The role of bison in the prehistoric subsistence in southern Idaho is not fully understood. Bison remains from Baker Cave, a late Holocene archaeological site dating to cal A.D. 1042-1265, however, provide evidence of pre-contact subsistence strategies in the region. This thesis focuses on the paleoecology of bison and their role in prehistoric subsistence on the Snake River Plain (SRP). The ecological study of bison focuses on the hypothesized trans-Holocene diminution in bison body size in southern Idaho, while a second study focuses on how these animals figured into prehistoric responses to seasonal fat scarcity. Although bison diminution and its ecological determinants are well understood on the Great Plains, the history of diminution west of the Rocky Mountains is less clear. Bison morphometrics from Baker Cave present the opportunity to assess bison diminution on the Snake River Plain. Bison morphometrics from Baker Cave are indistinguishable not only from other late Holocene bison on the Snake River Plain but iv also from late Holocene bison from the Great Plains. Further, the Baker Cave bison are smaller than early Holocene bison from the Great Plains and Snake River Plain. These results suggest morphological similarity between Snake River Plain bison and Great Plains bison through the Holocene, pointing to similar bottom up ecological constraints on body size. Although bison are common components of SRP archaeofaunas, their role in prehistoric subsistence is poorly understood. To shed light on this problem, I hypothesize that the Baker Cave bison assemblage resulted from hunters seeking skeletal fat. I test predictions drawn from this hypothesis with assemblage-level patterns in element representation, impact scar distribution, and fragmentation. These assemblage-level patterns track the skeletal fat utility of elements. These patterns, combined with winter procurement evidenced by fetal remains, support the hypothesis that fat-seeking behavior was a response to winter fat scarcity. A comparison with smaller bison assemblages from southern Idaho suggests that this fat-seeking behavior might have persisted as far back as the middle Holocene, although this requires confirmation from future studies.

Gully erosion has been damaging archaeological sites in Grand Canyon during the last several decades, and there is a need to protect these features through mitigation, monitoring, and better geomorphic understanding. The purpose of this study was to assess the effectiveness of erosion-control structures , determine the accuracy and utility of aerial photogrammetry for monitoring gullies , and understand the geomorphology of the erosion . We performed total-station surveys and other data collection during February and October , 2002, at nine study sites in eastern and western Grand Canyon. Erosion-control structures are more prone to be damaged by flow when they are placed in reaches of very high local gradient. Treatments are generally successful in slowing erosion or causing deposition of sediment, but damaged erosion-control structures were shown to be less effective than intact structures, and actually increase local erosion in cases. Aerial photogrammetry was performed on four eroding archaeological sites in western Grand Canyon in March and October 2002 in order to assess the accuracy and change-detection utility of this tool. Accuracy was assessed on several different levels by comparing photogrammetry data to ground-survey data, and mean absolute vertical error ranged from 6-10 cm. Error of manual photogrammetry digital terrain models (DTMs) increased with topographic ruggedness and decreased with greater photogrammetric point density. Mean error reached a minimum of 5 cm for March and 6.5 cm for October when the ratio of point density to topographic ruggedness was ~40. Ground surveys and repeat photography indicated that two study gullies eroded or aggraded during the study period by 10-20 cm, but these changes were mostly undetected in the photogrammetry DTMs. Repeat ground surveys showed that gullies erode most at knickpoints and in steep reaches , and that new knickpoints tend to form in relatively steep reaches of a given channel. An area-slope erosion threshold was identified for the study sites and applied in a GIS-based model at four sites to show areas that exceed the threshold and are sensitive to gully erosion . Overall results show an upcatchment control of gully erosion and suggest that baselevel changes due to Glen Canyon Dam operation are subordinate controls.

