POLLEN, STARCH, AND MACROFLORAL ANALYSIS AT SITE 5LA6493, COLORADO

Summary

Site 5LA6493 in the Comanche National Grasslands of southeastern Colorado consists

of a room block with six rooms. Charcoal from three of the rooms yielded conventional

radiocarbon ages of 990 ± 40 BP (Room 1), 1080 ± 40 BP (Room 2) and 1090 ± 40 BP (Room

5). Various samples have been submitted at different times for analysis. This report is a

compilation of the work done at these various times.

Five pollen and three macrofloral samples were submitted and examined in 2005. Soil

samples from a hearth and a circular pit, as well as one metate fragment and one mano, were

recovered from Room 2. A conventional radiocarbon age of AD 980 (Beta-194913) was

obtained from Feature 3, a hearth in Room 2. At the very end of 2005, single pollen/starch and

macrofloral samples were submitted from Rooms 1 and 5 for analysis. Charcoal from Room 1

yielded a radiocarbon age of AD 1020 (Beta-173289), and a radiocarbon age of AD 900 (Beta-

181545) was returned for charcoal from Room 5. Pollen and macrofloral samples were

examined to obtain subsistence information and help provide insight into plant procurement and

processing along the Purgatoire River during the Developmental or Formative Period.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• PaleoResearch Institute

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