Archaeological Anthropology Commons^™

A Use-Wear Analysis Of Gravers From Paleo-Indian Archaeological Sites In Southern Ontario, Monica S. Maika

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Well-made gravers or spurred tools are one stone tool characteristic of the Paleo-Indian time period, but although many explanations have been posited as to their purpose (tattooing, hide piercing, engraving, etc), to date few typological or use-wear analyses have been conducted. This thesis analyzes a sample of gravers recovered from Early Paleo-Indian (11,000-10,400 B.P.) sites in southern Ontario. Using graver morphology and low-power microscopic examination of traces of use-wear, and guided by experiments using modern replicas, a typology of EPI gravers is evaluated, and a better understanding of their functions and roles in Paleo-Indian technology obtained. This study provides insights …

Past Tents: Temporal Themes And Patterns Of Provincial Archaeological Governance In British Columbia And Ontario, Joshua Dent

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Archaeological governance in Canada is a patchwork of provincial jurisdiction. Comparing past and present archaeological legislation, regulation and policy in British Columbia and Ontario, this thesis identifies temporal themes and patterns both common and distinct in the two provinces. Themes of process, performance and balance and the common transition from empirical archaeological values to conceptual valuations of heritage are discussed using a combination of literary review, archival research and interviews. Analysis of the past and present offers insight into the trajectory of heritage governance and the increasing role of descendant communities in managing their own heritage. The role of archaeologists …

Investigations Of The Biological Consequences And Cultural Motivations Of Artificial Cranial Modification Among Northern Chilean Populations, Christine E. Boston

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The purpose of this study is to build on existing normative models of craniofacial growth and previous craniofacial studies of artificial cranial modification (ACM) in order to deepen the cultural and biological understanding of the this practice. Areas of concentration include a study of the biological changes to cranial epigenetic traits and facial metrics related to ACM, an examination of the biological effects of ACM in order to assess their implications on morbidity and mortality, and an investigation into the cultural motivations for ACM. Three hypotheses were tested: 1) ACM did not affect epigenetic trait incidence or facial metrics; 2) …

Hearts And Minds: Examining The Evolution Of The Egyptian Excerebration And Evisceration Traditions Through The Impact Mummy Database, Andrew D. Wade

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Egyptian mummification and funerary rituals were a transformative process, making the deceased a pure being; free of disease, injury, and disfigurements, as well as ethical and moral impurities. Consequently, the features of mummification available to specific categories of individuals hold social and ideological significance. This study refutes long-held classical stereotypes, particularly dogmatic class associations; demonstrates the apocryphal nature of universal heart retention; and expands on the purposes of excerebration and evisceration implied by synthetic and radiological analyses.

Features of the embalming traditions, specifically the variable excerebration and evisceration traditions, represented the Egyptian view of death. Fine-grain analyses, through primary imaging …