This thesis is a report on a pottery analysis which was carried out in the laboratory of the Department of Anthropology at Portland State University. The earthenware materials involved were collected from three surface sites on Batan Island, Philippines, during the summer of 1969. The interpretation of these potteries was based upon the direct-historical approach to archaeological research. The use of this method was proposed after a cursory examination of the earthenwares revealed certain general similarities between the archaeological potteries and the ethnographically-known wares produced in the area at the present time. One of the sites was a known habitation, and the wares in this collection were analyzed to determine the characteristic ceramic attributes exhibited by the sherds. A comparison of these attributes with those noted in the collections from the other two sites revealed that the surface treatment and vessel form of all the wares were similar enough to indicate only a minimal amount of functional variation between the sites. Ethnographic data concerning the manufacture and use of contemporary earthenwares in the town of Uyogan, on Batan Island, revealed that these potteries are all strictly utilitarian, and are used primarily in the preparation, handling, or storage of foodstuffs. By inferring similar uses for similar items in the past, the three collections of earthenwares appear to have been directly associated with habitation activities. Ethnographic and archaeological evidence from other areas in the Philippines indicate that the materials from Batan are also comparable to earthenware items produced elsewhere for "kitchen" purposes. The three surface collections of Filipino earthenwares have been analyzed with reference to function and use. It has been found that these materials are representative of the potteries used ethnographically in habitation activities in the area, and that the differences between the three collections may be attributable to diachronic rather than synchronic variation. It is argued that once the characteristic ceramic attributes for any particular site are determined, their functional interdependence with habitation activities can be demonstrated. It is concluded that the direct-historical and ethnohistorical approaches can be utilized in the determination of site activities based upon the archaeological potteries found in them.

No description available.

Native Americans from the middle Connecticut River Valley of New England experienced massive social disruptions during the seventeenth century due to European settlement, but not much is known about their cultural continuities and/or discontinuities during this dynamic period. As an additive technology, ceramics embody the technical choices of potters made at the time of manufacture thus enabling the study of the effect, if any, of colonialism on indigenous material culture and practices in New England. This study examines ceramic assemblages from one Late Woodland period site and one seventeenth-century site in Deerfield, Massachusetts to explore the extent to which ceramics can demonstrate continuities and/or changes in traditional ceramic manufacturing practices in response and/or resistance to colonization.

This project was an inventory and analysis of human remains from the Aklis archaeological site (12VAm1-42), located in the Sandy Point National Wildlife Refuge, St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. The human remains inventoried during this project were collected by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and MSU during surface collection and emergency salvage excavations at Aklis. The statistical analysis of the data focused on the minimum number of individuals (MNI) per square meter, the degree of long bone completion, skeletal element counts across excavated features, and the degree of weathering. Results indicate that the assemblage curated at MSU includes a minimum of 14 individuals, and the remains are heavily weathered and highly fragmented. The data reflects increased fragmentation and weathering in human remains recovered from erosional features as opposed to correlation with geographic area, and that there are differences in skeletal element counts across excavated areas of the site.

The Vasa ship is not adequately supported. Measurements of the hull show that the ship deforms and rotate towards the port side. In addition, damages on the hull at support areas have been observed. The damages are due to high compressive loads. At damaged zones the support has been removed and the loads are thus transferred to adjacent support stanchions. In order to design an improved support, knowledge of the mechanical behaviour of the material is needed. In particular, radial modulus, strength and deformation mechanisms are of interest. In the present study, the mechanical behaviour of recent oak and oak from Vasa is studied. Furthermore, effects of PEG content, degradation and moisture on the properties of Vasa oak are investigated. Oak is characterized by a very abrupt change from earlywood to latewood, where the latewood is much denser than earlywood. Also present in oak are large rays in the radial direction of the wood. Small specimens were tested in compression using Digital Speckle Photography (DSP) in order to obtain strain fields of the whole specimen surface. This technique also provided data on failure mechanisms. Dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA) was performed to establish differences in moisture softening. In radial compression, modulus and strength of Vasa oak are reduced by 50% compared with recent oak. A significant change of failure mechanism is observed for Vasa oak. In recent oak, failure in radial compression is by continuous folds of rays in the earlywood followed by continued plastic collapse of the earlywood layer. In Vasa oak rays show a more brittle fracture in each earlywood region. DMTA results indicate no effect on moisture softening of Vasa oak from presence of PEG although more work is needed to confirm this. Moisture adsorption for PEG-extracted Vasa oak is not significantly higher than for recent oak below 60% RH, suggesting that the extent of degradation of Vasa oak is limited. Vasa oak containing PEG is much more hygroscopic than PEG-extracted Vasa oak already at 50%. This difference is increasing with increasing relative humidity. / QC 20101118

