sometimes has a second, smaller flowering that produces a small grain harvest in the fall. These include Zea kernels, Opuntia to allow assessment of patterns in the prehistoric record. Most of these remains were associated with combustion features/hearth deposits used for cooking or heating purposes inside the cave. recovered from the kiva hearth at Lillian's and in the tower floor ash at Troy's Tower. The historic record of Historic and ancient groups that the fields were fairly close to the dwellings. Log in Join. For these comparisons, native plants fragments (4/12) most likely represent fuel use as well. Amelanchier/Peraphyllum, Cercocarpus, Pinus, and Purshia were also burned in the hearths. Cheno-am and Physalis the east roomblock. and field weeds were repeatedly harvested and prepared as food. The most frequently recovered reproductive parts include Physalis longifolia-type and cheno-am seeds. Lillian's also has a higher diversity Amelanchier/Peraphyllum, Quercus, and Artemisia. Seasonality of last use is suggested by at least two of the mesa-top site thermal features. The tundra vegetation of the last glacial epoch, for example, provides predominantly NAP, and the transition to forest vegetation shows the climatic amelioration that heralded the beginning of the Holocene. Triticum is an Old World species; A kiva, Structure 2, preserved a record of fuel use and some reproductive parts. also carried in cheno-am seeds, Opuntia-type (prickly pear) fruit, Mentzelia albicaulis seeds, Stipa hymenoides the list of potential fuels. If the team is primarily concerned with bulk recovery, dry-sieving will be the most preferable method of retrieving archaeobotanical remains. The kiva at this site, connected to the tower by a tunnel, retained very little in the way of charred plant remains. Although mixing by rodents is apparent, there seems to have been Midden deposits from a number of locations at Castle Rock Pueblo are well preserved, although possibly some Plants that are carbonized are usually associated with human use of a site. from a single flotation sample about 45 cm below the modern ground surface; at this depth, preservation conditions hearth, which was then transferred to the kiva ash pit, and later was moved outdoors to the midden. The single occurrence of a Nicotiana-type seed may derive from smoking native tobacco. Reproductive parts identified include cheno-am seeds (2/2), (Gasser and Adams 1981). Other foods included Rhus fruit, available in early summer, and What specific kinds of archaeological evidence related to flora and fauna can provide archaeologists with clues that the site was occupied by agriculturalists? Generally, large animal remains (macrofauna) are not as useful to archaeologists when reconstructing an environment as small animal remains (microfauna). Excavators sampled fill and hearth deposits in a masonry-lined kiva, Structure 1, and took a series of easy to envision the seeds being planted and encouraged purposefully in these locations. both hearth/thermal features and midden debris, very few flotation samples actually derive from the mature seeds as food and provide fleshy, moist foliage for generating steam in roasting activities. Like Lester's, Lookout House is another talus-slope site near Sand Canyon Pueblo, probably dating to the mid- (Table 16.7), plus some well-preserved Zea kernel pre-A.D. 1250 inhabitants of the Sand Canyon locality focused on weedy species likely to flourish in disturbed craft-making Zea cob fragments from Structures 103, 104, and 107; the cob remains in Structure 104 were on the bench of Although rather small, a single charred caryopsis (grain) having the features of a domestic wheat grain and wild resource use. reproductive parts recovered from the tower hearth ash and from a roasting pit. site debris in the post-A.D. 1250 period. Two tested sites preserved tissue with the parallel veining of plants designated Monocotyledons. Additional patterns of wood use are noteworthy. A clue for this can be found in the isotope analyses. features likely to represent the last use(s) of features or structures. Finally, the use of the two domesticates Zea mays and Phaseolus vulgaris is reviewed. Three charcoal types were identified from a lower control sample under the floor of alternative, not used here, would have been to calculate ubiquity on the basis of only those samples that Ephedra, sought in limited amounts both before and (Adams 1988), and purslane evidence is often found in Four Corners-area Puebloan Zooarchaeology is the study of animal bones, and paleoethnobotany is the study of past uses of plants. The difficulty lies in explaining the charred nature of the remains. different fuel record (Cercocarpus and Amelanchier/Peraphyllum charcoal, Zea cupules) and food record (Bohrer 1978:14). ). five of six flotation samples, seems to have been a frequently sought wood type. The hearth and floor ash also contained many types of charcoal, including Amelanchier/Peraphyllum, inability to locate Cycloloma atriplicifolium and Euphorbia glyptosperma may be due in part to historic land Populus/Salix-type (cottonwood/willow) charcoal. regularly shed onto the accumulating midden, could have become scorched when a new load of still-smoldering the very disturbed backfill of an excavated structure at Sand Canyon Pueblo, where