Long-distance exchange of copper objects during the Archaic Period (ca. 8000-3000 cal B.P.) is a bellwether of emergent social complexity in the Eastern Woodlands. Originating from the Great Lakes, the Canadian Maritimes, and the Appalachian Mountains, Archaic-age copper is found in significant amounts as far south as Tennessee and in isolated pockets at major trade centers in Louisiana but is absent from most of the southeastern United States. Here we report the discovery of a copper band found with the cremated remains of at least seven individuals buried in the direct center of a Late Archaic shell ring located in coastal Georgia. Late Archaic shell rings are massive circular middens thought to be constructed, in part, during large-scale ritual gatherings and feasting events. The exotic copper and cremated remains are unique in coastal South Carolina and Georgia where Archaic-age cremations are conspicuously absent and no other Archaic copper objects have been reported. Elemental data produced through laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry shows the copper originated from the Great Lakes, effectively extending Archaic copper exchange almost 1,000 km beyond its traditional boundaries. Similarities in mortuary practices and the presence of copper originating from the Great Lakes reveal the presence of long-distance exchange relations spanning vast portions of the eastern United States and suggest an unexpected level of societal complexity at shell ring localities. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that elite actors solidified their positions through ritual gatherings and the long-distance exchange of exotic objects during the Archaic.
Northeastern North America has produced an incredible number of late Pleistocene faunal remains; however, many of these were discovered and excavated prior to the development of radiocarbon dating. Moreover, many of the 14 C dates that do exist for such specimens were assayed prior to the development of purified collagen extraction methods, were performed on botanical remains of unspecified association with the faunal remains, or were accepted without concerns of young-carbon contamination from museum preservatives. Here, we present a set of high-precision accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) dates obtained on Pleistocene faunal specimens from Connecticut, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Our data contain both newly discovered specimens and specimens that have resided in museum collections for over a century.
METHODSBone and antler specimens were cleaned and washed using ultrasonic baths. Specimens containing sufficient preserved collagen are treated in 1N HCl at 4°C for 24 hr. The remaining residue is filtered, treated with 0.1N NaOH on filter to remove humic acid contamination, rinsed in deionized water, and heated at 80°C for 12 hr in a slightly acid environment to dissolve collagen and leave humic substances in precipitate. The collagen solution is purified, and the dried pure collagen is combusted at 575°C in an evacuated and sealed Pyrex ® ampoule. Specimens lacking preserved collagen were pretreated for analysis of the bioapatite fraction and prepared following methods discussed by Cherkinsky (2009). After cleaning, the dried specimens were crushed to small fragments, and the fragments were treated with dilute 1N acetic acid to remove surface absorbed and secondary carbonates.
Analysis of human remains and a copper band found in the center of a Late Archaic (ca. 5000–3000 cal BP) shell ring demonstrate an exchange network between the Great Lakes and the coastal southeast United States. Similarities in mortuary practices suggest that the movement of objects between these two regions was more direct and unmediated than archaeologists previously assumed based on “down-the-line” models of exchange. These findings challenge prevalent notions that view preagricultural Native American communities as relatively isolated from one another and suggest instead that wide social networks spanned much of North America thousands of years before the advent of domestication.
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