Dissertation Improvement Grant- Archaeological and Geophysical Investigations of the Grove's Creek Site (09CH71), Skidaway Island, Georgia

在美国国家科学基金会的支持下，Deborah Keene女士将在Ervan Garrison博士的指导下进行博士论文研究。该项目以格罗夫溪遗址为中心，这是一个可以追溯到密西西比时期（公元1000-1580年）的美洲原住民村庄。格罗夫溪遗址位于佐治亚州萨凡纳附近的斯基达韦岛上。这个项目有两个目标。第一种方法是将地球物理数据与地理信息系统（GIS）相结合，并创建该地点的地下地图。第二个是确定格罗夫溪遗址的居民是全年居住还是季节性居住。目前的考古方法本质上是破坏性的；因此，任何丢失的信息都无法恢复。利用有限数量的挖掘对制图程序进行改进，将使考古遗址得到更好的保存。绘制过程的第一步是收集浅层地球物理数据。在格罗夫溪项目期间，测量了土壤的导电性和磁性。具有重要考古意义的遗迹，如烹饪炉和烧过的粘土，会导致周围土壤的导电性和磁性更高。当所有的数据都被绘制出来后，等高线地图就被创建出来了，在等高线地图中，这些较高的读数是可见的。轮廓线的大小和形状提供了线索，说明是什么地下特征造成了它们。我们利用这些信息来预测考古遗迹的类型，然后将进行挖掘以测试其中的一些预测。最终，这个过程可以用很少的挖掘来绘制考古遗址的地图。虽然在乔治亚州海岸有许多重要的密西西比遗址，但它们仍未被完全了解。目前，关于密西西比人是否是真正的农学家，是否可以一年四季住在他们的村庄里，或者仍然需要做一些狩猎和采集，因此一年中的一部分时间要旅行，存在相当大的分歧。应采用三种方法来确定格罗夫溪的居民是全年居住还是季节性居住。首先是查看现场的动植物遗骸。一年中不同的时间有不同的动物和植物。例如，某些水果只在秋天才有，某些鱼在特定的月份会在附近洄游。通过识别现场的动物和植物以及它们可供食用的时间，我们可以确定该地点何时被占用。二是学习网站架构。在密西西比的许多社区，有证据表明夏季和冬季房屋都有。在遗址上已经发现了两座冬季房屋，如果发现了一座夏季房屋，那将表明该遗址全年都有人居住。最后一种确定职业的方法是对牡蛎壳进行同位素分析。通过测量贝壳生长层中的氧同位素，可以确定水温，从而确定动物被杀死的时间。对多个贝壳的分析将确定该遗址被占用的季节。该项目不仅将开发一种保护考古遗址的测绘程序；它还将解决一些问题，这些问题对了解美国土著文化的沿海生存和定居模式很重要。

With National Science Foundation support, Ms. Deborah Keene will conduct doctoral dissertation research under the direction of Dr. Ervan Garrison. The project centers on the Grove's Creek Site, a Native American Village dating to the Mississippian period (AD 1000-1580). The Grove's Creek Site is on Skidaway Island, near Savannah, Georgia. There are two objectives to this project. The first is to combine geophysical data with a geographic information system (GIS) and create a subsurface map of the site. The second is to determine whether the inhabitants of the Grove's Creek Site lived there year round or seasonally. Current archaeological methods are inherently destructive; therefore, any information that is lost can never be recovered. The refinement of a mapping procedure using a limited amount of excavation will result in greater preservation of archaeological sites. The first step of this mapping procedure is to collect shallow geophysical data. During the Grove's Creek project both the conductivity and magnetism of the soil were measured. Archaeologically significant remains such as cooking hearths and burned clay will cause the conductivity and magnetism of the surrounding soil to be higher. When all of the data are plotted, contour maps are created in which these higher readings are visible. The size and shape of the contours give clues as to what subsurface features created them. We use this information to predict the types of archaeological remains and will then excavate to test several of these predictions. Ultimately, this process can be used to map an archaeological site with very little digging.Although there are many important Mississippian sites along the Georgia coast, they are still not fully understood. There is currently considerable disagreement about whether Mississippian peoples were true agriculturists and could live in their village year round or still had to do some hunting and gathering and so traveled for part of the year. Three methods shall be employed to determine whether the inhabitants of Grove's Creek lived there year round or seasonally. The first is to look at the plant and animal remains at the site. Different animals and plants are available at different times of the year. For example, certain fruits are available only in the fall and certain fish migrate nearby in particular months. By identifying the animals and plants at the site and the times that they were available for consumption, we can determine when the site was occupied. The second is to study site architecture. In many Mississippian communities, there is evidence for both summer and winter houses. Two winter houses have already been found at the site, and if a summer house is found, that would show that the site was occupied year round. The last way to determine occupation is by isotopic analysis of oyster shells. By measuring the oxygen isotopes in the growth layers of the shell, it is possible to determine water temperature and therefore the time of year when the animal was killed. Analysis of multiple shells will determine what seasons the site was occupied.This project will not only develop a mapping procedure that will protect archaeological sites; it will also address questions, which are important to the understanding of coastal subsistence and settlement patterns of Native American cultures.