A Statistical Analysis of Lower Component Lithic Data from the Holzman South Site, Shaw Creek Flats, Alaska

Summary

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2021: General Sessions" session, at the 86th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Archaeologists have long-recognized that post-depositional processes can affect site deposits and that these processes may introduce substantial biases in the interpretation of sites and assemblages. A frequent assumption is that, barring stratigraphic disturbances, thin, well-defined stratigraphic layers are discrete and meaningful archaeological units, but vertical mixing of archaeological deposits can cause errors in interpretations, particularly with respect to occupation history and the age of archaeological components. To reconstruct the occupation history of a site, therefore, it is critical to have some understanding of the degree to which sites are vertically intact. Another aspect of this study pertains to the horizontal, spatial distribution of chipped stone artifacts and refits. Statistically significant patterns in the horizontal dispersion of artifacts gives insight towards the use of space at this site. Refitting of chipped stone artifacts and statistical analysis of lithic data are the two means of gaining insight on spatial patterning and vertical mixing I use in this project. In this study, I analyze the vertical distribution of refits and spatial patterning of artifacts at the Holzman South site (XBD-422) in the Tanana River Valley of Interior Alaska to contribute to our understanding of these aspects of site formation and function.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 86th Annual Meeting, Online (2021)   •
• SAA 2021: General Sessions

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 33024