Geochemical Analyses of Poverty Point Objects: Implications for Production and Exchange

Summary

This is an abstract from the "*SE Not Your Father’s Poverty Point: Rewriting Old Narratives through New Research" session, at the 89th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

We present results of a geochemical study on baked-clay balls (Poverty Point Objects; PPOs) obtained from the Poverty Point archaeological site. We compare our data with PPOs obtained at other sites to evaluate the proposition that PPOs were traded or exchanged among Poverty Point-related cultures in the Southeast. We find no evidence to support this proposition. We explore statistically significant chemical differences within PPOs obtained from different areas at Poverty Point itself, and outline hypotheses concerning modes of production of these artifacts by the site’s residents. Finally, we compare and contrast various analytical methodologies to provide brief comment on their suitability for further studies of PPOs.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 89th Annual Meeting, New Orleans, LA (2024)   •
• *SE Not Your Father’s Poverty Point: Rewriting Old Narratives through New Research

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 39506.0