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Absorbed Residue Analysis of a Mississippi Plain Jar from Angel Mounds (12Vg1)

Lipid Distribution Revisited

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 January 2017

Eleanora Reber ,
Timothy E. Baumann ,
G.William Monaghan  and
Kelsey Noack Myers
Eleanora Reber
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, University of North Carolina, Wilmington, 601 S. College Rd., Wilmington, NC 28403 ([email protected])
Timothy E. Baumann
Affiliation:
McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture, 1327 Circle Park Drive, Knoxville, TN 37996
G.William Monaghan
Affiliation:
Indiana Geological Survey and Department of Geological Sciences, Indiana University Bloomington, 423 North Fess Ave, Bloomington, IN 47405
Kelsey Noack Myers
Affiliation:
Glenn A. Black Laboratory of Archaeology, Department of Anthropology, Indiana University Bloomington, 423 North Fess Ave, Bloomington, IN 47405
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Abstract

For the first time in North American archaeology, absorbed residue analysis was conducted on multiple samples from the same vessel, a complete Mississippi Plain jar from Angel Mounds (12Vg1). This approach provided comprehensive, residue-based interpretations of the form and function of a single pot. The Mississippi Plain jar was recovered from a burnt house floor along with the broken remains of a similar vessel and burnt maize. Qualitative and quantitative analyses of absorbed lipid residues were performed on four different parts of this vessel to determine its contents and function. Comparison of absorbed residues from the pot and soil lipids was used to determine whether the pot was buried with contents intact. The results indicate that this vessel was used to cook a mixture of riverine (lean fish or shellfish) and plant resources, probably including maize. Diterpenoid biomarkers were also present, suggesting that conifer resin was used either to seal the pot or as a flavoring. The jar, though deposited whole, was probably not buried with contents intact.

Por primera vez en la arqueología de América del Norte, se tomaron múltiples muestras de una misma vasija para su análisis por absorción de residuos, una olla completa de Angel Mounds (12Vg1). Esta estrategia ha permitido realizar interpretaciones exhaustivas basadas en los residuos en torno a la forma y función de una sola olla. La olla “Mississippi Plain” se encontró sobre el piso quemado de una casa, junto a los restos de una olla parecida y de maíz quemado. El análisis cualitativo y cuantitativo de los análisis de absorción de residuos grasos se realizó en cuatro partes distintas de la olla para determinar sus contenidos y su función. La comparación del análisis de residuos de la olla con los lípidos del suelo se utilizaron para d terminar si la vasija h bía sido nterrada con el contenido intacto. Los resultados indican que esta vasija se utilizó para cocinar una mezcla de recursos acuáticos (pescado magro o crustáceos) y de vegetación riparia, incluyendo posiblemente maíz. Los biomarcadores diterpenoides también estuvieron presentes, lo que sugiere que la resina extraída de coníferas se uso para impermeabilizar la olla o bien como condimento. La olla, aunque se depositó completa, probablemente no fue enterrada con el contenido intacto.

Type
Research Article
Information
Advances in Archaeological Practice , Volume 3 , Issue 1 , February 2015 , pp. 29 - 49
Copyright
Copyright © Society for American Archaeology 2015

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