Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis of Middle Woodland Pottery from the Delaware Valley

Bibliographic Data

ID11380321
AuthorsGeorge L Pevarnik (Temple University, Philadelphia, corresponding author), M T Boulanger (0000-0003-3384-7884, University of Missouri), Michael D Glascock (0000-0003-0686-7556, University of Missouri)
Year2008
Volume29
Issue3
Pages239-268
Publication date2008-07-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueNorth American Archaeologist (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0197-6931 • E-ISSN: 1541-3543
PublisherSAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.2190/na.29.3-4.c
OpenAlexW2017805023
LanguageEN
References cited12

One hundred nineteen late Middle Woodland (ca. A.D. 200–900) sherds and 10 clay samples from the Lower/Middle Delaware Valley were analyzed by Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis. Principal components analysis resulted in the preliminary identification of 8 compositional groups. Two of these groups ( n = 42) and Piedmont-derived clay samples ( n = 4) are noteworthy because they exhibit markedly higher sodium concentrations in relation to the full dataset. Given this observed difference in sodium content, we conclude that the Piedmont is the likely source/production area for this subset of sherds. The relatively high sodium content present in the clays from the Piedmont reinforces the conclusion that the reported sodium values are the result of geologic origin and not diagenetic processes. These results are also used to evaluate an existing late Middle Woodland settlement model for the Lower/Middle Delaware Valley (Stewart, 1990, 1998a, 1998b). However, until further testing is conducted, these interpretations must be viewed as tentative

Archaeology · Diagenesis · Geography · Mineralogy · Neutron Activation Analysis · Pottery · Settlement (finance · Woodland · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · Chemistry · Cultural Heritage Materials Analysis · Paleopathology and ancient diseases · Ecology · Geology

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