EAGER: Investigation of Stratified Archaeological Deposits at Iita, Foulke Fjord, Northwestern Greenland

EAGER：对格陵兰岛西北部富尔克峡湾 Iita 的分层考古沉积物进行调查

• 批准号: 1134977
• 负责人: John Darwent
• 金额: $ 3.46万
• 依托单位: University of California-Davis
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2011
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2011-07-01 至 2013-06-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1134977&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: EAGER; Investigation; Stratified; Archaeological; Deposits

This is a small exploratory project to investigate the site of Iita (Etah), which is located in Foulke Fjord, Northwestern Greenland, and is historically renowned for its association with Admiral Robert Peary during his quest for the North Pole. Sitting on a prominent alluvial fan the juts out from the north shore of the fjord, the site is covered with extensive evidence of historic and late prehistoric use in the form of winter house depressions, tent rings, burials, fox traps, and food storage caches. In the summer of 2006, the Inglefield Land Archaeology Project investigated two historic indigenous winter houses as part of a multiyear study of the dynamic cultural changes the Inughuit (Polar Inuit) underwent because of contact with Europeans, Americans, other Inuit groups, and environmental shifts between AD 1700 and 1920. During the excavations of the houses it was discovered that the site contained stratified archaeological deposits, which are exceedingly rare in the High Arctic of North America (most remains sit on the surface of the ground) and invaluable resources for archaeologists trying to reconstruct the prehistoric use of area. It was clear that the buried deposits went back to the Early Thule (AD 1300-1600), the ancestors of the Inuit populations living in the arctic today, as a buried house from the period was discovered. However, in one small section of an excavation unit evidence in the form of stone tools, in contexts with old ground surfaces, suggests that the site might contain remains of earlier camps of peoples that occupied Inglefield Land 2400 years ago or more known as the Paleoeskimo.The goal of the proposed project is to evaluate whether Iita has the potential to expand our knowledge of the Paleoeskimo use of Inglefield Land. The Paleoeskimo moved into the High Arctic around 4500 years ago but disappeared around 700?800 years ago. Because the 2006 investigations essentially only nicked the Paleoeskimo deposits, the proposed project will undertake excavation of a test trench that will open a larger window into the use of the site. If extensive archaeological deposits are present, the site will become an invaluable resource for understanding the Paleoeskimo use of Inglefield Land and the larger High Arctic region. The excavations will be undertaken in collaboration with the Greenland National Museum and Archives and will provide archaeological training for two undergraduates, one from the University of California-Davis and one from the University of Greenland. It is hope that this small grant will lead to a long-term collaborative relationship with students and researchers at the University in Greenland, and lead to a larger research project on the Paleoeskimo period in Inglefield Land.

这是一个小型探险项目，旨在调查伊塔(Etah)的遗址，该遗址位于格陵兰岛西北部的福尔克峡湾，历史上因与罗伯特·皮里上将在寻找北极期间的联系而闻名。坐落在峡湾北岸突出的冲积扇上，遗址上覆盖着大量史前历史和晚期用途的证据，形式包括冬季房屋凹陷、帐篷环、埋葬、狐狸陷阱和食物储藏库。2006年夏天，Inglefield土地考古项目调查了两座历史悠久的土著冬季房屋，这是一项多年研究的一部分，目的是了解因纽特人(极地因纽特人)由于与欧洲人、美国人和其他因纽特人的接触而经历的动态文化变化，以及公元1700年至1920年之间的环境变化。在对房屋的挖掘中，人们发现该遗址含有分层的考古沉积物，这在北美的北极高地极其罕见(大多数遗骸位于地面)，对于考古学家试图重建该地区史前用途来说，是非常宝贵的资源。很明显，埋藏的沉积物可以追溯到图勒早期(公元1300-1600)，也就是今天生活在北极的因纽特人的祖先，因为发现了这一时期的一座埋葬的房子。然而，在一个挖掘单位的一小部分中，在古老地面的背景下，以石器形式的证据表明，该遗址可能包含2400年前占领英格尔菲尔德土地的早期民族营地的遗骸，或者更多地被称为古埃斯基莫人。拟议项目的目标是评估IITA是否有潜力扩大我们对古埃斯基莫人使用英格尔菲尔德土地的了解。古埃斯基莫在大约4500年前迁徙到北极高原，但在大约700-800年前消失了。由于2006年的调查基本上只发现了古埃斯基莫矿藏，拟议中的项目将进行一条测试沟渠的挖掘，这将打开一扇更大的窗户，了解该遗址的使用情况。如果存在大量的考古矿藏，该遗址将成为了解古埃斯基莫人对英格尔菲尔德土地和更大范围的北极高地的利用的宝贵资源。发掘工作将与格陵兰国家博物馆和档案馆合作进行，并将为两名本科生提供考古培训，一名来自加州大学戴维斯分校，一名来自格陵兰大学。人们希望，这笔小额赠款将导致与格陵兰大学的学生和研究人员建立长期的合作关系，并导致在英格尔菲尔德岛开展一个关于古埃斯基莫时期的更大规模的研究项目。