Geophysical techniques, such as ground-penetrating radar (GPR), have been successfully used by law enforcement agencies to locate graves and forensic evidence. However, more controlled research is needed to better understand the potential and limitations of this technology in the forensic context. The goal of this study was to determine the potential of GPR using both a 250 MHz and 500 MHz antennae to monitor eight controlled graves with six different burial scenarios using pig carcasses as human proxy cadavers. In addition, a conductivity meter was employed to determine the applicability of using this technology to locate unmarked graves. For the conductivity meter, the data was processed using an EM38 program in conjunction with the SURFER program to display a conductivity contour map of the grid. For the GPR imagery, reflection profile data was processed using the program REFLEXW while horizontal slices were processed using the GPR-SLICE program. Results indicate that the conductivity meter is not a viable option in the detection of clandestine graves when other geophysical tools are available. For the GPR, results indicate that while graves can still be detected after a two-year period, there is a marked decrease in the response, or resolution, of the burial scenarios. Furthermore, burials with grave goods interred along with the carcasses were far more likely to be detected than burials that were interred with no accompanying grave goods. When comparing the performance of the two antennae, the 250 MHz antenna provided increased resolution for large cadavers buried in deep graves.

The study of hieroglyphic texts is vital to the interpretation of the ancient Maya and how their worldview contributed to their daily lives. Hieroglyphic decipherment has been an arduous undertaking and a wide variety of the Late Classic Maya writing styles has also been documented. When specific hieroglyphic phrases are not fully understood it has been necessary to utilize other sources of information to help increase the understanding of these texts. The “lubat” glyphic phrase has been utilized in multiple mediums throughout the Late Classic period and is described as an artist’s signature. This artist signature is directly related to specific iconographic elements and themes that represent a cosmological view of the ancient Maya. This thesis demonstrates the connection between the lu-bat glyphic phrase and iconographic themes indicative of liminal powers exercised by the social elites in terms of the underworld. This connection is strengthened through the evaluation of the associated texts and iconographic analysis. While interpretations of the lu-bat glyphic phrase have suggested that it represented an artist’s signature, a concise articulation of the hieroglyphic values for the lu-bat glyphic phrase has not yet be achieved. The iconographic imagery involved with this glyph demonstrates an interactive level between the conduit being and liminal actions. This interaction depicts the individual involved as a direct medium for the ritual activities of the elites in terms of the underworld.

The Schlumberger array, or Schlumberger, was one of the first resistance arrays to be used to detect buried archaeological features. The early work used fixed probes and widely spaced traverses. Recent simulation work, ýhowever, suggested that the array should give improved resolution and depth penetration over the Twin-Probe array. This thesis is an attempt to operationalise the Schlumberger for use in archaeological prospection. This has been achieved via a co-ordinated use of laboratory simulation and-field studies. Initial fieldwork in England suggested. that the. - use of point electrodes created response patterns that were dependent upon the relative direction of linear targets. This was verified using a simulation tank modified to represent field procedure. The recognition of this response, therefore, required each survey area to be surveyed twice. The re-survey requires the two current probes to be positioned at right angles to the original survey points. The Schlumberger was then used in a battery of methods to investigate the problem of the archaeological interpretation of- small, discrete scatters of ceramic sherds that cover the landscape in Greece. The research has indicated a variation of intra-site patterning that may be significant to the function of these sites. Overall, the results suggest that the relationship between the 'site' and its environment is a complex one, one that can be oversimplified when the ceramic evidence is viewed in isolation. The Schlumberger indicated possible structural elements within some of these sites.