Creating a Discovery Model for Submerged Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene Sites on the Northern Gulf Coast

Summary

Between 13,000 and 12,300 BP, sea levels in the Gulf of Mexico increased rapidly. For the next 2,300 years, however, sea levels both rose and fell by centimeters per year, producing significant shoreline movement observable within a human lifetime. Because of continental shelf’s topography, however, shorelines in different areas did not shift at the same rate. Areas with minimal movement would have seemed more stable and attractive for repeated occupations over generations. This paper models of shoreline movement on a decadal scale in the Gulf of Mexico to identify areas in which future submerged prehistoric archaeological surveys should focus.

Cite this Record

Creating a Discovery Model for Submerged Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene Sites on the Northern Gulf Coast. Thaddeus Bissett, David Anderson, Martin Walker. Presented at The 81st Annual Meeting of the Society for American Archaeology, Orlando, Florida. 2016 ( tDAR id: 403426)

Spatial Coverage

min long: -91.274; min lat: 24.847 ; max long: -72.642; max lat: 36.386 ;