The compositional analysis of hunter-gatherer pottery from the Kuril Islands

Gjesfjeld, Erik

doi:10.1016/j.jasrep.2016.03.049

Cited by 4 publications

(2 citation statements)

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“…Given the limited amounts of Tobinitai and Naiji pottery found during KBP excavations, they are not included in analysis performed below, and these archaeological cultures are assumed not to have contributed significantly to the patterns discussed here for fauna, lithic or pottery. The relative proportion of pottery produced on each island was estimated using results from the geochemical compositional analysis of ceramic artifacts (Gjesfjeld 2018). Here, we use compositional data on ceramic artifacts collected through the bulk analysis of 279 pottery sherds using inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (as outlined in Gjesfjeld 2018).…”

Section: Potterymentioning

confidence: 99%

Biogeography and adaptation in the Kuril Islands, Northeast Asia

et al. 2019

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The Circumpolar North is generally recognized as a challenging environment to inhabit and yet, we know relatively little about how people managed their welfare in these places. Here, we add to the understanding of maritime hunter-gatherers in the subarctic North Pacific through a comparative approach that synthesizes biogeographic and archaeological data from the Kuril Islands. We conclude that our faunal, ceramic and lithic evidence support biogeographical expectations as assemblages from low biodiversity and insular regions show limited diet breadth, more locally produced pottery and a conservation of lithic resources. However, we highlight that these ecological factors did not strictly determine the occupation history of the archipelago as radiocarbon data suggests all regions experienced similar demographic fluctuations regardless of their biogeography. These results imply additional pressures influenced the strategic use and settlement of the Kuril Islands and the need for increased chronological resolution to disentangle these complex historical factors. IntroductionMaritime hunter-gatherers can be broadly defined as those groups whose subsistence relies primarily on wild resources extracted from the sea. However, given that many northern regions have had only intermittent human presence (Hoffecker 2005; Friesen and Mason 2016) and have been less intensively studied, the archaeological record of Arctic and sub-Arctic maritime hunter-gatherers is often scant. This is unfortunate as the archaeology of northern foragers present valuable opportunities to study long-term interactions between humans and their environments. This is especially true given the challenging climates, inherent instability of highlatitude ecosystems and their reliance on local resources for survival (Damm et al. 2019). Here, our approach is to compare archaeological and radiocarbon evidence from maritime hunter-gatherers that inhabited a subarctic landscape: the Kuril Islands, an archipelago that stretches from the northernmost Japanese island of Hokkaido to the southern tip of the Kamchatka peninsula (see Fig 1). We start from the well-established premise that islands make good areas for studying historical hunter-gatherer relationships to ecological variability (Keegan

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Section: Potterymentioning

confidence: 99%

Biogeography and adaptation in the Kuril Islands, Northeast Asia

et al. 2019

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“…Our previous work (Rorabaugh and Shantry 2017) examined Salish Sea labret lip ornaments using social network analysis (SNA) to assess the chronology and distribution of the practice. Archaeologists in the American Southwest have used SNA to study change in active social symbols, examining social transformations with ceramic styles and sourcing (Birch and Hart 2018; Borck et al 2015; Brughmans 2010; Gjesfjeld 2014, 2015; Knappett 2011, 2013; Mills 2017; Mills et al 2015). SNA has also been widely applied to lithic material sources (Buchanan et al 2016; Golitko and Feinman 2015; Golitko et al 2012; Mills et al 2013; Phillips 2011).…”

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A Social Network Analysis of Traditional Labrets and Horizontal Relationships in the Salish Sea Region of Northwestern North America

Rorabaugh,

Shantry

2024

Am. Antiq.

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In the Salish Sea region, labret adornment with lip plugs signify particular identities, and they are interpreted as emblematic of both membership in horizontal relationships and achieved status for traditional cultures associated with labret wearing on the Northwest Coast (NWC) of North America. Labrets are part of a shared symbolic language in the region, one that we argue facilitated access to beneficial horizontal relationships (e.g., Angelbeck and Grier 2012; Rorabaugh and Shantry 2017). We employ social network analysis (SNA) to examine labrets from 31 dated site components in the Salish Sea region spanning between 3500 and 1500 cal BP. Following this period, the more widely distributed practice of cranial modification as a social marker of status developed in the region. The SNA of labret data shows an elaboration and expansion of antecedent social networks prior to the practice of cranial modification. Understandings of status on the NWC work backward from direct contact with Indigenous societies. Labret wearing begins at the Middle-Late Holocene transition, setting an earlier stage for the horizontal social relationships seen in the ethnohistoric period. These findings are consistent with the practice as signifying restricted group membership based on affinal ties and achieved social status.

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The Kuril Biocomplexity Project

Fitzhugh¹

2018

Engaging Archaeology

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The compositional analysis of hunter-gatherer pottery from the Kuril Islands

Cited by 4 publications

References 46 publications

Biogeography and adaptation in the Kuril Islands, Northeast Asia

Biogeography and adaptation in the Kuril Islands, Northeast Asia

A Social Network Analysis of Traditional Labrets and Horizontal Relationships in the Salish Sea Region of Northwestern North America

The Kuril Biocomplexity Project

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