Numismatic Archaeology of North America - Contributions, Progress, and Prospects

Numismatic archaeology in North America is a developing sub-discipline within historical archaeology. Coins, tokens and other forms of money are recovered from archaeological sites throughout North America but until recently, their interpretive potential has not been fully understood. Numismatic material culture and the contexts in which it is recovered is laden with behavioral information that can shed lilght on agency, technology, commerce, ritual and symbolism, and aspects of how material culture enters the archaeological record. This symposium shares the results of several diverse studies conducted with numismatic material culture, both from terrestrial and underwater contexts. It brings together researchers interested in advancing numismatic archaeology; the symposium will wrap up with an open discussion and an interactive exercise in the identification and interpretation of numismatic artifacts provided by symposium participants and audience (a mini Numismatic Roadshow).