This report presents results of re-excavation and reanalysis of unit 5276N 4790E, located on Ridge West 3 (RW3) at the Poverty Point site. Jon Gibson excavated this unit and others in 1991 and argued that RW3 was constructed rapidly. We test the fast construction hypothesis by applying new methods (micromorphology, magnetic susceptibility, sequential loss-on-ignition) and by obtaining new radiocarbon dates. Before construction, the ground surface beneath RW3 was cleared and occupied. Preconstruction deposits are composed of anthropogenically enriched sediments. RW3 was constructed in layers of mixed heterogeneous natural and anthropogenically enriched sediments. The surfaces of these layers were used briefly during construction. The goal of the builders was to quickly raise the ridge to its full height. Magnetic susceptibility measurements and artifact density data show that the top of the constructed ridge is buried 10 to 30 cm below the modern surface. The construction of this section of RW3 was exceptionally rapid. The ridge was built after 3355-3210 cal BP and was under construction by at least 3450-2975 cal BP. Analysis of existing excavations offers great opportunity for pursuing vital research questions while having a limited effect on the integrity of archaeological deposits at Poverty Point.

Archaeological evidence emerging over the past decade clearly illustrates that agro-pastoralists living along the foothills of major mountain chains in Central Asia (the so-called “Inner Asian Mountain Corridor” or IAMC) facilitated the spread of domesticated grains through their direct involvement in farming. While the environmental conditions across the northwestern slopes of the IAMC provided adequate resources for incipient farming and herding as early as the mid-3 rd mill. BCE, the development of local agricultural strategies on the extremely arid and eroded foothills on the southeastern, leeward side of the mountains remain comparatively less studied. Our study tackles this problem by combining geoarchaeological analysis with conventional macrobotanical identification in the investigation of a 1 st -mill. CE agro-pastoralist farming site, Mohuchahangoukou (MGK), located on the arid foothills of the Tianshan range. Our results illustrate how ancient agro-pastoralists at MGK innovated irrigation systems both to combat water shortage and, importantly, to trap sediments carried by flood-water for crop cultivation. By synthesizing currently available data, we estimate that they managed to trap about 40 cm of fine-grained sediment within a span of 200 years or even less. These stone-built field systems helped water a diverse stand of crops and create deeper soils in an otherwise deflated landscape with thin desert soils. Since we detected high levels of salt concentration (>2 dSm -1 ) in the lower portions of all three test trenches we analyzed, we conclude that soil salinization might have affected the long-term sustainability of this form of irrigated field management. We also infer that, besides engineering efforts, the ancient agro-pastoralists at MGK had to resolve the scheduling conflicts between irrigated farming and animal herding through labor specialization.

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