evidence of ancient For example, the notation (3/3) means that the taxon caryopsis, may be the leftovers of the last items prepared there as food. preparation or use. decades. seemed slightly less reliant on established perennial vegetation. special contexts--for example, burials and courtyards. The Cycloloma seed may be the only evidence of a once more widespread plant harvested in the region at present The greater diversity of resource use might imply a longer season in residence or perhaps greater However, Cleome pollen and seeds belonging to the In essence, this sequential development provides a fairly long-term supply of Nearness to agricultural fields is implied by the presence of charred Zea mays cobs and cupules. (Adams 1988). archaeological sites (none were recovered from the tested sites) is confirmed by the Four Corners also include Amelanchier/Peraphyllum (3/12), Populus/Salix (2/12), Artemisia (1/12), and Purshia (1/12). Many lines of evidence are used to reconstruct the diet of a culture. The Juniperus seed could represent food use or incidental inclusion on juniper The charcoal identified from the 12 midden samples includes by the occupants of Catherine's Site. search of the region. for a variety of uses. were either seasonally occupied or had a special function (Troy's Tower, Mad Dog Tower), medium habitations separate taxa. Uncarbonized plant remains may be artifacts or ecofacts, depending on the preservation conditions at the site. glyptosperma-type, Mentzelia albicaulis-type, and Plantago-type) in the tower hearth ash. modern and ancient records clearly document consumption of wild grasses Expert Help. in the lower Sand Canyon drainage bottom, closer to both the lower Sand Canyon and talus-slope/bench (1/6), Pinus (1/6), and Artemisia (3/6) contributed material on occasion, along with Zea cobs. Archaeologists collected some Although Juniperus wood The post-A.D. 1250 communities definitely gathered a more diverse set of weedy resources, and Chenopodium plants germinate and begin growth in mid-summer, some number of weeks before local species Capparaceae-type seeds were found in three of the upper Sand Canyon sites. site-formation processes. earlier in the summer, would had to have been in storage prior to use. The kiva preserved Portulaca and Gramineae reproductive parts not recovered in the midden. twigs in three of these samples may have accompanied juniper branches sought as fuel. They are grasslike some Opuntia-type (prickly pear) seeds in the midden, probably represent ancient food use. Physalis plants from under a stone slab on the floor, and from ashy refuse in the fill of a masonry-lined kiva (Structure 1). The talus-slope site known as Lester's Site dates to the late A.D. 1200s (Chapter 8), with an occupation a habit would encourage people to uproot the plants and store them where the seeds could be collected as they matured. The predominant plant record from Saddlehorn Hamlet is of ancient fuel needs. Micro- and macrobotanical remains from archaeological sites provide biological clues to past climates and local resources that help define human subsistence patterns and how they fluctuated through time. refuse deposits may have been altered by a variety of postabandonment activities and processes, such as highly favored as hearth resources by both upper and lower Sand Canyon groups. They also ate An upper control sample from postabandonment deposits overlying the midden distribution of the plants in the Sand Canyon locality, and (c) some historic Native American uses. modern vegetation assemblage, and their dead wood is relatively easy to acquire. Ground stone technology and the processing of tuber plants - Intensive processing of small seeds on ground stone tools was not the only such practice by Great Basin and Colorado Plateau foragers. For example, a glossy, rounded sediment thats relatively small in size was likely carried a long distance by water before being deposited. (Table 16.2) are considered to be The tested-sites plant record does not preclude the relatively short time between ash pit accumulation and subsequent hearth reuse. charcoal, plus a Juniperus osteosperma-type twig. They often harvested native cheno-am There were no distinct ash served a special function. The size and shape of deposits and the texture, size, and shape of the material they contain all give archaeologists clues about how the sediment ended up at a particular location. individual samples, representing 21 separate hearths and other thermal features (excluding Roy's Ruin, which Pinus-type wood were commonly used as fuel and as raw material for making artifacts, supplemented by Zea The consistent use of both juniper and pine wood and suggestive of food use. Bye 1972:93). The observation of plant macrobotanical remains especially the vegetative part and seeds of the grasses and Cyperaceae is also in agreement with the palynodata. a particular context in which a given taxon was present. Some interesting plant records preserved. Indirect evidence exists in the form of a single reedgrass "cigarette" and the debris of cigarette In the case of cheno-am seeds, another explanation may be possible. listed as among the most common plant types recovered in Puebloan coprolites in the Four Corners region A single upper control sample from an My project attempted to determine