Dissertation Research: Upper Paleolithic Site Location in the Portuguese Estremadura: Insight into Human Adaptation and Land Use

在安东尼·马克斯博士的指导下，南卫理公会大学的研究生保罗·塞克尔先生将为他的博士论文收集数据。他将在葡萄牙西部的埃斯特雷马杜拉地区进行考古研究，并从两个河谷收集数据。先前的工作表明，这个地区有丰富的考古遗迹。在每一篇文章中，他都将着重于地表调查和描述。航空照片和土地所有权地图将用于设计包括所有主要地貌的抽样策略。一个由三个人组成的调查小组将在选定的区域行走，并记录所有人工制品的出现。在每个场地，将测量环境变量，包括朝向、高程、坡度、地面能见度、面积和形状。与重要自然资源（如水和岩石资源）的距离也将被注意到。由于该地区的沙质土壤没有保存动物的遗骸，因此组合物几乎完全由石器和碎屑组成。塞克尔先生将对这些进行分析。在此基础上，他将重建该地区的聚落格局，并确定它是如何随时间变化的。虽然人们对西班牙和欧洲北部地区的旧石器时代了解甚多，但对葡萄牙的研究却远远落后。马克斯博士和葡萄牙合作者最近的工作揭示了旧石器时代晚期的一系列文化，这些文化跨越了大约公元前28000 - 10000年的时间范围。虽然在分层遗址的挖掘已经确定了这个序列，但对这些群体的文化适应知之甚少。关于生存和土地使用实践的数据非常有限，Thacker先生的研究将有助于纠正这种情况。在旧石器时代晚期，欧洲出现了解剖学上的现代人，同时出现了艺术、宗教和其他具有现代人特征的复杂特征。旧石器时代晚期研究的基本目标是了解这些特征是如何发展的。要做到这一点，有必要采用比较的方法，研究人们如何适应各种环境背景。在这种背景下，我们可以理解塞克尔作品的价值。这项研究之所以重要，有几个原因。它将为许多考古学家提供感兴趣的数据，并增加我们对史前适应策略的理解。它还将协助培训一位极有前途的科学家。

Under the direction of Dr. Anthony Marks, Mr Paul Thacker, a graduate student at Southern Methodist University, will collect data for his doctoral dissertation. He will conduct archaeological research in the Estremadura region in western Portugal and collect data from two river valleys. Previous work has indicated that this region is rich in archaeological remains. In each he will focus on surface survey and description. Aerial photographs and land ownership maps will be used to devise a sampling strategy which includes all major landforms. A survey team of three people will walk over selected areas and note all artifact occurrences. At each site environmental variables including aspect, elevation, slope ground surface visibility, area and shape will be measured. The distance to significant natural resources such as water and lithic sources will also be noted. Because the sandy soils of the region do not preserve faunal remains, assemblages consist almost solely of stone tools and chipping waste. Mr. Thacker will analyze these. On this basis he will reconstruct the settlement pattern for this region and determine how it changed over time. While a great deal is known about the Paleolithic period in Spain and more northerly parts of Europe, research in Portugal has lagged far behind. Recent work by Dr. Marks and Portuguese collaborators has revealed a succession of Upper Paleolithic cultures which span the time range of ca 28,000 - 10,000 B.C. While excavation in stratified sites has established this sequence, very little is known about the cultural adaptations of any of these groups. Very limited data exist on subsistence and land use practices and Mr. Thacker's research will help to remedy this situation. The Upper Paleolithic period saw the appearance of anatomically modern humans in Europe together with the appearance of art, religion and other complex traits which characterized all present day peoples. The basic goal of Upper Paleolithic research is to understand how these traits developed. To do so it is necessary to adopt a comparative approach and study how people adapted to a variety of environmental contexts. The value of Mr. Thacker's work can be understood in this context. This research is important for several reasons. It will provide data of interest to many archaeologists and increase our understanding of prehistoric adaptative strategies. It will also assist in the training of an extremely promising scientist.