Over the span of some 700 years the colonizing populations of Aotearoa New Zealand grew, with subsequent changes in levels of interaction and social affiliation. Historical accounts document that Māori society transformed from relatively autonomous village-based groups into larger territorial lineages, which later formed even larger geo-political tribal associations. These shifts have not been well-documented in the archaeological record, but social network analysis (SNA) of pXRF sourced obsidian recovered from 15 archaeological sites documents variable levels of similarity and affiliation. Three site communities and two source communities are defined based on the differential proportions of obsidian from 13 distinct sources. Distance and travel time between archaeological sites and obsidian sources were not the defining factors for obsidian source selection and community membership, rather social considerations are implicated. Some archaeological sites incorporated material from far off sources, and in some instances geographically close sites contained material from different sources and were assigned to different communities. The analytical site communities constitute relational identifications that partially correspond to categorical identities of current Māori iwi (tribal) territories and boundaries. Based on very limited temporal information, these site communities are thought to have coalesced sometime after AD 1500. By incorporating previously published and unpublished data, the SNA of obsidian artefacts defined robust network communities that reflect differential levels of Māori interaction and affiliation.
Monumental architecture has long been a focus of archaeological research. The construction of large and elaborate structures is a costly endeavour, which may seem to have little immediate benefit. Costly signalling is one explanation which can be applied to this problem by determining the contexts in which monument construction would carry a selective advantage. This study investigates stone and earthen mounds and platforms from Savai'i and 'Upolu in Sāmoa. These are among the most common type of archaeological feature in the landscape, yet targeted research explaining why these costly mounds were built is lacking. One of the primary expectations of costly signalling is that monuments will be located near areas where contested resources are abundant. To test this expectation, a semi-automated feature identification method was used to identify mounds in LiDAR data, and a model of agricultural productivity was produced to map locations where the cultivation of dryland taro should have been successful. Mounds were found to be preferentially located near areas with high agricultural potential, suggesting that costly signalling could be an explanation for mound construction in Sāmoa, where mounds served to demonstrate resource holding potential and competitive ability.
Temporal coverage Collections include artefacts that may date from the initial settlement by the ancestors of Māori around AD 1280 through the period of regular contact with Europeans after AD 1850. (2) Methods Each artefact was assessed mid-z elements (Nb, Rb, Y, Zr, Sr) and other elements (Fe, Mg) using a pXRF and then matched to a geochemically distinct natural source of obsidian. Geographically ambiguous source assignments, such as assignment to a general volcanic zone, were not included. We note that out of the 15 known geochemically distinct natural sources of New Zealand obsidian [12], only 13 have been identified in archaeological collections. Steps The two university laboratories that produced this data each specified procedures in a series of publications. The specific lab protocols and machines used evolved over this period and so readers are directed to original studies for a fuller description. Examples of methods for Bruker pXRF, a type used in both laboratories, is summarised below.
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