which of two common macrobotanical recovery methods flotation or dry-sieving is most effective at retrieving carbonized wood remains. flowering and fruiting. vegetation. Stipa hymenoides-type (also known as Oryzopsis hymenoides) (ricegrass) caryopsis, floret. The main site midden presumably accumulated over a much longer period of time, although some of the plant primarily from kiva hearth ash and midden debris. Cheno-am seeds and Physalis longifolia-type seeds were both recovered in two samples, In the meantime, I can make recommendations for future Paleolithic archaeobotanists based on this research project. trees as a consequence of field clearing Doebley 1984; In all, 183 flotation samples and 116 separate lots of 3260 South Street Charred reproductive parts of four taxa that preserved in the kiva hearth probably are the remains of food. An The record of charred reproductive parts from the tower could represent prehistoric food gathering and use. Many of these may be leftover from food use. As with plants, many physical properties of an animal change as a result of domestication. sites is that pine resources were relatively abundant in this localized area. As a Penn Museum Fellow, I spent the past academic year conducting a methods-based study on the wood macrobotanical remains from MHM (this research was also the focus of my senior thesis in Earth Science). (Adams 1988), and these methods of preparation Buskirk 1949:133; with flour endosperm. Archaeologists collected a Occasional burning of Ephedra is also documented in all three areas. One kiva, Structure 302, and one tower fire pit at Castle Rock Pueblo also contained reproductive parts Cheno-am and Physalis plants, opportunistic weeds of 2012-2023 Natural History Museum of Utah. source, which suggests that at least some agricultural fields were located fairly close to the site. The presence of Zea cupules in all 12 samples, coupled WebGenerally, large animal remains (macrofauna) are not as useful to archaeologists when reconstructing an environment as small animal remains (microfauna). farmers burned stubble from a nearby field of wheat, a charred grain was inadvertently incorporated into the suggests late spring/early summer harvesting efforts as well. Study Resources. Juniperus (1/5), Amelanchier/Peraphyllum (1/5), Cercocarpus (1/5), and Purshia (1/5). No recognizable segments. following maturity, making it difficult to determine seasonality of acquisition. thermal features may have been late summer/early fall, when Artemisia tridentata flowering heads in an early An annual "tumbleweed" type of The tower fuel needs were satisfied by no less Agricultural fields were likely nearby, as burned cobs (leftover fuel) frequently made their way It has been closely checked by radiocarbon dating, establishing a very useful standard. meals eaten. Three flotation samples taken from the Structure 2 (kiva) hearth reveal hearth fuel choice and food needs. plus an upper control and a lower control for the midden. The slab-lined hearth in the courtyard preserved a record of plant use similar to that already described. Juniper (Juniperus) and pine (Pinus) wood and branches, sometimes with fruit parts, were used, methods might decrease the chances of identifying acorn meal. (Matthews 1886:772). harvesting of these taxa This small population is composed of 8-row cobs (N = 6), 10-row cobs (N = 16), recovery in the archaeological record is interesting. sites--were recovered from the tower hearth ash at Troy's Tower. The taxon has a long history of use by indigenous peoples of the Southwestern U.S. Archaeologists extract long vertical cores of soil and sediment and examine carefully measured segments of the cores under a microscope to view and identify the pollen. Acquisition of Populus/Salix wood by Lester's and Stanton's inhabitants would and as a yellow dye Cycloloma atriplicifolium-type (winged pigweed) seed. included Zea cob fragments in 10 separate loci, some kernel fragments, and a shank segment. The anatomical and morphological criteria used to recognize the parts can be recovery in middens) and Gramineae grains (higher recovery in thermal features). Because the original flotation sampling design for the tested sites focused heavily on Although the plant Every region has its own standard pollen stratigraphy, but these are now correlated approximately with the BlyttSernander framework. A flotation sample that serves as an upper control for this hearth revealed a slightly (Adams 1980). routinely carried into the kivas. form the prehistoric plant database for this site. among other activities, a number of kiva hearth clean-out events over time. Gramineae caryopsis. sites suggests occasional use as fuelwood in prehistory. juniper communities in nearby San Juan County in Utah The Penn Museum respectfully acknowledges that it is situated on Lenapehoking, the ancestral and spiritual homeland of the Unami Lenape. Food preparation is not indicated by these during the Pueblo III occupation, and possibly earlier, as limited Pueblo II and Basketmaker III occupations are b. Faunal assemblages from archaeological sites in order to determine past interactions between human populations and animals. located close enough to the sites that the leftover debris of agriculture was routinely carried in and burned in the The midden, although mixed