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RADIOCARBON DATING OF TECHNOLOGICAL TRANSITIONS: THE LATE HOLOCENE SHIFT FROM ATLATL TO BOW IN NORTHWESTERN SUBARCTIC CANADA

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 November 2017

Brigid Sky Grund  and
Snehalata V. Huzurbazar
Brigid Sky Grund*
Affiliation:
Plains Indian Museum, Buffalo Bill Center of the West, 720 Sheridan Avenue, Cody, WY 82414, USA
Snehalata V. Huzurbazar
Affiliation:
Department of Biostatistics, West Virginia University, 9190, One Medical Center Drive, Morgantown, WV 26505, USA (snehalata.huzurbazar@hsc.wvu.edu)
*
(brigidsky@gmail.com, corresponding author)
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Abstract

Precolumbian archaeologists traditionally focus on periods of stability rather than change when constructing regional cultural chronologies. However, the advent of large databases of radiocarbon dates and the proliferation of open-source software environments such as R now allow archaeologists to understand technological transitions with greater chronological precision than has been historically possible. In this study, we employ Monte Carlo procedures, Bayes’ Theorem, the R package Bchron, and IntCal13 to address three chronological topics. We calculate the minimum number of dates required on atlatl and bow technologies to robustly date this late Holocene transition in Subarctic northwestern Canada, analyze previously published dates on organic projectile diagnostics to determine whether bows and atlatls overlapped for an observable amount of time, and estimate the years of calendric time that they overlapped. Results indicate that minimum sample sizes of 29 atlatl and 19 bow dates are required to characterize this particular transition in our study area. Actual radiocarbon dates show that bow and atlatl technologies temporally co-occurred within this region for 174 ± 135 (1σ) actual calendar years. Quantitative analyses such as these open the door to testing hypotheses that explain why and how technological transitions occur within and between (pre)historic groups.

Tradicionalmente, la arqueología Pre-Colombina se ha focalizado en los periodos de estabilidad más que en los cambios al momento de construir cronologías culturales regionales. Sin embargo, el advenimiento de amplias bases de datos de fechados radiocarbónicos y la proliferación de software ambientales de código abierto tales como el R permite a los arqueólogos reconocer las transiciones tecnológicas con un mayor grado de precisión cronológica de lo que fue históricamente posible. En este estudio empleamos el procedimiento Monte Carlo, el Teorema de Bayes, el paquete R Bchron y las curvas de calibración de IntCal13 para abordar tres temas cronológicos. Calculamos el número mínimo de dataciones que son requeridas para las tecnologías de propulsión y arco que permitan datar robustamente su transición en el noroeste subártico de Canadá, analizamos dataciones previamente publicadas para arcos y propulsores diagnósticos con el fin de determinar si las dos tecnologías de proyectil se superponían por una cantidad observable de tiempo en la prehistoria y estimamos los años calendáricos que ambas tecnologías se superponían. Los resultados indican que un tamaño mínimo de muestra de 29 dataciones sobre propulsores y 19 sobre arcos es requerido para caracterizar esta transición cultural en nuestra área de estudio. Las dataciones radiocarbónicas reales muestran que las tecnologías de arco y propulsión co-ocurrieron temporalmente dentro de la región por 174 +/- 135 (1σ) años calendáricos reales. Estos análisis cuantitativos abren la puerta al testeo de hipótesis que expliquen por qué y cómo las transiciones tecnológicas se producen dentro y entre grupos (pre) históricos.

Type
Reports
Information
American Antiquity , Volume 83 , Issue 1 , January 2018 , pp. 148 - 162
Copyright
Copyright © 2017 by the Society for American Archaeology 

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