Prelude to Plant Domestication in Eastern North America

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With National Science Foundation support, Dr. Jane Buikstra will lead an interdisciplinary team of researchers from Arizona State University and the Center for American Archeology in exploring the origins of agriculture in Eastern North America, one of ten regions worldwide known to have witnessed the independent domestication of plants. Agriculture is one of the most significant developments in human history, but mystery still surrounds exactly how, when and why certain groups of people first began to grow crops. Prelude to Plant Domestication in Eastern North America will address this question through intensive investigation of well-preserved artifacts and plant remains from several archaeological sites dating immediately before and during the transition from a purely hunting and gathering way of life to a prehistoric economy based largely on agriculture. This research will be accomplished by exploring multiple lines of evidence from the archaeological record of the Lower Illinois Valley where exists the earliest evidence for the domestication of seed plants. Research will focus on the Archaic time period (approximately 8,000 - 1,000 B.C.), with the rich and well-preserved horizons of the Koster site serving as the study's centerpiece. Grinding stones and other tools from several Archaic period sites will be examined microscopically for the presence of plant microfossils, such as starch granules, which allow certain plants to be identified that are not otherwise preserved in the archaeological record. Stone tools will also be studied microscopically for patterns of wear and polish that indicate different types of plant processing activities. Soil samples will be analyzed for the presence of plant phytoliths and organic remains which provide insight into alterations in vegetation associated with climate change and human manipulation as well as the species of plants cultivated and eaten. A GIS (geographic information system) generated three-dimensional model of these horizons will be developed to assist in sample selection and analysis.This project involves senior researchers with expertise in archaeology, botany, stone tool, and computer spatial analysis working towards a unified goal of understanding changes in food procurement, food processing, and their relationship to the development of agriculture. Cutting-edge methods employed in this research, including starch grain analysis and computer site modeling, have never been combined to address these questions in eastern North America. This project offers researchers the ability to provide the most accurate understanding of the full range of plant resources used by prehistoric populations as well as how, when, and perhaps why people began the intensive interaction that led to the domestication of only a few select species of plants. This information promises to contribute new insight and theoretical understanding of the agricultural origins on a global comparative scale.This project will also further the educational and outreach efforts of the institutions involved. Archaeological investigations can serve as compelling vehicles for public education about the human past, the natural environment, climate change, and the nature of scientific research. An important outcome of this project will be an educational, public-oriented website that explores the Archaic-period archaeology of the region and the origins of agriculture in general.