Archaeological Anthropology Commons^™

Parasitology In An Archaeological Context: Analysis Of Medieval Burials In Nivelles, Belgium, S. E. Rácz, Elisa Pucu De Araujo, E. Jensen, C. Mostek, Johnica J. Morrow, M. L. Van Hove, R. Bianucci, D. Willems, F. Heller, Adauto Araujo, Karl Reinhard

Karl Reinhard Publications

Coprolites were recovered from three burials near the Grand Place of Nivelles, Belgium. These remains yielded evidence of geohelminth parasitism. The evidence contributes to studies of differential parasite egg preservation related to the taphonomic conditions within the three burials. Using coprolite analysis techniques, parasite egg concentrations were quantified for each burial. Coprolites from the individual in Burial 122 were abnormally large and abundant, indicating an intestinal blockage. Additionally, this individual hosted an extremely high number of parasites evinced by the calculated parasite egg concentrations (Trichuris trichiura = 1,577,679 total eggs; Ascaris lumbricoides = 202,350 total eggs). Statistical analyses revealed …

Paleoparasitology – Human Parasites In Ancient Material, Adauto Araújo, Karl Reinhard, Luiz Fernando Ferreira

Karl Reinhard Publications

Parasite finds in ancient material launched a new field of science: paleoparasitology. Ever since the pioneering studies, parasites were identified in archaeological and paleontological remains, some preserved for millions of years by fossilization. However, the paleoparasitological record consists mainly of parasites found specifically in human archaeological material, preserved in ancient occupation sites, from prehistory until closer to 2015. The results include some helminth intestinal parasites still commonly found in 2015, such as Ascaris lumbricoides, Trichuris trichiura and hookworms, besides others such as Amoebidae and Giardia intestinalis, as well as viruses, bacteria, fungi and arthropods. These parasites as a …

Constructing The World's Largest Prison: Understanding Identity By Examining Labor, Hubert J. Gibson

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

ABSTRACT

A Civil War prison camp operated by the Confederacy known as Camp Lawton was once considered the largest prison in the world. This label was attributed to the fact that Lawton’s stockade enclosed 42 acres. The historical record does not have a clear picture of who built it. Newspaper interviews claim the construction was carried out by 500 impressed slave laborers and 300 Union POWs, but these lack the credibility of official orders. Unfortunately, many Confederate documents were lost when Sherman’s army came through Millen, GA. This study archaeologically examines construction techniques utilized for building stockades in an effort …

A Zooarchaeological Analysis Of The Monashka Bay Site (Kod-026) Kodiak Island, Alaska, Ayla Aymond

All Master's Theses

This thesis involved the initial analysis of fauna recovered in 1989 by Christopher Donta at the Monashka Bay site on Kodiak Island. Analysis included all vertebrate remains (n = 36,273) larger than 1/8” from bulk samples collected in Area 3, a midden dating AD 1550-1670 during the site’s Koniag occupation. Results indicated a focus on cod (68% of fish identified to order), with modest amounts of sculpin, and small amounts of flatfish, salmon, herring, bird, and sea mammal. The predominance of cod is likewise seen at other Koniag-era sites in the vicinity, though the lack of salmon, which composed 2% …

Eastern Iowa Lithics And Their Effects On Oneota Culture, Caitlin Mary Kelly

Honors Program Theses

This research focuses on the experimentation and exploration of heat treatment used on chert by the Native Americans located in eastern Iowa after the Late-Woodland Period. In conjunction with my research advisor, Dr. Chad Heinzel, the geoarchaeologist in the UNI Department of Earth Science, I have heat treated chert from eastern Iowa in order to examine its physical and chemical changes. These experiments took place both in a controlled laboratory setting and in a semi-controlled field setting, comparing the difference between the two different methodologies. Chemical analysis was also performed to assess differences in trace chemicals between raw and heated …

The Ugly Duckling: Insights Into Ancient Maya Commerce And Industry From Pottery Petrography, James Aimers, Elizabeth Haussner, Dori Farthing

Anthropology

No abstract provided.

