Despite a long history of recovery and description, Maya caches have received surprisingly little attention, and detailed analyses and comparisons are lacking. This study analyzes caches from Tikal, Uaxactun, Altar de Sacrificios, and Seibal in relation to where and how these were placed, associated material inclusions, and how these variables change through time. Regional comparison demonstrates remarkable cache dissimilarities at each center; however, comparison with political history indicates that major changes in patterns correlate with periods of political upheaval, wars, and dynastic changes. At Tikal, caches explode in frequency and degree of elaboration in the North Acropolis--at the expense of Mundo Perdido--immediately following the Uaxactun event of AD 378, and the dynastic change of AD 379. Caches maintain a pattern of placement in exterior areas emenable to viewing by large audiences throughout the Early Classic. This changes dramatically during the Late Classic, following Tikal's defeat by Caracol in AD 562, which leads to the majority of caches being located in interior areas, and to changes in cache content. Obsidian, jade, and Spondylus shells all decline in frequency, while the use of poisonous marine objects increases substantially. Following the rise of Ruler A in AD 695, caches are once again most common in exterior locations. Tikal's re-emergence as a major power marks the end of the North Acropolis as a key area for ritual behaviour, and caches show a corresponding decline in elaboration. Uaxactun remains Tikal's subject for the duration of the Classic period; yet, Uaxactun caches show few similarities to those of Tikal. Uaxactun's center of cache placement shifts from Group E to Groups A and B simintaneously with the move to the North Acropolis from Mundo Perdido at Tikal, apparently as a result of Tikal's dynastic change. At Seibal, caches are rare prior to the Terminal Classic, when they undergo a minor flouresence immediately following the collapse of Dos Pilas' empire. Altar de Sacrificios caches are remarkably stable, and it is notable that the site lacking sudden and dramatic changes in cache patterns is the only site whose political history shows no signs of warfare.

A techno-typological analysis of the chipped stone assemblage from Tor al-Tareeq (WHS 1065), an Epipaleolithic site in Wadi Hasa, west-central Jordan, suggests that significant typological and technological changes occurred during the occupation of this site. The lowest levels have reliable radiocarbon dates (ca. 17,000-16,000 BP) and are associated with very narrow, backed microliths, single platform bladelet and multi-platform flake and blade cores, and use of the microburin technique. The overlying, undated levels are associated with wide, short, geometric microliths, bi- and multi-directional flake and blade cores, and absence of the microburin technique. These technological and typological changes, associated with decreased mobility and moister climatic conditions in the upper levels, were not synchronous. The trend towards the manufacture of wide bladelet tools occurred before significantly wider bladelet blanks were being manufactured. The techno-typological characteristics of these assemblages resemble roughly contemporary sites in the Azraq Basin, northeastern Jordan.

Among Julian Hayden's many substantial contributions to southwestern prehistory is what can be termed the Malpais model. Developed over the course of decades, Hayden's view of prehistory in the extreme deserts of Mexico's Sierra Pinacate region eventually upheld the Malpais model as a pre-Clovis claim. While Julian Hayden's observations and ideas engaged the interest and participation of numerous archaeologists and geologists in his Sierra Pinacate work, the complicated nature of the sites he studied has left the age and nature of Malpais sites an open question. A re-evaluation of Julian Hayden's Malpais model requires: (1) exploration of documents related to Haydens' Sierra Pinacate fieldwork and the conceptual development of the Malpais model; (2) review of current geological and archaeological studies related to the formation processes of sites located in areas of desert pavement; and (3) an examination of the Malpais model with respect to the Clovis versus pre-Clovis controversy.

Anthony Marks' (1988) study "The Curation of Stone Tools During the Upper Pleistocene" utilized data from several Middle and Upper Paleolithic sites in the Central Negev Desert to test Binford's hypothesis that Middle Paleolithic assemblages are "expediently" produced, and Upper Paleolithic assemblages are "curated" (Marks 1988:276). The present study analyzes Marks' contribution, offers comparative data on technologically and typologically similar Middle Paleolithic assemblages from Tabun Cave in the northern Levant, and concludes that the application of these broad technological distinctions oversimplifies a complex archaeological record, and is not a very useful approach to the analysis of Middle Paleolithic assemblage variability.

