Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-2plfb Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-25T04:08:03.445Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The Late Woodland Diet on Nantucket Island and the Problem of Maize in Coastal New England

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Elizabeth A. Little  and
Margaret J. Schoeninger
Elizabeth A. Little
Affiliation:
Nantucket Historical Association, 37 Conant Road, Lincoln, MA 01773
Margaret J. Schoeninger
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706-1393
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios of (1) bone collagen from six burials of the Late Woodland Period at Nantucket Island, Massachusetts, and (2) a wide range of potential dietary materials provide data for evaluating coastal diets. Archaeological and historical data give evidence for the availability and use of dietary items. The bases of the food chains and trophic levels define the possible food groups: terrestrial C3 and C4 plants and their consumers, marine C3 and C4-like plants and their consumers, and marine carnivores. From these data, computer analysis of multiple linear mixing equations relating isotope ratios of human bone collagen to those of dietary food groups shows allowable ranges of these food groups in the diet. The results argue for a diet of 40–65 percent oceanic animals, with the rest consisting of substantial amounts of animals from salt marsh and eelgrass meadows or of maize, and minor amounts of C3 plants and their consumers.

Resumen

Resumen

Las proporciones de isotopos de carbono y nitrógeno tornados de (1) colágeno de hueso, sacados de seis entierros del periódo Woodland Tardio en la Isla Nantucket, Massachusetts; y (2) una gran variedad de materiales alimenticios posibles, proveen datos para valorar las dietas costeñas. Los datos historicos y arqueologicos establecen evidencia sobre la utilizatión y disponibilidad de los consumibles. Las bases de la sucesión de comestibles y los niveles tróficos determinan los grupos alimenticios posibles: plantas terrestres C3 y C4 y sus consumidores; plantas marinas parecidas a las plantas C3 y C4 y sus consumidores, y carnίvoros marinos. Un análisis por computadora de ecuaciones mezcladores multi-lineares que relaciona razones isotópicos de colágeno de hueso humano a las de los grupos alimenticios, demuestra limites permisibles de estos grupos alimenticios en el régimen. Los resultados indican una dieta de 40-65 por ciento de animales oceánicos y lo demás es compuesto de cantidades sustanciosas de animales del saladar y de las praderas de Zostera marina, o de maίz, y cantidades pequeñas de plantas C3 y sus consumidores.

Type
Reports
Information
American Antiquity , Volume 60 , Issue 2 , April 1995 , pp. 351 - 368
Copyright
Copyright © The Society for American Archaeology 1995

