Texas A&M University completed excavations at the Gault site (41BL323) in Bell County, Texas, in the spring season of 2000. Located at the head of Buttermilk Creek, past inhabitants have enjoyed perennial springs and a variety of natural resources available in the immediate area, including high quality chert from the Balcones Escarpment of the Edwards Plateau. Chipped stone material diagnostic of the Clovis period was recovered during the TAMU block excavation, informally referred to as the "Lindsey Pit," from clay deposits approximately 35 cm thick. Natural agents that may have impacted contextual integrity of the Clovis cultural deposits include stream action, pedoturbation, and bioturbation. Artifact spatial analyses examined long axis orientations and artifact degree of dip to identify non-random patterns that would result from stream action. Vertical and horizontal relationships of refitting artifacts were examined to evaluate post-depositional displacement. Orientations of chipped stone artifact long axes and inclination were found to be statistically random, with minor patterns that reflect the paleotopography. Thirty-three groups of refitting artifacts were identified, none of which contained elements recovered from deposits more recent than the Clovis clays. Five groups have elements that appear to come from both of the Clovis clay deposits, indicating a small degree of vertical displacement. The results of this research indicate the clays bearing Clovis materials retained a high degree of integrity such that the spatial patterns preserved in the archaeological record at this location are the result of cultural activities and not natural processes. Though time-consuming in the field and laboratory, additional fine-grained analyses such as artifact orientation and refit studies provide separate lines of evidence to account for natural processes that may have acted to obscure the original patterns of the archaeological record, and our understanding of past human cultures.

This thesis presents the results of geoarchaeological investigations of several archaeological sites along the Elm Fork of the Trinity River in north central Texas. Archaeological data recorded from mitigation excavations in Denton and Cooke counties were analyzed to understand the geologic impacts on faunal preservation resulting from site formation processes. The faunal assemblages are highly fragmented, even in settings known for good preservation. A combined approach using geoarchaeological and taphonomic techniques was implemented to examine how fragmentation, evidence of soil weathering, and differential preservation were impacted by differing geologic conditions throughout the river basin. Intrasite and intersite results of the sites show that a great deal of variability of faunal preservation is present at difference scales of analysis.

Archaeological sites are not static records of the past. They exist within a dynamic environment, and, as part of this environment, they undergo changes upon deposition. In order to make confident interpretations of past human behavior based on patterns observed in the archaeological record, it is first necessary to determine if these patterns were produced by human behavior or if they are the result of geogenic or biogenic process following burial. This investigation of site formation processes of farm middens at three Viking Age farms (Reynistaður, Stóra-Seyla and Syðra Skörðugil) in Skagafjörður, Northern Iceland, uses micromorphological analysis of thin sections to discern between cultural and natural processes which have contributed to the formation and preservation of the middens. My interpretations of the depositional and post-depositional processes of these three middens is based on micromorphological analysis of thin sections of 11 resin-impregnated intact sediment samples.

No description available.

No / This paper introduces a method to study the degree of change that affected a prehistoric context as the result of environmental processes. It is based on the direct examination of a representative sample of stone tool by-products, and on the identification of all surface alteration features. We summarize the theoretical bases for the formation of some wear features and the main results of a number of experiments involving interaction between chert flakes and sediments. Experimental results include: (1) the wear rate of flakes is not constant; (2) the wear rate increases as the size of the grains that compose the matrix increases; (3) fine grained chert resists wear better then coarse grained chert; and (4) the presence of moisture will trigger some chemical reactions that promote wear and the formation of films on chert surfaces. We apply these findings to the cave site of Grotta di Pozzo, Italy, and conclude that, strictly within the area sampled, there is low degree of disturbance and low intensity of chemical processes that may, however, confound the reconstruction of human activities in this part of the cave.

Archaeologists have long labored under the implicit assumption that the archaeological record is a direct reflection of past human behaviors. However, numerous cultural and environmental processes intervene between past behaviors and their reconstruction through archaeological inference. This study examines the interface between household archaeology and formation processes through the study of domestic materials from two contemporaneous sites in the Zapotitan Valley of El Salvador that were occupied by people who spoke the same language and belonged to the same regional political system. Ceren was a small village that was occupied for several decades before it was deeply buried by the eruption of Loma Caldera volcano. San Andres was a much larger center that also was affected by several eruptions, but did not experience long-term catastrophic abandonment or exceptional preservation. The research examines the effects of cultural formation processes, including reuse, discard, abandonment, and post-abandonment disturbance processes, and non-cultural formation processes, such as effects of catastrophic volcanic burial, and the effects of plants and animals. It compares the de facto refuse from Ceren with discarded materials from Ceren, and San Andres using the discard equation and methods developed in accumulations research to build a foundation for more generally applicable models to interpret household remains in western El Salvador and throughout Mesoamerica.