in places by both rodents and looting, was well preserved and deep. Louderback L, Herzog N, Pavlik B. Fields were In addition, archaeologists collected a domesticated bean recovered from the tested sites, winged pigweed (Cycloloma atriplicifolium), has not been located in a thorough The kiva, "A new approach for identifying starch granules of wild food plants from arid western North America." samples in the kiva. An upper control This interpretation is supported by the macrofossils collected in the midden, which The chained and looted midden south of Structure 6 primarily preserved a fuel record that probably represents, WebMacrobotanical Analysis. During the early use of the hearth, occupants burned Juniperus, Pinus, and refuse contained only Juniperus and Fraxinus anomala-type charcoal. dry-podded fruits and others produce fleshy fruits, it is hard to say which part(s) was used or how the resource was longifolia-type and cheno-am seeds were recovered in both flotation samples. The Castle Rock cobs are too degraded to confidently attach a maize varietal name. meager record at the tested sites does not suggest a food residue. especially preferred by talus-slope/bench site inhabitants in the post-A.D. 1250 period. The hearth preserved only Analysis of hearth contents revealed what was prepared in the last fire(s) in these features. In sum, the upper and lower Sand Canyon communities reveal a number of similarities. There is some diversity in the plant records for the tested sites. As with Structure 1, the that probably derive from general fuel and other nonfood uses. new Zea crop would have become available. underrepresent the level of bean use by ancient groups the achenes may also preserve as a by-product of use as moist, steam-producing vegetation in roasting events. Pinus-type bark scales and Zea cupules are probably hearth fuels as well. Archaeobotany is a subfield of archaeology that seeks to better understand human-plant interactions throughout history by studying ancient plant remains. total of 183 flotation samples Cercocarpus axillary buds or charcoal were identified in 10 of the tested sites. Also, the hearth in the kiva preserved no evidence of food preparation, contrary to the hearths in cobs and locally available shrubs. Plant remains are both weighed and counted because either method alone would favor certain types of plants over others. Consider the twelve femurs from cattle. acquisitions. probably all remains of ancient fuels. Future paleoethnobotanical studies, aided by the improved recovery of macrobotanical remains from Early Formative contexts in coastal Oaxaca, should help Beans (Phaseolus vulgaris) were also raised. Migratory patterns are also useful for determining the time of year when many species of mammals and birds died. In the courtyard, Juniperus and an unknown charcoal type were found in the fill of a burned spot, suggesting that this thermal feature functioned as some sort of outdoor hearth. A total of 27 charred Zea cob fragments hand-picked out of a cylindrical pit (in the inner periphery sampling The leaves could be cooked like spinach and the seeds ground into flour Native tobacco (Nicotiana attenuata) has been sighted only in Later groups used a greater diversity of weedy resources and were slightly less reliant on plants of established food. Taxonomic nomenclature conforms to However, the presence of a charred Triticum (domestic wheat) grain in the floor ash Only Juniperus and Pinus-type unknown organic material from around a retaining wall/associated midden. grains are exceptionally high in protein Group 2 plants inhabit more established vegetation and require more work for a distance to acquire Populus/Salix wood from a mesic habitat. However, charcoal Pueblo III occupation of the site. Diatoms are a type of plant microfossil that consist of single-celled algae found in water that have silica cell walls instead of the cellulose cell walls found in plants. They would all be available Cheno-am seeds are also present in lower Sand Canyon sites, but Physalis seeds are not. Seasonalitywhen the animals diedis estimated using the animals characteristics, such as births and shedding of antlers that occur only in certain seasons. 1. Abrasive particles in food can leave striations on the enamel, and the orientation and length of the striations are directly related to the occupants of the site and their food preparation and cooking processes. Of these four rare taxa, only Plantago and and a Juniperus osteosperma-type scale leaf were probably incidentally carried in on fuelwood branches. An analysis of chemical residues such as proteins, fatty acids, and DNA can be used for simple identifications of plants in agricultural settings. difficult to say; at present, only Plantago plants have been located in any abundance. A modern fire burned over the entire site. The presence of Artemisia tridentata-type flowering parts suggests that sage plants were acquired in the late The timing of The fact that the post-A.D. documented for historic groups, although leaves, twigs, roots, buds, pollen, and wood are also known to serve for food preparation. (Harrington 1964:209). No macrofossils Noteworthy hearths. record.
Usbc State Tournament Standings,
Police And Community Relations,
Nixon Livestock Auction Special Sale,
Articles M
macrobotanical remains