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

References Cited

Ambrose, S., and Norr, L. 1993 Experimental Evidence for the Relationship of the Carbon Isotope Ratios of Whole Diet and Dietary Protein to Those of Bone Collagen and Carbonate. In Molecular Archaeology of Prehistoric Human Bone, edited by Lambert, J. and Grupe, G.. Springer, Berlin.Google Scholar
Bendremer, J. C, Kellogg, E. A. and Largy, T. B. 1991 A Grass-Lined Maize Storage Pit and Early Maize Horticulture in Central Connecticut. North American Archaeologist 12 : 325–349 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bernstein, D. J. 1992 Prehistoric Use of Plant Foods in the Narragansett Bay Region. Man in the Northeast 44 : 1–13.Google Scholar
Bigelow, H. B., and Schroeder, W. C. 1953 Fishes of the Gulf of Maine. 1st rev. Fishery Bulletin of the Fish and Wildlife Service Vol. 53, No. 74. U. S. Government Printing Office, Washington D. C. Google Scholar
Borstel, C. 1984 Prehistoric Site Chronology : A Preliminary Report. In Chapters in the Archaeology of Cape Cod, I, vol. 1, edited by McManamon, F. P., pp. 231—288. Cultural Resources Management Study No. 8, National Park Service, Boston.Google Scholar
Bourque, B. J., and Kreuger, H. W. 1994 Dietary Reconstruction from Human Bone Isotopes for Five Coastal New England Populations. In Paleonutrition : The Diet and Health of Prehistoric Americans, edited by Sobolik, K. D., pp. 195–209. Occasional Paper No. 22, Center for Archaeological Investigations, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale.Google Scholar
Brereton, J. 1602 A Brief and True Relation…. George Bishop, London.Google Scholar
Capone, D. G., and Carpenter, E. J. 1982 Nitrogen Fixation in the Marine Environment. Science 217 : 1140–1142.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ceci, L. 1975 Fish Fertilizer : A Native North American Practice? Science 118 : 26–30.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ceci, L. 1990 Radiocarbon Dating “Village” Sites in Coastal New York : Settlement Pattern Change in the Middle to Late Woodland. Man in the Northeast 39 : 1–28.Google Scholar
Champlain, S. de 1880-1882 Voyages, vol. 2. Prince Society, Boston.Google Scholar
Chisholm, B. S., Nelson, D. E., and Schwarcz, H. P. 1982 Stable Carbon Isotope Ratios as a Measure of Marine Versus Terrestrial Protein in Ancient Diets. Science 216 : 1131–1132.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Crevecoeur, H. 1971 [1782] Letters from An American Farmer . Everyman's Library, New York.Google Scholar
Demeritt, D. 1991 Agriculture, Climate, and Cultural Adaptation in the Prehistoric Northeast. Archaeology of Eastern North America 19 : 183–202.Google Scholar
DeNiro, M. J., and Epstein, S. 1978 Influence of Diet on the Distribution of Carbon Isotopes in Animals. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 42 : 495–506.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
DeNiro, M. J., and Epstein, S. 1981 Influence of Diet on the Distribution of Bitrogen Isotopes in Animals. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 45 : 341–51.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
DeNiro, M. J., and Hastorf, C. A. 1985 Alteration of 15N/14N and l3C/, 2C Ratios of Plant Matter during the Initial Stages of Diagenesis : Studies Utilizing Archaeological Specimens from Peru. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 49 : 97–115.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
DeNiro, M. J., and Schoeninger, M. J. 1983 Stable Carbon and Nitrogen Isotope ratios of Bone Collagen : Variation within Individuals, between Sexes, and within Populations Raised on Monotonous Diets. Journal of Archaeological Science 10 : 199–203.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Draper, H. H. 1977 The Aboriginal Eskimo Diet in Modern Perspective. American Anthropologist 79 : 309–316.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dunwiddie, P. W. 1990 Postglacial History of Coastal Islands in Southeastern New England. National Geographic Research 6(2) : 178–195.Google Scholar
Eaton, S. B., and Konner, M. 1985 Paleolithic Nutrition : A Consideration of Its Nature and Current Implications. The New England Journal of Medicine 312 : 283–289.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Felger, R., and Moser, M. B. 1973 Eelgrass (Zostera marina L.) in the Gulf of California : Discovery of Its Nutritional Value by the Serf Indians. Science 181 : 355–356.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fernald, M. L. 1970 Gray's Manual of Botany. 8th ed. Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York.Google Scholar
Fitzgerald, J. 1984 Floral and Faunal Archaeological Remains. In Chapters in the Archeology of Cape Cod, I, vol. 2, edited by McManamon, F. P., pp. 43–81. Cultural Resources Management Study No. 8. National Park Service, Boston.Google Scholar
Freeman, Rev. J. 1846 [1815] Notes on Nantucket, August 1 st, 1807. Collections of the Massachusetts Historical Society, 2d ser., 3 : 19–38.Google Scholar