An Examination Of The Progression Of Fracture Propagation In Long Bones During The Postmortem Period In Central Florida, Ashley Green

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The forensic anthropologist is often tasked with analyzing skeletal trauma and determining time since death. Differentiating between perimortem and postmortem fractures can be difficult when bone retains fresh characteristics in the postmortem interval. As a result, it is important to conduct research that investigates timing of injury in the postmortem period by observing fracture characteristics created at known postmortem intervals. Investigation into the timing of injury was undertaken in this study over a four month time period. By fracturing bones using a custom impact device, specific morphological characteristics that are typically used in trauma analysis were created for analysis. Long …

Community Identity And The Archaeological Complex Of Túcume, Perú: A Synthesis Of Cranial And Dental Nonmetric Variation, Wesley Garrett

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The archaeological complex of Túcume was once a regional center of political and religious importance on the north coast of Perú (ca. AD 1000-1532). Previous research into the identity of the individuals interred at the site has yielded conflicting results. Within this intrasite biodistance analysis, community identity as reflected in the cranial and dental nonmetric variation and burial patterns is examined. This research also addresses methodological issues in nonmetric biodistance studies by examining the utility of combining cranial and dental nonmetric datasets. The sample examined (n=161) includes male and female crania from five distinct burial locations within Túcume. Gower's coefficient …

Practical Use Of Ground Penetrating Radar: A Survey Of Coastal Historic Cemeteries In Brevard County, Florida, William Boynton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) research conducted in coastal environments is one area that is lacking in archaeology. Surveys conducted in this type of environment afford the opportunity to evaluate the practical use GPR under field conditions. Coastal environments are effective for this evaluation because they offer a host of conditions that GPR surveys do not normally encounter at one time. The relationship of the land to the coast, sub-surface conditions and reliable survey areas create a "perfect storm" to test how practical the use of GPR is in coastal environments. This research is a study of homestead cemeteries situated within …

The Crypt People From The Cathedral Basilica Of Saints Stanislaus And Vladislaus, Vilnius, Lithuania: Reconstruction Of Life Histories Using Stable Isotope Analysis, Kaylee Schotten

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Stable isotope analyses of multiple tissue types have been used to reconstruct life histories of individuals from past populations. This thesis presents the life history reconstructions of a unique population recovered from a 16th to 18th century cathedral crypt located in Vilnius, Lithuania. The sample consists of 23 individuals (21 males, one possible female, and one juvenile). Stable carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen isotope analyses were performed on bone and dentin collagen, and on bone and enamel hydroxyapatite, resulting in eight isotope values per individual, providing both childhood and adult dietary and migration information. For bone collagen the average δ13C isotope …

The Fall Of Teotihuacan, Elizabeth P. Ale

UROP Posters

In this project I present a survey of multiple theories regarding the dissolution of the ancient Mesoamerican city of Teotihuacan. This complex city-state was established around 100 BCE and became one of the largest and most powerful sites in Mesoamerica. Located about 25 miles northeast of what is today known as Mexico City, Teotihuacan was home to many advanced technological and social structures, including a pyramid called The Pyramid of the Sun that boasted a base as large as the Great Pyramid of Giza’s. At some time between the 7^th and 8^th century CE, Teotihuacan went into decline. …

Beyond The Horizon: The Limitless Potential Of 3d Technology In Archaeology, Rebecca Bowman

UROP Posters

My research started during the summer of 2014 with a joint internship at VCU’s Virtual Curation Lab and the Virginia Department of Historic Resources under the supervision of Dr. Bernard K. Means and Katherine Ridgway. The purpose of my research was to conduct a comparative study between the virtual and physical process of mending, or repairing, artifacts. I was granted access to three different vessel fragments which were improperly mended in the 1960s. It was my goal to remove the previous adhesive adhered to the sherds and replace it with a safer adhesive. Simultaneously, I brought the previously mended sherds …

Ceramics Of Aztec North And The Terrace Community, Aztec Ruins National Monument, Michelle I. Turner

Graduate Dissertations and Theses

This study reports on a ceramic analysis of nearly 1500 surface-collected potsherds from five unexcavated sites on the river terrace at Aztec Ruins National Monument, including the Aztec North great house. I conducted a detailed attribute analysis and mean ceramic dating.

