Determining the use of Late Archaic shell rings using lithic data: “ceremonial villages” and the importance of stone

Sanger, Matthew C.; Ogden, Quinn-Monique

doi:10.1080/0734578x.2017.1398995

Cited by 20 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…Alternatively, excavations into coastal Archaic-age sites are rare and, when conducted, are often limited in the scale and distribution of excavation areas (35). Shell ring plazas, and particularly their direct centers, are underrepresented in the archaeological literature, as most excavations have focused on the surrounding shell middens (48). As we report the discovery of cremated human remains found in the direct center of the McQueen Shell Ring, it is possible that the paucity of burials found at other rings is not because they are absent but rather because archaeologists have been digging in the wrong locations.…”

Section: Late Archaic Shell Ringsmentioning

confidence: 84%

“…ring residents were in contact and perhaps trading with other distant groups comes from lithic analyses that demonstrate that a small but significant portion of stone found at the McQueen Shell Ring originated at least 100 km away, with some samples coming from locales at least 300 km away (48).…”

Section: Late Archaic Shell Ringsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…While seemingly high, the quantity of pottery found within and near the burial pit is similar to the quantities found elsewhere at the ring, which were likewise quite rich. Notably, the burial pit and its immediate surroundings contained a significantly higher number of stone tools than other locations at the ring, including projectile points, some of which were heat-altered, suggesting they were exposed to fires alongside the human and nonhuman bones (48).…”

Section: Late Archaic Shell Ringsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Early metal use and crematory practices in the American Southeast

Sanger

Hill

Lattanzi

et al. 2018

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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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.

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Section: Late Archaic Shell Ringsmentioning

confidence: 84%

Section: Late Archaic Shell Ringsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Late Archaic Shell Ringsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Early metal use and crematory practices in the American Southeast

Sanger

Hill

Lattanzi

et al. 2018

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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“…Excavations in the center of the McQueen shell ring uncovered a burial pit filled with more than 80,000 calcined bone and teeth fragments, a piece of worked copper, and other associated material culture (Figure 2; Sanger and Ogden 2018; Sanger et al 2018). In our prior publications (Hill et al 2019; Sanger et al 2018), we detailed analyses demonstrating that the copper band is made of materials that originated in the Great Lakes region.…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The material culture recovered from the pit supports the radiocarbon findings, as they include fiber-tempered pottery and stemmed projectile points, which are diagnostic of the Late Archaic (e.g., Sassaman 1993). At least one projectile point was fractured by high levels of heat, presumably as it was exposed to the same flames as the surrounding bones (Sanger and Ogden 2018).…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Great Lakes Copper and Shared Mortuary Practices on the Atlantic Coast: Implications for Long-Distance Exchange during the Late Archaic

et al. 2019

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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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