Fry, B., and Sherr, E. B. 1984 513C Measurements as Indicators of Carbon Flow in Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems. Contributions in Marine Science 27 : 13–47.Google Scholar
Gookin, D. 1970 [1674] Historical Collections of the Indians in New England, edited by Fiske, J. H.. Towtaid, Worcester. Hayden, B., Chisholm, B., and Schwarcz, H. P. Google Scholar
Gookin, D. 1987 Fishing and Foraging : Marine Resources in the Upper Paleolithic of France. In The Pleistocene Old World : Regional Perspectives, edited by Soffer, O., pp. 279–291. Interdisciplinary Contributions to Archaeology, Jochim, M., editor. Plenum Press, New York City.Google Scholar
Keegan, W. F., and DeNiro, M. J. 1988 Stable Carbon-and Nitrogen-Isotope Ratios of /\/J Bone Collagen Used to Study Coral Reef and Terr-“’ restrial Components of Prehistoric Bahamian Diet. American Antiquity 53 : 320–336.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Langlois, K. H., Jr. 1977 Soil Survey of Nantucket County, Massachusetts. USDA Soil Conservation Service in cooperation with Massachusetts Agricultural Experiment Station. U. S. Government Printing Office, Washinton, D. C.Google Scholar
Lavin, L. 1988 Coastal Adaptations in Southern New England V and Southern New York. Archaeology of Eastern North America 16 : 101–120.Google Scholar
Little, E. A. 1985a Prevailing Winds and Site Aspects : Testable Hypotheses about the Seasonality of Prehistoric Shell Middens at Nantucket, Massachusetts. Man in the Northeast 29 : 15–27.Google Scholar
Little, E. A. 1985b Prehistoric Diet at Nantucket Island, Massachusetts. Nantucket Archaeological Study No. 6. Nantucket Historical Association, Nantucket, Massachusetts.Google Scholar
Little, E. A. 1988 Where Are the Woodland Villages on Cape Cod and the Islands? Bulletin of the Massachusetts Archaeological Society 49 : 72–82.Google Scholar
Little, E. A. 1993 Radiocarbon Age Calibration at Archaeological Sites of Coastal Massachusetts and Vicinity. Journal of Archaeological Science 20 : 457–471.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Little, E. A., and Andrews, J. C. 1982 Drift Whales at Nantucket : The Kindness of Moshup. Man in the Northeast 23 : 17–38.Google Scholar
Luedtke, B. E. 1980a Survey of the University of Massachusetts, Nantucket Field Station. In Widening Horizons, edited by Hoffman, C., pp. 95–129. Massachusetts Archaeological Society, Middleboro.Google Scholar
Luedtke, B. E. 1980b The Calf Island Site and the Late Prehistoric Period in Boston Harbor. Man in the Northeast 20 : 25–76.Google Scholar
Luedtke, B. E. 1987 Jasper and the Pennsylvania Connection : Jasper at Massachusetts Sites. Bulletin of the Massachusetts Archaeological Society 48 : 37–47.Google Scholar
McBride, K. A., and Dewar, R. E. 1987 Agriculture and Cultural Evolution : Causes and Effects in the Lower Connecticut River Valley. In Emergent Horticultural Economies of the Eastern Woodlands, edited by Keegan, W. F., pp. 305–328. Occasional Paper No. 7. Center for Archaeological Investigations, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale.Google Scholar
McManamon, F. P., Bradley, J. W., and Magennis, A. L. 1986 The Indian Neck Ossuary. In Chapters in the Archeology of Cape Cod, V, edited by McManamon, F. P.. Cultural Resources Management Study No. 17. National Park Service, Boston.Google Scholar
Macy, Z. 1810 [1794] A Short Journal of the First Settling of the Island of Nantucket (1792). Collections of the Massachusetts Historical Society 3 : 155–160.Google Scholar
Medaglia, C. C, Little, E. A., and Schoeninger, M. J. 1990 Late Woodland Diet on Nantucket Island : Av) Study Using Stable Isotope Ratios. Bulletin of the —’ Massachusetts Archaeological Society 51 : 49–60.Google Scholar
Mourt, G. 1986 [1622] Mourt's Relation, edited by Heath, D. B.. Applewood Books, Cambridge.Google Scholar
Nelson, C. M. 1989 Radiocarbon Age of the Dog Burial from Squantum, Massachusetts. Bulletin of the Massachusetts Archaeological Society 50 : 29.Google Scholar
Noli, D., and Avery, G. 1988 Protein Poisoning and Coastal Subsistence. Journal of Archaeological Science 15 : 395–401.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Oldale, R. N. 1986 Late-Glacial and Postglacial Sea-Level History of New England : A Review of Available Sea Level Curves. Archaeology of Eastern North America 14 : 89–100.Google Scholar
O' Leary, M. H. 1988 Carbon Isotopes in Photosynthesis. Bio Science 38 : 228–335.Google Scholar
Perlman, S. M. 1980 An Optimum Diet Model, Coastal Variability, and Hunter-Gatherer Behavior. In Advances in Archaeological Method and Theory 3 : 257–310.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Peterson, B. J., Howarth, R. W., and Garritt, R. H. 1985 Multiple Stable Isotopes Used to Trace the Flow of Organic Matter in Estuarine Food Webs. Science 227 : 1361–1363.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Pretola, J., and Little, E. A. 1988 An Archaeological Record from the Far Island. Bulletin of the Archaeological Society of Connecticut 51 : 47–68.Google Scholar
