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

这是一个小型的探索项目，旨在调查位于格陵兰西北部Foulke Fjord的Iita（Etah）遗址，该遗址因其在寻找北极期间与海军上将Robert Peary的联系而闻名。该遗址坐落在从峡湾北岸伸出的一个突出的冲积扇上，覆盖着大量历史和史前晚期使用的证据，包括冬季房屋凹陷、帐篷圈、墓葬、狐狸陷阱和食物储藏库。 在2006年夏天，英格菲尔德土地考古项目调查了两个历史悠久的土著冬季房屋，作为多年研究的一部分，因纽特人（极地因纽特人）由于与欧洲人，美国人，其他因纽特人群体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。在房屋的挖掘过程中，人们发现该遗址含有分层的考古沉积物，这在北美高北极地区非常罕见（大多数遗骸位于地面上），对于试图重建该地区史前用途的考古学家来说是宝贵的资源。很明显，埋藏的沉积物可以追溯到图勒早期（公元1300-1600年），即今天生活在北极的因纽特人的祖先，因为这一时期的一座埋藏房屋被发现。然而，在一个小部分的挖掘单位证据的形式石器工具，在上下文与旧的地面，表明该网站可能包含的人，占领英格尔菲尔德土地2400年前或更早的营地称为Paleoeskimo.The拟议项目的目标是评估是否Iita有潜力扩大我们的知识的Paleoeskimo使用英格尔菲尔德土地的遗迹。古爱斯基摩人大约在4500年前进入北极，但在700年左右消失了。八百年前。由于2006年的调查基本上只挖到了古爱斯基摩矿床，拟议中的项目将挖掘一条测试沟，这将为该遗址的使用打开一个更大的窗口。如果有大量的考古沉积物，该遗址将成为了解英格尔菲尔德土地和更大的高北极地区的古爱斯基摩人使用的宝贵资源。挖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，一名来自加利福尼亚大学戴维斯分校，另一名来自格陵兰大学。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合作关系，并导致在英格尔菲尔德土地的古爱斯基摩时期的更大的研究项目。

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.