Radiocarbon Dating the Iroquoian Occupation of Northern New York

Abel, Timothy J.; Vavrasek, Jessica L.; Hart, John P.

doi:10.1017/aaq.2019.50

Cited by 15 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…Any presence of lead (Pb), arsenic (As), or zinc (Zn) in this native copper [32] are, as expected [31], below the detection limits of the pXRF instrument. The spectra for rolled copper beads recovered from the Morse (NYSM A20529, 273932A) site in Jefferson County, New York [33] and a crescent-shaped tanged knife blade from the Getman #1 site (NYSM A2 A2002.47DU.99.10) have similar spectra with only an iron peak in addition to copper. The Morse site dates to the late fifteenth-early sixteenth century [34], while Getman #1 dates to the second half of the fifteenth century (see below).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Model 1 demonstrated the problem of ambiguity and smearing of dating probability creating apparent unrealistically over-long site duration estimates for several of the site Phases in the absence of additional constraints (see Methods): Table 3. All indications from ethnography, archaeology and radiocarbon suggest that sites in this region typically had relatively short total occupation durations [5, 11, 13–15, 17, 34, 39, 40], of a couple to a few decades (e.g. 0–40 years at most) and likely no more than 50–75 years and probably less.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Radiocarbon, Bayesian chronological modeling and early European metal circulation in the sixteenth-century AD Mohawk River Valley, USA

Manning

Hart

2019

PLoS ONE

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European metal artifacts in assemblages from sites predating the physical presence of Europeans in Northern Iroquoia in present-day New York, USA and southern Ontario, Canada have been used as chronological markers for the mid-sixteenth century AD. In the Mohawk River Valley of New York, European metal artifacts at sites pre-dating the physical presence of Europeans have been used by archaeologists as a terminus post quem (TPQ) of 1525 to 1550 in regional chronologies. This has been done under the assumption that these metals did not begin to circulate until after sustained European presence on the northern Atlantic coast beginning in 1517. Here we use Bayesian chronological modeling of a large set of radiocarbon dates to refine our understanding of early European metal circulation in the Mohawk River Valley. Our results indicate that European iron and cuprous metals arrived earlier than previously thought, by the beginning of the sixteenth century, and cannot be used as TPQs. Together with recent Bayesian chronological analyses of radiocarbon dates from several sites in southern Ontario, these results add to our evolving understanding of intra-regional variation in Northern Iroquoia of sixteenth-century AD circulation and adoption of European goods.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Radiocarbon, Bayesian chronological modeling and early European metal circulation in the sixteenth-century AD Mohawk River Valley, USA

Manning

Hart

2019

PLoS ONE

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“…We acknowledge the need to consider how similar processes were playing out around the east end of Lake Ontario. Additional research has begun to provide new insights into how the defensive positions and eventual dispersal of St. Lawrence Iroquoian populations by around 1550 factor into the regional scene (Abel 2019; Abel et al 2019).…”

Section: Discussion: a New History For Iroquoiamentioning

confidence: 99%

Refined Radiocarbon Chronologies for Northern Iroquoian Site Sequences: Implications for Coalescence, Conflict, and the Reception of European Goods

Birch

Manning²,

Sanft³

et al. 2020

Am. Antiq.

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This article presents results to date of the Dating Iroquoia project. Our objective is to develop high-precision radiocarbon chronologies for northeastern North American archaeology. Here, we employ Bayesian chronological modeling of 184 AMS radiocarbon dates derived from 42 Northern Iroquoian village sites in five regional sequences in order to construct new date estimates. The resulting revised chronology demands a rethinking of key assumptions about cultural process in the region regarding the directionality and timing of processes of coalescence and conflict and the introduction of European trade goods. The results suggest that internal conflict may have preceded confederacy formation among the Haudenosaunee but not the Wendat, as has been previously assumed. External conflict, previously thought to have begun in the early seventeenth century, began more than a century earlier. New data also indicate that the timing and distribution of European materials were more variable between communities than acknowledged by the logic underlying traditional trade-good chronologies. This enhanced chronological resolution permits the development and application of archaeological theories that center the lived experiences and relational histories of Iroquoian communities, as opposed to the generalized thinking that has dominated past explanatory frameworks.

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“…American archaeologists have indeed embraced new advances in Bayesian chronological modeling, establishing absolute chronologies for sites, regions, events, and trends independently of, or formally in conjunction with, materially established chronologies (e.g., Abel et al 2019; Brown et al 2019; Cobb et al 2015; Hart and Brumbach 2005; Krus and Cobb 2018; Lulewicz 2019a; Marquardt et al 2020; Miller 2018; Ritchison 2018; Thompson and Krus 2018; Thulman 2019). Such efforts, however, remain difficult for exploring European colonization.…”

Section: Toward Absolute Temporalitiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Enduring Traditions and the (Im)materiality of Early Colonial Encounters in the Southeastern United States

Holland‐Lulewicz

Thompson

Wettstaed³

et al. 2020

Am. Antiq.

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Hernando de Soto's expedition through the southeastern United States between 1539 and 1543 is often regarded as a watershed moment for the collapse of Indigenous societies across the region. Historical narratives have proposed that extreme depopulation as a result of early contact destabilized Indigenous economies, politics, networks, and traditions. Although processes of depopulation and transformation were certainly set in motion by this and earlier colonial encounters, the timing, temporality, and heterogeneous rhythms of postcontact Indigenous histories remain unclear. Through the integration of radiocarbon and archaeological data from the Mississippian earthen platform mound at Dyar (9GE5) in central Georgia, we present a case of Indigenous endurance and resilience in the Oconee Valley that has long been obfuscated by materially based chronologies and typologies. Bayesian chronological modeling suggests that Indigenous Mississippian traditions persisted for up to 130 years beyond contact with European colonizers. We argue that advances in modeling radiocarbon dates, along with meaningful consultation/collaboration with descendant communities, can contribute to efforts that move us beyond a reliance on materially based chronologies that can distort and erase Indigenous histories.

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Radiocarbon Dating the Iroquoian Occupation of Northern New York

Cited by 15 publications

References 25 publications

Radiocarbon, Bayesian chronological modeling and early European metal circulation in the sixteenth-century AD Mohawk River Valley, USA

Radiocarbon, Bayesian chronological modeling and early European metal circulation in the sixteenth-century AD Mohawk River Valley, USA

Refined Radiocarbon Chronologies for Northern Iroquoian Site Sequences: Implications for Coalescence, Conflict, and the Reception of European Goods

Enduring Traditions and the (Im)materiality of Early Colonial Encounters in the Southeastern United States

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