pre-Columbian (Other Keyword)
1-12 (12 Records)
The archaeological study of intercultural encounters in the context of a geographically interstitial zone, such as the Jubones River Basin in present-day Ecuador, elucidates the interconnectedness of multiple historical processes and evaluates the notion that such convergences have existed since antiquity. Preliminary archaeological fieldwork and analysis of the material culture from Potrero Mendieta revealed monumental architecture, and ceramic and lithic traditions that denote cultural...
Ancient DNA Studies in Tropical Environments: A Study into the Genetics of the Pre-Columbian Indigenous Population of Puerto Rico (2017)
Studies into ancient DNA have advanced significantly in the last few years, but these have largely been absent in tropical environments. In the Caribbean, a number of questions still pertain as to the bioarchaeology of the indigenous pre-Columbian populations and the exact origin of these early inhabitants. Focusing on the skeletal remains of a late Saladoid population from Punta Candelero site (AD 640-1200), three correlated and simultaneous studies have been coordinated with the aim to...
Collecting Costa Rican and Nicaraguan Art: On the Case of Enrique Vargas Alfaro, Dealer (2017)
In the mid 20th century crates full of Costa Rican antiquities made their way into the United States through the diplomatic immunity of Enrique Vargas Alfaro. Paul Clifford, then a business man in Miami and later donor and curator at the Duke University Museum of Art, purchased works from Vargas in addition to procuring his own pieces from Peru. Clifford's friend Bill Thibadeau of Atlanta and a few of his neighbors enjoyed "block parties" to open the latest Vargas crate and then to divvy up the...
Detecting Pre-Columbian Paleoecological Disturbance in the Lower Amazon (2016)
Amazonia is a major reservoir of biodiversity that has been influenced by anthropogenic activities for millennia. However, the temporal and spatial scale of pre-Columbian land use and its modern legacy on Amazonian landscapes are among the most debated topics in New World archaeology, paleoecology and conservation. This research investigates pre-Columbian (3000-1492 AD) land-use on Amazonian landscapes near the confluence of the Tapajós and Amazon rivers, a region once occupied by the capital of...
Effects of Atmospheric Events over Marine Ecosystems and Precolumbian Societies in Borikén (2021)
This is an abstract from the "SAA 2021: General Sessions" session, at the 86th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. Climate change, as a social and environmental stressor, has the potential to threaten food security by disrupting the functioning of ecosystems. This stress is particularly enhanced during intense, unexpected events that can trigger disasters. Precolumbian Caribbean societies faced these stressors through time as environmental changes linked to climate change...
Forgery and the Pre-Columbian Art Market (2017)
Why forgery? "Because," as Willie Sutton once said, referring to why he robbed banks, "that’s where the money is." Forgery is a common problem in the art market with works by contemporary living artists as well as "old masters" having been and, continuing to be, faked. Some segments of the market, specifically pre-Columbian antiquities, are worse than others in the sheer number of forged and faked works being offered for sale in upscale galleries, online, and by independent,...
Indian Creek Revisited: The Use of Portable X-ray Fluorescence (pXRF) Soil Analysis to Characterize Areas Without Artifacts (2015)
This paper reports on a preliminary study assessing the applicability for pXRF analysis of soils within a Pre-Columbian context. The data generated for this discussion comes from the site of Indian Creek, Antigua; an Amerindian site bound by a series of middens forming a concentric ring around the perimeter of the site. This settlement is the result of over 1300 years of continuous occupation, before it was abandoned just prior to contact in the New World. Aside from the excavations conducted...
A Multi-Site Analysis of Intergroup Violence in East Tennessee of 1300-1600 C.E.: Temporal and Regional Patterns (2017)
A meta-analysis of deliberate violent trauma (i.e., inflicted projectile points, antemortem blunt force cranial trauma, scalping, body element dismemberment and retrieval) in the human skeletal assemblages of twenty late prehistoric sites (N = 1300+ individuals) was undertaken to determine temporal (Dallas phase [1300-1540 C.E.], Mouse Creek phase [1400-1600 C.E.]) and/or regional patterns within the Ridge-and Valley physiographic province of East Tennessee. The site samples were retrieved from...
Pre-Columbian Vertebrate Remains from the Coconut Walk Site, Nevis, West Indies (2015)
Archaeological investigation of the Pre-Columbian site of Coconut Walk on the island of Nevis (northern Lesser Antilles) revealed midden deposits dating between ca. AD 850-1440. While the site had been previously excavated by the British Time Team television show in 1998, only cursory examination of faunal remains was conducted (NISP=451). We report on the complete analysis of more than 18,000 recovered vertebrate remains from a 5×5m trench in the core midden area, providing enhanced...
Results of Survey and Preliminary Analysis of Manteño Archaeological Sites with Stone Structures in the Las Tusas River Valley, Rio Blanco, Ecuador (2016)
This poster presents information on the Manteño occupation (1500 BP – 1532) of the cloud forest within the Chongón-Colonche Mountains of coastal Ecuador. Survey and data recovered from eight archaeological sites containing stone structures located alongside Las Tusas River drainage suggest a specific mode of adaptation and settlement pattern that left a particular landscape signature. The survey was conducted by the Florida Atlantic University Archaeological Fieldschool in Ecuador during the...
Signatures of human occupation in Amazonian soils (2015)
The extent and intensity of pre-Columbian human impacts on Amazonian forests has remained a topic of debate for decades. Traditional views of pre-Columbian Amazonia as a ‘pristine forest’ have recently been replaced by predictions of vibrant cultures frequently scattered across the Basin. A primary form of evidence for the latter includes the presence of terra preta soils, which are nutrient-enriched anthrosols that were formed in prehistory. Archaeological and paleoecological investigations...
What’s that mound? Answers from interdisciplinary approach (2015)
Modern archaeology must diversify its scientific approaches. First, it is essential to get various viewpoints and different scales to understand better the artifact. Moreover, the interdisciplinary methodology improves considerably the interpretation. The Amazonian raised fields study is a good example of such multiple scientific approaches. While raised field agriculture is no longer widely practiced today, it was quite widespread in the past. These structures are frequently found on the coast...