Following the unauthorized ground disturbance at two undiscovered Early/Middle Archaic sites (WO2 and WO5) within the Trail of Tears protective corridor on the Nantahala National Forest, NC, archaeological investigations undertaken have yielded data potentially important to the understanding of early inhabitants in the Appalachian Summit region. Archaeological investigations at sites WO2 and WO5 have shown that both sites have single occupations as evidenced by statistical analysis of data collected. Also, the two sites have minimal disturbance based on statistical analyses of the dip and strike data of piece-plotted artifacts at the two locales. The thesis outlines the work done at the two sites, provides evidence of the level of disturbance at each site, and argues for the sites’ eligibility for inclusion in the NRHP.

This study aims to identify human interference and tendencies in the Bronze Age settlement of Malthi, Greece. It has employed a spatial analysis, a Kernel Density Estimate, to locate areas of anthropic interference and evaluate if the initial excavation report, despite its flaws, can be used in newer research. The study was able to identify intense Middle Helladic human presence on some of the areas of the settlement, mainly the ‘central terrace’, prove that Natan Valmin’s excavation report can still be used to gain new knowledge regarding the Bronze Age, and that a thorough investigation of the standing architecture needs to be done. / Syftet med den här studien är att identifiera mänsklig närvaro och tendenser på bronsåldersboplatsen i Malthi, Grekland. En rumslig analys, en Kernel Density Estimation, har använts för att lokalisera områden av mänsklig närvaro och har utvärderat om original utgrävningsrapporten, trots sina brister, kan användas i ny forskning. Studien kunde identifiera intensiv Mellanhelladisk närvaro i några delar av boplatsen, mestadels på ’central terrassen’, och kunde visa att Natan Valmins utgrävningsrapport kan användas för att få ny kunskap om bronsåldern, och att en ingående studie av de stående arkitektoniska elementen måste göras.

Os estudos de sambaquis estão entre os mais recorrentes na Arqueologia Brasileira. Entretanto, poucos se dedicaram a uma abordagem sistemática das indústrias líticas destes sítios. A presente pesquisa tem como objeto o Sítio do Mar Virado, localizado na Ilha do Mar Virado, município de Ubatuba, São Paulo. Trata-se de um sítio cemitério, onde intensa atividade de lascamento era realizada. O trabalho pode ser dividido em três partes: primeiramente buscou-se compreender os processos formativos do sítio e o histórico das ocupações regionais. Em seguida faz-se a caracterização da indústria lítica. Por fim os resultados da análise foram abordados em sua dispersão espacial, sendo a associação aos sepultamentos a principal variável testada, com o intuito de compreender se haveria diferenças entre o material lítico que acompanhava os mortos e aquele oriundo das demais atividades realizadas no local. / Studies of sambaquis are among the most recurring themes in the Brazilian Archaeology. However, only a few of them are devoted to a systematic approach to the lithic industries of these sites. The present research focus on Mar Virado Site, located in Mar Virado Island, Ubatuba, São Paulo. It is a cemetery, where intensive flaking activity was performed. The research can be divided in three parts: first it attempts to build an understanding of the site formation processes and the regional history of human occupations. Then it seeks to characterize the lithic industry. Finally, the results of the analysis have been approached in their spatial dispersion, testing the association with burials to understand if there are differences in the lithic material accompanying the dead and the lithic material from other activities undertaken by those groups in the island.

Esta pesquisa teve como objetivo principal investigar a relação entre a arqueofauna e os grupos humanos que ocuparam os sambaquis fluviais - Estreito (4124±27), Caraça (1607±24), Lageado IV (1460±60) e Tatupeva (3990±70), situados em Itaoca, no Vale do Ribeira de Iguape e, assim, contextualizar esses restos com os demais vestígios da cultura material. O emprego das abordagens - arqueofaunística, lítica e bioarqueológica - permitiu-nos discorrer sobre os processos de formação desses sítios e compreender as diferenças e semelhanças intra-sítio, envolvendo as três áreas do médio vale. / This research aimed to investigate the relationship between the archaeofauna and human groups that occupied the sambaquis fluviais (riverine sambaquis) - Estreito (4124±27), Caraça (1607±24), Lageado IV (1460±60) and Tatupeva (3990±70), located in Itaoca, Ribeira de Iguape Valley and thus contextualize these remains with the remaining traces of material culture. The use of approaches - archaeofaunal, lithic and bioarchaeological - allowed us to discuss the formation processes of these sites and understand the differences and similarities intra-site, involving the three areas of the middle valley.