Dissertation Research: Early Paleoindians and Rockshelters in the Eastern Woodlands: A Case Study at Wolfe Shelter, Kentucky

在Tom Dillehay博士的指导下，Leon Lane先生将为他的博士论文收集数据。他将在位于肯塔基州坎伯兰县坎伯兰河支流上的沃尔夫庇护所进行考古挖掘。之前在他的遗址上的工作表明，他的考古序列很长，有来自许多不同文化的遗骸。根据发现的石器，这个避难所和邻近地区似乎在12000年前就被古印度狩猎采集者占据。这样的遗址在美国东部极其罕见。莱恩将进行仔细的地层挖掘，并在现场及其附近暴露出56平方米的面积。将收集和分析石材以及相关的动物和花卉遗骸。将重建该遗址的地质和环境历史，并收集适当的样品用于放射性碳测年。这些信息应该有助于洞察：古印第安人占领的类型和范围；早期居住者的技术和经济；避难所内发现的材料与周围沉积环境中的材料之间的关系。虽然大量的数据证明，早在12000年前，北美就有古印第安人的存在，但令人惊讶的是，人们对他们如何适应这种未开发的环境知之甚少。这一时期几乎所有保存完好的遗址都位于美国西部，在那里，出现了高度机动的大型动物猎人的图景。然而，非洲大陆东部的环境非常不同，很可能该地区的适应情况也不同。然而，可获得的信息很少。因此，沃尔夫避难所非常重要，这项拟议的研究结果将引起广泛的考古学兴趣。它还将提供对新大陆史前最早时期狩猎采集行为的新理解。该奖项将有助于培养一位有前途的年轻科学家。

Under the direction of Dr. Tom Dillehay, Mr. Leon Lane will collect data for his doctoral dissertation. He will conduct archaeological excavation at Wolfe Shelter, a rock overhang located on a tributary of the Cumberland River in Cumberland County, Kentucky. Previous work at his site has indicated a long archaeological sequence with remains from a number of different cultures. On the basis of stone tools recovered, it appears that the shelter and the adjacent area was occupied by Paleoindian hunter-gatherers as much at 12,000 years ago. Such sites are extremely rare in the Eastern United States. Mr. Lane will conduct careful stratigraphic excavations and expose an area of 56 square meters in, and in the immediate vicinity of the site. Lithic materials as well as associated faunal and floral remains will be collected and analyzed. The geological and environmental history of the site will be reconstructed and appropriate samples collected for radiocarbon dating. This information should provide insight into: the type and extent of Paleoindian occupation; the technology and economy of the early occupants; the relationship between materials recovered inside the shelter and those in surrounding depositional settings. While abundant data attest to the presence of Paleoindian peoples across North America by 12,000 years ago, surprisingly little is known about how they adapted to this unexploited environment. Almost all well preserved sites from this period are located in the Western part of the U.S. and there a picture of highly mobile large game hunters has emerged. However the environment in the Eastern part of the continent is quite different and quite likely adaptations were different in this region. However very little information is available. Thus the Wolfe Shelter is quite important and the results of this proposed research will be of widespread archaeological interest. It will also provide new understanding of hunter gatherer behavior during the earliest period of New World prehistory. The award will assist in the training of a promising young scientist.