Data F Ile 85-63 the ARCHAEOLOGY of the MANOKINAK SITE

Public-data File 85-63

THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF THE MANOKINAK SITE: A STUDY OF THE CULTUEUL TRANSITION BETWEEN LATE NORTON TRADITION AM) HISTORIC ESKIMO

1 Robert Dane Shaw

Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys

December 1985

THIS REPORT HAS NOT BEEN REVIEWED FOR TECHNICAL CONTENT (EXCEPT AS NOTED IN TEXT) OR FOR CONFORMITY TO THE EDITORIAL STANDARDS OF DGGS.

794 University Avenue, Basement Fairbanks, Alaska 99709

'~laskaDivision of Geological and Geophysical Surveys, Pouch 7-028, Anchorage, AK 99510 THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF THE MAPOKIVFK SIT?,: .\ STlJDY

OF THE CXLPRAL TRANSTTION RETWEEN L4TF

?JORTOP,I TRADITIOY AYD HISTORIC CSKI?IO

9ORERT DANE SHAW

A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

WASHINGTON STATE [JNIVERSITY Department of Anthropology

The members of the Committee to examine the dissertation of ROBERT DAME SHAW find

it satisfactory and recommend that it be accepted. Field work on which this document is based was initiated with a Doctoral Dissertation Grant from the National Science Foundation and Sigma Xi. Field logistic support was provided for the entire project by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service through the management of Clarence Rhode National Wildlife Range. In addition to those organizations I would like to thank the officials of the Calista Corporation and Munam Kitlutsisti along with the citizens of Hooper Bay, Chevak, and Newtok, for their interest and encouragement to perform archaeological research on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. Ricky Hoff, William Sheppard, Steven Klingler, and Steven Hosking actually excavated the material. The accommodations were primitive and the conditions often uncomfortable in the extreme, but each did more than their share of the work. For that, I extend my sincere thanks.

The artifact illustrations that enhance this report were done by Susan Fair and I thank her for exercising her talent on my behalf. In researching and preparing this manuscript I gratefully acknowledge the able assistance of my wife, Ruth Jean.

I thank her for her unswerving support through the years it has taken me to bring this project to fruition. Additionally, I thank Ross Schaff, William Barnwell, and Douglas Reger of the Division of Geological and Geophysical Survey, Alaska Department of Natural Resources, for their encouragement to complete this iii document.

Appreciation is extended to Peter Mehringer, Carl

Gustafson, and Richard Daugherty who served on my dissertation committee for guidance in preparation of this document. Special thanks is extended to my Dissertation Committee Chairinan, Robert

Ackerman. His guidance from conception of the project, obtaining funds, conducting the field work, and writing the manuscript were invaluable.

Additional individuals who have aided in the preparation of this document and facilitating the field work on which it is based include:

James Akaran Jerry Leinecke Nelson Angapak Calvin Lensink Larry Charles John Lobdell Ignatious Chayalkin Rex Xathlaw Carla Dau Raphael Yurran Christian Dau Jack Panayak Wayne Dawson Don Redfearne Donald Frickie Michael Smith Lee Hotchkiss Rudy Smith Jerold Hout Harold Sparck Chuck Hunt Charles Strickland Pias Inqalar ia Jerold Van Faasen Robert Kigorak Ruth Van Taasen THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF THE YANOKINAK SITE: A STUDY OF THE CULTURAL TRANSITION RETWFEY LATE NORTON TRADITION AND HISTORIC ESKIMO

ABSTRACT

by Robert Dane Shaw, Ph.D. Washington State University, 1983

Chairman: Robert E. Ackerman

The vanokinak archaeological site (PAR-0B7) is located on the ~ukon-Xuskokwim Delta 168 km northwest of Bethel, Alaska.

The site is an abandoned village midden 30 in in diameter and 3 m high. The mound accumulated during successive occupation, abandonment, and reoccupation of sod houses at the locality through the past 1,200 years. Permafrost has preserved the organic remains which were abandoned by successive inhabitants.

