Population Size and Structure in the A.D. 13th Century Occupation of Promontory Cave 1

Summary

The extraordinary preservation and narrow time frame (A.D. 1240-1290) for the occupation of Promontory Cave 1 on Great Salt Lake allow for unusual insights into the population and demography of its Promontory Culture inhabitants. We use two methods to determine population size. First, with accurate data on the habitable space in Cave 1, we calculate space needs per person from ethnographic accounts of Western North American hunter-gatherer groups in order to estimate likely group size. Second, artifact densities are calculated and projected into the entire cave volume using mathematical and GIS methods. The number of moccasins will be the focus because of the sound ethnographic knowledge of their use and discard rates. We apply accumulation equations to these projection results to determine population size, taking into account the duration and time of the occupation of the cave. These two methods will be compared and discussed to provide a likely size for the population inhabiting Promontory Cave 1.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 82nd Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC (2017)   •
• Implications of the Promontory, Dismal River, and Franktown Archaeological Records for Apachean Prehistory

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 15861