Book
The Rat Indian Creek site and the late prehistoric period in the interior northern Yukon
National Museums of Canada • Ottawa • Published In 1984 • Pages: xxvi, 504
By: Le Blanc, Raymond Joseph.
AbstractBrief abstract written by HRAF anthropologists who have done the subject indexing for the document
This is the published version of LeBlanc's dissertation which analyzes the archaeological collection from the Rat Indian Creek site (MjVg - 1). LeBlanc excavated a large block of this well preserved, stratified site over three field seasons, 1976 - 1978. This allowed him to follow the cultural horizons across the entire excavated area. In analyzing the assemblage, he concentrated on detailed technological studies of the lithic and bone industries. These technological studies are supported by numerous graphs, figures, and plates. Rat Indian Creek is then compared with other area sites (Klo-kut, Old Chief Creek, and Lazarus). Based on these comparisons, LeBlanc proposes two phases for the late prehistoric sequence for the middle Porcupine River area: Old Chief Phase circa 900 B.C. to A.D. 700 and Klo-kut Phase A.D. 700 to the mid-nineteenth century. There was a major technological shift between the Old Chief and Klo-kut Phases: there was a shift away from bifacial technology, an increase in bone and antler manufacturing, there are morphological differences in certain tool classes such as scrapers, there is use of alternate sources of lithic raw material, and there is a dramatic increase in such items as PIECES ESQUILLEES. There are also enough elements of continuity that it appears that the Klo-kut Phase is an in situ development. Rat Indian Creek site is also compared to sites in Alaska, the Yukon, and Northwest Territories. LeBlanc also proposes that together, the Klo-kut Phase, Dixthada, Kavik, and several other sites can be considered to represent a late prehistoric technocomplex spanning from circa A.D. 700 to the arrival of the Europeans.
- SubjectsDocument-level OCM identifiers given by the anthropology subject indexers at HRAF
- Reviews and critiques
- Organization and analysis of results of research
- Fauna
- Cultural participation
- Bone, horn, and shell technology
- Lithic industries
- Weapons
- General tools
- Cultural stratigraphy
- traditionCulture name from the Outline of World Cultures (OWC)
- Proto-Athapaskans
- RegionThe area the document pertains to
- North America
- Sub RegionThe more specific area the document pertains to, which is located within the Region
- Arctic and Subarctic
- Document TypeMay include journal articles, essays, collections of essays, monographs, or chapters/parts of monographs
- Book
- Evaluation
- Creator TypeThe type of person writing the document, e.g. Ethnographer, Missionary, Archaeologist, Folklorist, Linguist, Indigenous Person, and so on.
- Archaeologist
- Document Rating A ranking done by HRAF anthropologists based on the strength of the source material on a scale of 1 to 5, as follows: 1 - poor; 2 - fair; 3 - good, useful data, but not uniformly excellent; 4 - excellent secondary data; 5 - excellent primary data.
- 5: Excellent Primary Data
- NotesAdditional notes
- Raymond Joseph Le Blanc
- 'A Diamond Jenness memorial volume'
- Includes bibliographical references (p. 443-460)
- Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Toronto
- LCCNLibrary of Congress Control Number
- 85123722
- LCSHLibrary of Congress Subject Headings
- Athapaskan Indians--Antiquities