Due to characteristically poor archaeological visibility, Late Archaic Period (2000 B.C.-A.D. 500) assemblages, which hold clues about the behavior of people who lived in the Tucson Basin during a period marked by the important socio-economic transition from hunting and gathering to food production, suffer high risks of being effaced by Tucson's urban sprawl. This thesis presents a predictive archaeological model of Late Archaic Period site locations in the Tucson Basin using multiple logistic regression and GIS. The statistical results of the regression analysis indicate that three environmental variables--elevation, path distance to "reliable" water sources (streams), and path distance to arable landforms--influenced Late Archaic Period site placement. The spatial results highlight Tucson Basin land parcels that are likely to contain Late Archaic Period sites based on empirical relationships between known site locations and environmental variables in surveyed areas.

The discovery of small, residential-sized mounds in the northern Yucatan composed of solid or nearly solid rubble limestone triggered a vigorous debate within Maya archaeology over the actual function of these mounds. Many Mayanists found it difficult to accept that these were indeed housemounds based on their size and composition. A review of recent excavations of similar mounds from various regions within the Maya area is combined with new evidence from Albion Island, Belize, to posit that rubble construction is merely an alternate form of construction dictated by geologic and geographical constraints. Group 200 on Albion Island is a group of five mounds which in size, shape, and cultural artifacts fall within the designation 'housemound,' but which are composed mainly of limestone cobbles and boulders.

The distribution of refuse artifacts by size and frequency is the result of site formation processes which involve size-based artifact sorting and artifact size-reduction. Previous archaeological research on artifact size is reviewed in detail. Important artifact size-reduction processes include foot traffic and the effects of a variety of natural forces. Important artifact size-sorting processes include discard behavior and refuse clearing activity. Artifact size and frequency is examined at a Hohokam habitation site in the upper bajada of the northern Tucson Basin using a high resolution method. The high resolution method is applied to a small surface area (10 x 50 meters) of habitation site "sheet trash." The results of the analysis include evidence for the preservation of large sherds in trash mounds, sherd size-reduction resulting from foot traffic, and refuse clearing.

This study looks at quantitative differences and similarities in diversity of archaeological finds (stone tools and animal bone) at two categories of Western European Middle Paleolithic sites: open-air and cave/rockshelters. Specifically, it tests the null hypothesis that there are no differences in (1) artifact diversity as measured using the Bordes typology; (2) faunal diversity as measured by number of taxa; and (3) the percentages of stone tools that fall into the categories of either denticulates/notches or intensively retouched pieces. All analyses are based on regressions of diversity against assemblage size. For lithic assemblages, the H0 of no differences in find diversity between site types is rejected for lithics when the full Bordes typology is employed, but not when retouched-only pieces are analyzed (excluding Bordes' types 1-3, 5, 38, and 45-50). Faunal data are equivocal. The H0 is also rejected for the dimension of percentages of heavily-retouched tools, but not for denticulates/notches.

This thesis investigates the artifact quantity and variability of artifacts found in archaeological sites inhabited by Chinese in southern Arizona. In doing so, I seek to address the preferences of the early Chinese for different Chinese culture materials in different environmental settings. I also seek to examine the variability of artifact types across Chinese sites in Arizona. To effect this, I have researched all known sites with Chinese artifactual components in southern Arizona, and divided these sites into urban and rural groupings. I then compare the collected artifacts from all sites within these two groups in terms of both total numbers of items and in total numbers of different artifact types. As expected, artifact variability in rural sites is significantly lower than in rural sites, in accordance with the lower population and other possible factors. Rural sites also seem to contain higher percentages of food preparation and storage ceramics, and lower proportions of opium paraphernalia.

This thesis is a study of some factors that influence ground stone use-wear. Experiments in ground stone technology provide valuable information that may strengthen behavioral inference. To understand ground stone use-wear, basic principles are borrowed from tribology, the science and technology of friction, lubrication, and wear. Four wear mechanisms relevant to ground stone wear are identified: adhesive, abrasive, surface fatigue, and tribochemical. Previous experiments tested the hypothesis that use-wear on experimental grinding implements varies with the material being ground. This study further tests the same hypothesis. Six identical mano/metate sets were manufactured and used by the author to grind five different substances: dried chokecherries, wheat, crickets, dried meat, and salt. The sixth tool set was used without an intermediate substance. Results tentatively validate the hypothesis. Several factors influencing ground stone use-wear are discussed and suggestions for future experimental research in ground stone technology are offered.