Laboratory Methods
Preliminary analysis. All recovered cultural material was processed in the Clayton laboratory facilities of ACC. All artifacts were washed in warm soapy water. The artifacts were then allowed to air dry thoroughly. A provenience number, based on artifact contexts (i.e., grid coordinate, unit level, feature, etc.), was assigned to each positive excavation location. Within each provenience, individual artifacts or artifact classes were then assigned a catalog number. Artifacts were cataloged based on specific morphological characteristics such as material in the case of lithics, and decoration and temper type in the case of ceramics. Ceramics and formal lithic tools were compared to published type descriptions and cataloged by type when possible. Artifact descriptions, counts and weights were recorded and entered into an Access database. All diagnostic and cross-mended artifacts were labeled with a 10% solution of Acryloid B-72 and acid free permanent ink.
Ceramics Analysis. Preliminary analysis of prehistoric ceramic sherds was undertaken in order to identify basic typological and stratigraphic information about the entire collection, and to provide a basis from which to approach more in-depth secondary analysis. Our sherd collection comprised all diagnostic sherds from the survey, testing, and data recovery stages of investigation of 38HR496. The first stage of analysis included cataloging sherds based on size, surface decoration, and temper. Sherds less than 2 cm (0.8 in) in diameter were classified as residual. Occasionally, a residual sherd with clearly identifiable decoration was used as part of ceramic analysis, especially when the residual sherd mended with another sherd. All non-residual sherds greater than 2 cm in diameter are cataloged based on surface decoration and temper. Generally recognized terms for various surface decorations are used (e.g., plain, fabric impressed, incised, etc.). Temper is determined by examining the surface and edges of a sherd, especially on a fresh break. For those sherds with sand temper, the size of the grains of sand were determined in as much as possible and classified as granule, very coarse, coarse, medium, or fine. Other temper types include grog, limestone/marl, and fiber. Descriptions of each temper type and size determination standards are summarized in Table 2.
Lithics Analysis. Cataloging of lithic artifacts consisted of identification of raw material and artifact type and the measurement of physical attributes (e.g., mass and dimensions) for use with more in depth statistical analyses. The presence or absence of cortex, the weathered surface of the parent rock, was also noted.
Raw material refers to the rock type from which a particular artifact was made. Several different raw material types are represented in the site assemblage. Identification of raw material is based upon color, texture, luster, and inclusions as described by geologic references (e.g., Chesterman and Lowe 1995). Raw material categories utilized in cataloging the 38HR496 lithic assemblage include siltstone, sandstone, quartz, quartzite, chert, chalcedony, rhyolite (both banded and porphoritic), felsic tuff, and metavolcanic.
Lithic artifacts were then classified based on their technological function and/or reduction stage. Lithic reduction is the process of removing excess raw material from a core or preform to produce stone tools. Several lithic reduction techniques have been described by previous researchers (e.g., Crabtree 1982; Semenov 1964, among others). Debitage classes are defined to reflect the different stages of the lithic reduction process(es) used to make stone tools. A mass of raw material (nodule) is broken to produce smaller fragments with adequate faces from which further material can be removed in a controlled manner. These smaller fragments are called cores. Cores can be bifaical, unidirectional, or multidirectional. Bifacial cores have flakes removed from multiple faces. Unidirectional cores have flakes removed from only one direction. Multidirectional cores have flakes removed from more than one direction. Cores, in addition to creating flakes for tool manufacture, can themselves become tools. Core tools are made from discarded cores and are used as hammers, choppers, or scraping tools.
From the cores, flakes are removed to create the desired form. Shatter is angular waste created during lithic reduction. Tools are the end product of lithic reduction, although further reduction of tools may be conducted to resharpen edges or to create a new tool. There are several different tool categories. Tools can be used for one specific function or a series of different functions. Tool types identified include utilized or modified flakes, bifaces, scrapers, and projectile points. Flake tools are flakes that have edges that exhibit use-wear damage. Long and narrow flakes with nearly parallel margins are called blades. Blades that are very small are called microblades. Flakes can be reduced in sized to form other tools such as bifaces. Bifaces are tools that have been flaked on two sides (faces). Unifaces are tools that have been flaked on one face.
Projectile points are the most commonly recognized bifacial tools, although unifacial projectile points have also been found. These tools are hafted to shafts for use as arrows or spears. Projectile points can also be hafted to short handles for use as knives. Use wear indicating cutting and scraping have also been found on some projectile points.
Groundstone tools were also identified when possible. Groundstone tools are those that are not modified by flaking and include anvils, hammerstones, grinding stones, and abraders.
Flotation Processing
The soil samples recovered from feature contexts were processed with a Piyush One-type flotation system (Wagner 1988:28). Each sample was laid out on metal trays and air dried prior to processing. Each dried sample was divided into one 10 liter sample and a miscellaneous sample of whatever soil remained after the 10 liters was removed. These sub-samples were processed separately and the recovered material was placed in separate acid-free bags labeled by sample size. Each soil sample was slowly emptied into a 0.8 mm screened insert that was placed in a modified 50 gallon drum with an upturned shower head providing constant agitation of the water. The soil was also agitated manually to speed sifting and avoid saturation of lighter material. The light fraction material ran out of an overflow into a fine mesh cloth bag. This material was allowed to air dry in the cloth bag. The material remaining in the screen insert, the heavy fraction, was spread on metal trays and also allowed to dry. Once dry, the light and heavy fractions were bagged separately and labeled by sample size and fraction.
The light fraction material, which is comprised of plant roots, seeds, and charcoal, was submitted for ethnobotanical analysis. Artifacts, bone, and charcoal were sorted from the heavy fraction and cataloged. The remaining heavy fraction, which was predominately comprised of sand grains, was weighed. Charcoal recovered from the heavy fraction of select proveniences was submitted for radiocarbon dating.
Radiocarbon Dating
Radiocarbon dating measures the rate of decay of the radioactive isotope of carbon that is present in all living organisms (Dincauze 2000). Charcoal and other charred material can be processed for radiocarbon dating, as can bone and shell. Following cleaning, the organic material is reduced to a gas and the emissions of beta particles are counted. This count provides a time period, based on the half-life of the isotope, from the time when the organism stopped incorporating carbon into its system (i.e., time of death). This dating method was utilized for charcoal and charred plant material recovered from feature contexts at 38HR496 to determine the time of site occupation.
Zooarchaeological and Ethnobotanical Analyses
Bone and plant material recovered from screened fill and from flotation samples underwent analysis.
