reevaluation of Quartz and Silicate Raw Material AcquisitionAlong the South Atlantic
Slope: Going Beyond the Economics of Expediency
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Scott Jones, University of Georgia
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Abstract: The acquisition of quartz as a lithic raw material alongthe South Atlantic slope has been interpreted by many as a
function ofexpediency. In addition, it has been
generally accepted that most silicatesare “exotic”
materials imported from unknown points elsewhere. Recent researchsuggests
that in many cases quartz was not an expedientresource
and manysilicates were locally acquired rather than
imported. This paper will reviewthe
information available on the acquisition of quartz and silicates alongthe South Atlantic Slope from southern Virginia to Georgia. Included willbe a discussion of the geologic processes involved in
the formation ofthese raw materials and the implicatiojns regarding their functions withincertain prehistoric economies. Suggestions will be
made regarding the naturaldistribution of these
resources across the landscape and the prehistoricactivities
associated with the location and use of these materials.
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