Rau, C. 1885 Prehistoric Fishing in Europe and North America. Smithsonian Contribution to Knowledge No. 25. Smithsonian Institution, Washington D. C. Google Scholar
Ritchie, W. A. 1969 The Archaeology of Martha's Vineyard. Natural History Press, Garden City, New York.Google Scholar
Schoeninger, M. J., and DeNiro, M. J. 1984 Nitrogen and Carbon Isotopic Composition of //Bone Collagen from Marine and Terrestrial Animals. Geochimica and Cosmochimica Acta 48 : 625-639.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schoeninger, M. J., DeNiro, M. J., and Tauber, H. 1983 Stable Nitrogen Isotope Ratios of Bone Col-/ Ja Mn Reflect Marine and Terrestrial Components of Prehistoric Human Diet. Science 220 : 1381–1383.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schoeninger, M. J., and Moore, K. 1992 Bone Stable Isotope Studies in Archaeology. Journal of World Prehistory 6 : 247–296.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schoeninger, M. J., and van der Merwe, N. J., Moore, K., Lee-Thorpe, J., Larsen, C. S. 1990 Decrease in Diet Quality between the Prehistoric and Contact Periods. In The Archaeology of Mission Santa Catalina DeQuale : 2. Biocultural Interpretations of a Population in Transition, edited by Larsen, C. S., pp. 78–94. Anthropological Paper No. 68. American Museum of Natural History, New York.Google Scholar
Sphwarcz, H. P., Melbye, J., Katzenberg, M. A., and Knyf, M. 1985 Stable Isotopes in Human Skeletons of Southern Ontario : Reconstructing Palaeodiet. Journal of Ar\ chaeological Science 12 : 187–206.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Speth, J. D., and Spielmann, K. A. 1983 Energy Source, Protein Metabolism, and Hunter/ Gatherer Subsistence Strategies. Journal of Anthropological Archaeology 2 : 1–31.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Spielmann, K. A., Schoeninger, M. J., and Moore, K. 1990 Plains-Pueblo Interdependence and Human Diet at Pecos Pueblo, New Mexico. American Antiquity 55 : 745–765.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Starbuck, A. 1924 The History of Nantucket. C. E. Goodspeed, Boston.Google Scholar
Stuiver, M., and Reimer, P. J. 1993 Extended L4C Data Base and Revised CALIB 3. 0 l4C Age Calibration Program [Rev. 3. 03]. Radiocarbon 35 : 215–230.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Szathmary, E. J. E., Ritenbaugh, C., and Goodby, C-S. M. 1987 Dietary Change and Plasma Glucose Levels in an Amerindian Population Undergoing Cultural Transition. Social Science and Medicine 24 : 791–804.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tieszen, L. L., and Fagre, T. 1993 Carbon Isotope Variability in Modern and Archaeological Maize. Journal of Archaeological Science 20 : 25–40.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tuross, N., Fogel, M. L., Newsom, L., and Doran, G. H. 1994 Subsistence in the Florida Archaic : The Stable-Isotope and Archaeobotanical Evidence from the Windover Site. American Antiquity 59 : 288–303.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
U. S. Department of Agriculture 1978 Handbook of Agriculture Charts. Agriculture Handbook No. 551. Government Printing Office Washington, D. C.Google Scholar
van der Merwe, N. J., and Vogel, J. C. 1978 13C Content of Human Collagen as a Measure of Prehistoric Diet in Woodland North America. Nature 276 : 815–816.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Walker, P. L., and DeNiro, M. J. 1986 Stable Nitrogen and Carbon Isotope Ratios in Bone Collagen as Indices of Prehistoric Dietary Dependence on Marine and Terrestrial Resources in Southern California. American Journal of Physical A nthropology 71 : 51–61.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Watt, B. K., and Merrill, A. L. 1975 [1963] Handbook of the Nutritional Contents of Foods . Handbook No. 8, U. S. Department of Agriculture. Dover, New York.Google Scholar
Williams, R. 1936 [1643] A Key into the Language of America. 5th ed. Reprinted for the Tercentenary Committee, Providence, Rhode Island.Google Scholar
Winkler, M. J. 1985 A 12, 000-Year History of Vegetation and Climate for Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Quaternary Research 23 : 301–312.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Winslow, E. 1841 [1624] Good News from New England… . In Chronicles of the Pilgrim Fathers of the Colony of Plymouth, from 1602-1625, edited by Young, A., pp. 354–367. Little and Brown, Boston.Google Scholar
Wood, W. 1865 [1635] New England's Prospect, edited by Deane, C.. Prince Society, Boston.Google Scholar
Yesner, D. R. 1988 Subsistence and Diet in North-Temperate Coastal Hunter-Gatherers : Evidence from the Moshier Island Burial Site, Southwestern Maine. In Diet and Subsistence : Current Archaeological Perspectives, edited by Kennedy, B. and LeMoine, G., pp. 207–226. Proceedings of the 19th Annual Conference of the Archaeological Association of the University of Calgary, Alberta. Google Scholar