Site Structure, Community Organization, and the Interpretation of Subsistence Remains

Summary

Subsistence strategies shape mobility and site use practices. These relationships can be investigated at a regional scale, but they also appear at the level of daily domestic activities. The interpretation of subsistence remains is enhanced by assessing how specific deposits and activity areas across a site fit into broader strategies and relate to community organization. At many coastal and riverine sites of the American Southeast, mollusk shell is prevalent and well-preserved in midden deposits, along with vertebrate bone and other artifacts. These deposits vary in multiple ways, including vertical and horizontal extent, duration of use, structure of deposit, context of creation, and relationships to other activity areas. This paper focuses on case studies that show how interpreting shell midden subsistence remains in light of site structure and community organization can reveal opportunities to explore issues including labor, ritual, and the interplay of ecology and cultural practices.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 81st Annual Meeting, Orlando, FL (2016)   •
• Recent Considerations of Coastal Subsistence Practices in the Southeastern USA

Keywords

Spatial Coverage