POLLEN, PHYTOLITH, AND STARCH ANALYSES ON SEDIMENT SAMPLES FROM WATHAYN, NORTH QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA

Author(s): Linda Scott Cummings; Jenna Battillo

Year: 2019

Summary

Earth Mounds 33 and 34 are located in the Wathayn locality on the Weipa Peninsula of northern Cape York in Queensland, Australia. Evidence suggests that occupation of the earth mounds at Wathayn began after 2000 BP, with the height of occupation occurring between 500 and 100 BP. Use of the earth mounds on the Weipa Peninsula continued well after European settlement, with evidence for Aboriginal adoption of new technologies suggestive of occupation into the modern era (Stevenson et al. 2015:28). The Wathayn traditional owners continue to use the same cooking methods as those associated with the earth mounds (Foghlú 2017:62). The appearance and gradual predominance of earth mounds on the landscape could signal new diets adopted in the mid-Holocene (Robert Jones, personal communication, 18 June 2019; Foghlú 2017:66). Therefore, pollen, phytolith, and starch analyses of sediment from Earth Mounds 33 and 34 at Wathayn were sought to investigate whether or not components of diet could be detected, and, through the resultant data, specific questions about changing environment, demographics, and subsistence could be answered.

Cite this Record

POLLEN, PHYTOLITH, AND STARCH ANALYSES ON SEDIMENT SAMPLES FROM WATHAYN, NORTH QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA. Linda Scott Cummings, Jenna Battillo. PRI Technical Report ,2019-053. 2019 ( tDAR id: 454932) ; doi:10.6067/XCV8454932

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

Keywords

Material
Pollen • Sediment

Site Name
Weipa Earth Mound

Investigation Types
Data Recovery / Excavation

General
19-053 • Phytolith Analysis • Pollen Analysis • Starch Analysis

Geographic Keywords
Australia (Continent) • Cape York • Commonwealth of Australia (Country) • Queensland (State / Territory) • Wathayn • Weipa Peninsula

Spatial Coverage

min long: 136.89; min lat: -28.552 ; max long: 156.313; max lat: -9.553 ;

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): PaleoResearch Institute

File Information

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19-053_Report.pdf 363.20kb Oct 15, 2019 8:44:29 AM Embargoed Five Years

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