essay
A Consideration of the social organization of the Shell Mound Archaic
archaeology of the mid-holocene southeast • Gainesville • Published In 1996 • Pages: 235-258
By: Claassen, Cheryl P..
Abstract
Claassen discusses the Shell Mound Archaic which occurred during the Middle and Late Archaic. As Claassen doesn't usually distinguish between the Middle and Late Archaic when discussing particular sites, the reader is urged to use caution. Claassen discusses how shell mounds were more than middens and may have been purposely constructed to act as territorrial markers and places to bury the dead. She points out that freshwater shellfish can be found in large quantities in more places than one finds shell mounds so 'neither optimal foraging theory nor environmental change can explain either their advent or demise. Instead, sites attributable to the [Shell Mound Archaic] constitute a landscape shaped by social concerns' (page 242). To explore the possible social processes involved, Claassen examines mortuary data (especially beads) and looks at gender differences and exchange and social status.
- HRAF PubDate
- 2001
- Region
- North America
- Sub Region
- Eastern Woodlands
- Document Type
- essay
- Evaluation
- Creator Type
- Archaeologist
- Document Rating
- 4: Excellent Secondary Data
- Analyst
- Sarah Berry ; 2000
- Field Date
- no date
- Coverage Date
- 8000 BP - 5000 BP
- Coverage Place
- Southeast United States
- Notes
- Cheryl P. Claassen
- For bibliographical references see Anonymous, 1996.
- LCCN
- 95045466
- LCSH
- Indians of North America--Middle West--Antiquities