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Re-examining shell-tempered Chickasaw pottery in post-contact Mississippi, USA

Sorresso, DC; Quinn, PS; (2020) Re-examining shell-tempered Chickasaw pottery in post-contact Mississippi, USA. Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports , 32 , Article 102415. 10.1016/j.jasrep.2020.102415. Green open access

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Abstract

Archaeological and ethnographic records indicate that a change in Chickasaw ceramic technology from recent to fossil shell temper took place around the time of contact as populations migrated north and adjusted to their new upland settlements on the Blackland Prairie, Mississippi, USA. While the occurrence of this technological shift is widely accepted within the archaeology of the region, it can be difficult to apply to ceramic assemblages as clear criteria with which to distinguish between the two tempering modes is lacking. This study re-examines the phenomenon of Chickasaw shell-tempered ceramics and sheds new light on the proposed shift by analyzing macroscopically and scientifically 63 pre- and post-contact sherds from three sites in northeastern Mississippi. By applying a materials science perspective, including thin section ceramic petrography, X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy, it was possible to differentiate between recent and fossil shell inclusions, recognize the coexistence of these two types of temper, and further group shell-tempered Chickasaw sherds based on the presence of other inclusions. The raw materials, provenance, and manufacturing technology of the detected compositional groups were then interpreted in terms of local traditions of ceramic manufacture and the movement of native people and their pottery in the post-contact period of Mississippi. This study also addresses the difficulties of macroscopic identification and its implications for using the temporal shift as a method of relative dating.

Type: Article
Title: Re-examining shell-tempered Chickasaw pottery in post-contact Mississippi, USA
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1016/j.jasrep.2020.102415
Publisher version: http://dx.doi.org/110.1016/j.jasrep.2020.102415
Language: English
Additional information: This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions.
Keywords: Pottery, Native American, Chickasaw, Shell tempering, Compositional analysis, Thin-section petrography, Ceramic technology
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS > Institute of Archaeology
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS > Institute of Archaeology > Institute of Archaeology Gordon Square
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10103221
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