Table of General Systemic Activities and their Material Correlates per General Productive System (Lithic, Bone & Antler) Evaluated for Presence / Absence Within the Meier Site Plankhouse.

Cameron M. Smith
Department of Archaeology, Simon Fraser University, Canada
and
Laboratory of Archaeology, Portland State University, USA
03 May 2000

Note that all productive stages are generally evidenced at Meier. With raw material imported, all stages of artifact uselife -- from production to loss or discard -- were carried out withing the plankhouse, forming much of the Meier site material record. Naturally this has important implications for interpretation of the site.
PRODUCTION SYSTEM AND ACTIVITY
POTENTIAL MATERIAL CORRELATES
(at Meier, given raw material types and N-Processes)
PRESENCE AT MEIER?
Chipped Lithics    
Raw material import. Unused ccs cobbles (non-local manuports). CCS cbbles with single assay strikes. Yes, Yes
Initial core reduction. G1&G2 debitage. Size 3&4 hammerstones. Non-exhausted cores. Anvil usewear on cobbles. Yes, Yes, Yes, Yes
Raw material heat-treatment. Thermal alteration evident on early-stage cores (crazing, potlidding, discoloration, etc.) Yes
Flake production. Flake tools. Much G3 debitage. Cores bearing flake-removal scars. Yes
Flake heat-treatment. Thermal alteration evident flakes bearing no usewear or reduction scars (crazing, potlidding, discoloration, etc.) Yes
Flake reduction. Much G4 debitage (pressure flakes). Antler flaking tines. Size 1&2 hammerstones. Yes, Yes, Yes
Tool use. Usewear. Yes
Core & tool curation / storage. Core and tool caches. Useable tool presence in discrete pits. Yes, Yes
Tool recycling. Tool resharpening over usewear traces. Tool reshaping for new use. Use of exhausted bipolar cores as wedges. Yes. Some, but rare. Yes.
Tool modification for reuse. Post-use thermal alteration evident on finished tools (crazing, potlidding, discoloration, etc.) Yes, but rare.
Tool exhaustion. Extreme blunting of use elements. Rework of tools to very small size. Broken tools (usewear terminated by break). Yes, Yes, Yes
Core exhaustion. Core reduction to state where no more flakes may be reasonably removed. Some bipolar cores. Yes, Yes
Core discard. Core presence in midden deposits. Yes
Tool discard. Tool presence in midden deposits. Yes
Core and tool loss. Useable tool presence in toft and/or wall trench. Yes
Ground and Percussed Lithics    
Raw material import. Unused basaltic cobbles and blocks (nonlocal manuports). Yes
Initial core reduction/shaping. Basaltic cobbles and blocks bearing non-use-related flaking and/or incomplete percussive shaping. Ground-stone production tools. Yes, Yes, Yes
Final shaping. Finished ground/percussed tools (assumed not imported). Yes
Tool use. Usewear. Yes
Tool curation / storage. Tool caches. Useable tool presence in discrete pits. Yes, Yes
Tool re-use and/or recycling. Presence of usewear on previously broken tool elements. Yes
Tool exhaustion. Thermal alteration of fragments of ground/percussed tools. Broken tools (uswear terminated by break). Yes, Yes
Tool discard. Tool presence in midden deposits. Yes, but rare.
Tool loss. Useable tool presence in toft and/or wall trench. Yes
Bone and Antler Production    
Raw material import. Bone and antler items bearing no butchery marks. Lithic projectile points (for hunting animals bearing bone & antler). Yes, Yes
Initial bone and antler reduction. Non-butchery-related working of bone/antler (e.g. channels for groove-splinter method). Bone/antler debitage shavings and flakes. Yes
Final shaping. Presence of lithic abraders with wear grooves. Presence of finished tools (e.g. unused items). Yes, Yes
Tool use. Usewear. Yes
Tool curation/storage. Tool caches. Useable tool presence in discrete pits. Yes, Yes
Tool re-use and/or recycling. Presence of usewear on previously broken elements. Rare, if present.
Tool exhaustion. Thermal alteration of fragments of ground/percussed tools. Broken tools (uswear terminated by break). Rare, Rare
Tool discard. Tool presence in midden deposits. Yes
Tool loss. Useable tool presence in toft and/or wall trench. Yes



Last Updated on 5/3/00
By Cameron M. Smith
Email: csmith@sfu.ca

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