Skip to main content

ETHNOS_APP

Home • Search • Journals • List 0

Exploratory Studies into Possible Uses of Calcareous Dolostone

Bibliographic Data

ID3039769
AuthorsK G Harry (0000-0002-8694-2503), Karen Harry, Lauren W Falvey, Brett Mclaurin, Brett T Mclaurin, Jennifer Durk
Year2011
Volume3
Issue1
Pages5-28
Publication date2011-04-01
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueEthnoarchaeology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1944-2890 • E-ISSN: 1944-2904
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1179/eth.2011.3.1.5
OpenAlexW2034762619
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited14

Excavations at habitation sites on the Shivwits Plateau, northwestern Arizona suggest that calcareous dolostone was regularly procured and used by the prehistoric inhabitants of that region. Calcareous dolostone, a soft, powdery carbonate rock composed of the minerals dolomite and calcite, is not local to these sites but crops out some four to six kilometers from the site. Its presence at the sites, therefore, indicates its intentional procurement for some as-yet undetermined purpose. To investigate how the material might have been used, a series of archaeological experiments were conducted to evaluate possible functions suggested by ethnographic analogy. Specifically, we evaluated the performance characteristics of powdered dolostone with reference to three activities: clay processing, pigment production, and the production of architectural plaster. Our results suggest that, as a clay additive, dolostone improves the texture of the sticky Shivwits Plateau clays; and that, when mixed with appropriate binders, it produces a durable pigment that could have been used as a paint. Our attempts to produce a waterproof and weather resistant plaster, in contrast, failed, although our results suggest that the dolostone could produce a thick whitewash appropriate for painting room interiors

Archaeology · Calcareous · Carbonate · Carbonate rock · Dolomite · Dolostone · Geochemistry · Geography · Metallurgy · Mineralogy · Plateau (mathematics · Sedimentary rock · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · Building materials and conservation · Cultural Heritage Materials Analysis · Materials Science · Geology · Paleontology

  • Exploring Potential Lime Use in Hide Processing on the Shivwits Plateau

    Open Access•K G Harry, Manuel De Cespedes Molina et al.•Journal of Archaeological Method…•2025

  • Exploratory Studies into Possible Uses of Calcareous Dolostone

    K G Harry, Karen Harry et al.•Ethnoarchaeology•2011

  • Law and authority in a Nigerian tribe

    Charles Kingsley Meek•Law and authority in a Nigerian…•1937

  • Traditional Maize Processing Techniques in the New World

    Open Access•S H Katz, M L Hediger et al.•Science•1974

  • Pottery Analysis, Second Edition

    Prudence M Rice•Pottery Analysis, Second Edition•2015

  • The Beginnings of Pyrotechnology, Part II

    W David Kingery, Pamela B Vandiver et al.•Journal of Field Archaeology•1988

  • Neolithic Cultures at 'Ain Ghazal, Jordan

    Gary O Rollefson, Alan H Simmons et al.•Journal of Field Archaeology•1992

  • Refocusing the Role of Food-Grinding Tools as Correlates for Subsistence Strategies in the U.S. Southwest

    Open Access•Jenny L Adams•American Antiquity•1999

  • Life Under the Tropical Canopy

    Open Access•Tracy Bachrach Ehlers•Latin American Anthropology Review•1991

  • The Western Apache

    Michael E Melody, M Melody et al.•The American Indian Quarterly•1988

  • Exploratory Studies into Possible Uses of Calcareous Dolostone

    K G Harry, Karen Harry et al.•Ethnoarchaeology•2011

  • Ethnomineralogy of Ticul, Yucatan Potters

    Open Access•Dean E Arnold•American Antiquity•1971

  • Kautantouwit's Legacy

    Open Access•Elizabeth A Little•American Antiquity•2002

Citations per year0.13
Citation span2011 - 2025 (15)
Highly citedNo

Tools

Open DOISci-Hub
Ethnos_APP • Open Source Project • MIT License • Frontend v2.0.0 • Privacy and Cookies • API Documentation: api.ethnos.app/docs • API Source Code: GitHub • DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.17049435 • Frontend Source Code: GitHub • DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.17050053 • cruz.rio.br • Expectantes Misericordiae