INTRODUCTION
First, recall the goals of the archaeological excavations at Hilltopper Shelter. One research question concerns when the site was occupied. Is Hilltopper Shelter a single component historic period site or a multicomponent site that also represents prehistoric occupations? Can a specific range of years be specified for each occupation? The other research question relates to the function of the site during each temporally-distinct occupation. How was the site used during each occupation?
In the previous labs we considered how lithic and
fired clay artifacts might be used to answer these
questions.
In this lab, we examine how plant remains can be used to address
these
questions. Analysis of the macrobotanical remains (those larger
than
2 mm in size) from the shelter will proceed with these questions in
mind.
How can plant remains be used to determine time and period of
occupation?
How can plant remains be used to determine site function? Plant
identification
and interpretation are demonstrated in this lab.
OCCUPATION HISTORY
The issue of using plant remains to
determine
when the shelter was occupied has already been addressed in the site
report.
Recall that the Radiocarbon Dates
section of the Results chapter of the site report lists all the
radiocarbon
dates based on plant remains. Therefore, the question of when the
site was occupied based on plant remains has already been
investigated.
For this lab, you do not have to do any lab work related to this
question.
(However, you will need to incorporate the radiocarbon dates into the
Conclusion
chapter of your site report at the end of the semester.)
SITE FUNCTION
Macrobotanical remains were recovered from various features and stratigraphic zones at Hilltopper Shelter. Plants that are carbonized are usually associated with human use of a site. Uncarbonized plant remains may be artifacts or ecofacts, depending on the preservation conditions at the site. The following aspects of plant assemblages may be used to address the question of site function and site use.
Nature of plant
use: Consider how plants
were
used by the prehistoric and historic inhabitants, keeping in mind that
plants have uses other than consumption/subsistence. Some plants
were used for cordage, some for medicines, and some for fuel. The
following table serves as an interpretive guideline.
| PLANT USE | PLANT TYPES |
| subsistence |
grains/grasses: maize, rice, wheat, rye, barley, little
barley, maygrass legumes: pea, bean fleshy fruits: peach, many berries, grape, cherry, plum, honey locust, paw paw weedy seeds: goosefoot, sumpweed, sunflower, amaranth, giant ragweed vegetables: many squashes, pumpkin leafy: spinach, lettuce tubers: potato, carrot, onion, radish nut meat: hickory, walnut, butternut, pecan, acorn, chestnut |
| fuel | wood charcoal: hickory, walnut, oak, pine, elm, sycamore,
chestnut carbonized nut shell: hickory, walnut, butternut, pecan, acorn carbonized grass stalks: river cane, Gerardia other: maize chaff, maize cobs |
| cordage | goosefoot, milkweed |
| medicines | willow, St. John's wort, bedstraw, etc. (see class handout) |
| ceremony / ritual | tobacco, maize, jimson weed, sticky catchfly |
| tool fabrication |
gourd, squash, cane, many
grasses and woods |
| architecture |
many woods and grasses |
Economic importance of
plants: Using some method
of quantification and/or quantitative analysis, perhaps Dennell's
(1976)
model that we discussed in class, determine what type of economy is
represented
for each occupation and what
plants were the most important
economically (such as indicated by ubiquity).
The following table serves as an interpretive guideline for
distinguishing
between the two broad categories of economic plant use - collecting and
farming - based on the use of wild vs. domesticated species. For
example, if you find high percentages of acorn, hickory, and walnut in
a stratigraphic zone, the site may have been used as a base from which
collection of wild plant resources occurred.
| COLLECTING | FARMING | |
| HISTORIC | acorn, hickory, walnut, chestnut, hazelnut, butternut, pecan,
many berries |
peach, apple, tomato, watermelon, cantaloupe, potato, maize,
beans, squash,
tobacco, pepper, wheat, barley, rye, rice, spinach |
| PREHISTORIC | acorn, hickory, walnut, chestnut, hazelnut, sumac, paw paw,
grape, honey locust, many berries, American lotus, viburnum, panic
grass, purslane, carpetweed, black haw, dandelion, lily, iris |
sunflower, sumpweed, goosefoot, maygrass, amaranth, giant ragweed, erect knotweed, maize, beans, squash, tobacco |
Season of
occupation: Consider how plants are used to determine
during what
season(s)
the site was used during each occupation. The following table, assuming
no storage, serves as an interpretive guideline.
| SPRING | SUMMER | FALL | WINTER |
| peas lettuce spinach wild greens many berries |
wild greens many berries peach purslane sunflower goosefoot maygrass watermelon beans squash |
nuts purslane potato maize tobacco beans squash elderberry paw paw |
nuts (early winter) |
Intensity of site
occupation: Using some
method
of quantification or quantitative analysis, compare plant assemblages
from
different contexts to determine the intensity of site occupation.
Generally speaking, the volume or density of plant materials is
indicative
of frequency and/or duration of site use. High densities of wood
charcoal suggest frequent use of a site or long durations of site
occupation
(or use during cold seasons). High densities of collected or
cultivated
plants suggest frequent use or long durations of occupation.
Plants
from multiple seasons suggest longer duration of occupation than do
plants
from just one season. Recovery of plants from many contexts may
suggest
intense occupation in terms of the range of activities performed at the
site.
ASSIGNMENT: Use
the
nested geologic screens to separate each sample into size classes.
Analyze
all macrobotanical remains. Using reference
materials
and comparative collections in the lab, identify the types of
macrobotanical
remains from each field sample. Record the sample number,
provenience, number, and weights of each plant species in the
sample. Record any other
attributes you deem relevant to answering the research questions.
SITE REPORT
The results of the archaeobotanical analysis must be described in the site report. The archaeobotanical analysis section usually includes descriptive text, data tables, data figures, and quantitative analysis. I suggest one to several paragraphs (with supporting figures and tables, as appropriate) describing the composition, distribution and preservation of the plant remains from the site.
Follow this with paragraphs (plus supporting figures and tables) on the relationship between plants and site function during the historic occupation and each prehistoric occupation. What types of activities, based on plants, occurred at the site? What were the most economically important plants used during each occupation? What were the season(s) of occupation for each zone? How intensely was the site used during each occupation?
ASSIGNMENT:
Compose
the archaeobotanical analysis section of the final site report.
Follow
the stylistic format of the existing portions of the site report.
Click here for more details.