Born on the Columbia Plateau: Cultural Affiliation for the Ancient One

Summary

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2019: General Sessions" session, at the 84th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

NAGPRA’s preponderance of evidence standard is utilized to demonstrate a relationship of shared group identity between the Ancient One (Kennewick Man) and the Colville, Nez Perce, Umatilla, Wanapum, and Yakama tribes. Data is presented within the evidentiary standard applicable to cultural affiliation determinations under Section 3 of NAGPRA. Scientific certainty is not required but rather evidence demonstrating that the existence of a cultural affiliation is more probable than its nonexistence. Biological data offered the most direct line of evidence in identifying the earlier group. All available, population specific data for the Columbia Plateau within the immediate (7‐mile radius) and nearby (55‐mile radius) areas of the Ancient One site, shows the Ancient One falls within the variability exhibited on the Plateau at the same time period and throughout time. He was not outside of the norm for the population existing during the Early Cascade period when he was alive and for the populations that followed for which he has a shared group identity. Additional archaeological and geographic data demonstrates the Ancient One was intentionally buried at a location on the Southern Columbia Plateau during the Early Cascade Period.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 84th Annual Meeting, Albuquerque, NM (2019)

Keywords

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 24877