The mean ceramic date for Aztec North is AD 1104±39, while other terrace sites have later mean dates. Based on these dates, it appears that Aztec North was constructed before or contemporaneously with Aztec West, and it might have been the first structure in the Terrace Community. These data support the theory that, even at this earliest moment, Aztec …

Sacred And Mortuary Landscapes In Iron Age Cyprus: A Gis Analysis, James P. Torpy

Senior Independent Study Theses

During the Archaic period (750-480 BC) the island of Cyprus underwent a dramatic transformation as new city-kingdoms rose to dominate the political landscape of the island. This shift resulted in increased competition for resources, establishment of political boundaries, and emergence of a pronounced social hierarchy within the new polities. While many of the large settlements that became centers of power during this time have been thoroughly studied, the manifestation of the large scale changes of the Archaic in the periphery have not been as fully investigated. The rural site of Athienou-Malloura, surveyed and excavated by the Athienou Archaeological Project …

Exchange Mechanisms, Consumption, And Household Provisioning Strategies: Maya Economy And Political Economy In The Kiuic Polity, Yucatán, México, Christopher M. Gunn

Theses and Dissertations--Anthropology

This project examines household exchange systems in the ancient Maya polity of Kiuic, located in the Puuc Hills of northwestern Yucatán, México. Comparisons of variation in domestic artifact assemblages are used to evaluate household participation in exchange networks organized around three kinds of distribution: (1) non-market horizontal exchange among social equals; (2) vertical exchange across socioeconomic ranks; and (3) market exchange, in which price rather than rank structures access to goods. Intensive analyses of ceramic morphology, mineralogy, and chemical composition will document attribute variation within household artifact assemblages, and comparisons of the degrees to which households share overlapping ranges of …

An Architectural Perspective On Structured Sacred Space—Recent Evidence From Iron Age Ireland, Frank Prendergast

Book/Book Chapter

N/A

An Analysis Of Modified Material Culture From Amache: Investigating The Landscape Of Japanese American Internment, Paul Swader

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Modified material culture is a class of objects that indicates a transformation of material function. Archaeological research at the Japanese American internment camp in Granada, Colorado, called Amache, has recently uncovered artifacts featuring evidence of modification. Previous studies at internment camps have failed to include a comprehensive analysis of these artifacts; instead focusing on formal materials or aesthetic objects. This thesis investigates an assemblage of modified material culture identified at Amache and a collection from the Minidoka internment camp in Idaho. These artifacts provide insight into how internees responded to imprisonment. Through material culture studies, oral histories, and archival research, …

Brewing Behind Barbed Wire: An Archaeology Of Saké At Amache, Christian Driver

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

After the Japanese attack at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, approximately 120,000 people of Japanese ancestry living on the west coast of the United States were forcibly removed from their home communities. These people were designated as "evacuees" by the U.S. Government and were incarcerated within a network of federal government facilities the largest of which were internment centers operated by the War Relocation Authority that held mostly U.S. citizens. The Granada Relocation Center (Amache) was the smallest of these internment centers. The presence of saké at Amache indicates that Japanese Americans continued important practices of daily life despite …

A History Of Transplants: A Study Of Entryway Gardens At Amache, David Holden Garrison

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Previous research shows that during the period of Japanese American internment gardening became a popular activity for the interned. Primarily approached historically, little work has been conducted to archaeologically analyze the efforts of landscaping by former internees. Gardening activity can paint a better picture of Japanese American identity during the period of forced confinement. This research investigates internee gardens methodologically through surface survey, ground penetrating radar, excavation, oral history, soil chemistry, archaeobotany, and palynology. The thorough investigation of landscaping efforts of internees builds upon knowledge of expression within Japanese American relocation centers, as well as the understanding of a lineage …

Wrestling With Tradition: Japanese Activities At Amache, A World War Ii Incarceration Facility, Zachary Allen Starke

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

I employ archaeological analyses, archival research, and oral histories to investigate traditional Japanese practices that were performed at Amache, a World War II Japanese American incarceration facility. I argue that these inter-generational practices helped to bridge a cultural gap that existed between several generations of Japanese Americans. For many incarcerated Japanese Americans, their first exposure to many traditional activities occurred during incarceration. The resulting social environment incorporated aspects of Japanese, Japanese American, and mainstream American influences, all of which were adapted to conditions during incarceration. Similarly, archaeological analyses allow for the investigation of traditional practice features. These provide evidence regarding …