An 8 by 1 a trench excavated through the deposit yielded an archaeological collection rich in organic artifacts. Continuity with a generalized Eskimo adap,tation is demonstrated for the full occupation span by similarity of organic artifacts recovered from the site to items in ethnographic collections gathered in the 1880s. However, subdivision of the collection into three cultural components is possible based on stratigraphic position and variations in the surface decoration of the pottery. The latest component is of protohistoric age (less than

308 years) and is culturally representative of the economically diverse Eskimo adaptation observed on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta at European contact (c. 1825). The middle component is approximately 300 to 1,000 old and is related to the Western Thule Tradition. The earliest component (Component 1) is 1,000 to 1,300 years old and contains check stamp pottery characteristic of the Norton Tradition which dates from approximately 2,500 to 1,000 years ago. Yorton Tradition is characterized in the archaeological literature by remains consisting primarily of stone and pottery that are typologically distinctive from types found during subsequent cultural phases. Along with the culturally diagnostic check stamp pottery that relates Component 1 to the Norton Tradition, organic artifacts were recovered that are usually not preserved in Norton Tradition sites. Ground slate harpoon blades and knives, woven grass mats, a hunting helmet decoration, a snowshoe fragment, a flint flaking tool, kayak paddles, ocher painted wooden objects, and carved wood figurines analogous to specimens in the ethnographic collections, relate Component 1 to the middle component of the site and, in turn, to the historical Eskimo cultural continuum. It has been demonstrated that the Manokinak site is a cultural link between early phases of the Morton Tradition and subsequent Eskimo cultures. Along with relating

Component 1 to the ethnographic collections, these unique artifacts have enriched the archaeologically known cultural inventory of the late Norton Tradition. Sased on these items, new interpretations are possible in the social aspects of 'Torton culture. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page

ACKNOWLEDGEIIENTS ...... i i ABSTRACT ...... iv LIST OF TABLES ...... xi LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS ...... xii Chapter 1 . INTRODUCTION ...... 1 2 THE YUKON-!

Formation of Components ...... 109 Radiocarbon Dates ...... 113

Stratigraphic Summary and Cultural Component Diagrams ...... 113

5 . ARTIFACT DESCRIPTION ...... 117 Artifacts of Wood ...... 118 Wooden Fishing and Hunting Tools ...... 124 Fish Traps ...... 124 Fish ~illingClub ...... 124 Fishing rod ...... 127 Fishhook ...... 139 Harpoon Sheath ...... 131 3ow Fragments ...... 132 Arrow Fragments ...... 133 Dart Fragments ...... 134 Snowshoe Yrame ...... 135 Kayak paddles ...... 138 Cord Handle ...... 142 Wooden Plugs ...... 142 Wooden Tools for On-Site Use ..... Wooden Bowl ...... Bent Wood Box ...... Vessel 3ottoms ...... Pegs ...... Stakes ...... Birch Bark Container ...... Buzz Toy ...... Spoon ...... Carvings and Elaborately Painted Wood Anthropomorphic Figures ...... Zoomorphic Figures ...... Carved and/or Painted Disks .... Painted Vessel sottom ...... Drum Rim ...... Fire Drills ...... Story Knives ...... Engraving Tools ...... Flaking tool ...... Stand for Pottery Vessel ...... Wooden Items of Unknown Function ...... 177 Artifact4/338 ...... 177 Artifact4/438 ...... 178 Artifact 6/43 and 4/259 ...... 179 Artifact4/381 ...... 182 Artifact 4/384 and 7/31 ...... 183 Artifact 3/123 ...... 183 Artifact 5/232 ...... 186 Artifacts of Stone ...... 193 Flaked Stone Tools ...... 194 Flaked End Blades ...... 194 End Scraper ...... 197 Flake-Knife ...... 197 Utilized Blakes ...... 198 Ground Stone Tools ...... 198 Knives ...... 198 Slate End Plades ...... 215 P-dzes ...... 219 Drill ...... 220 Ground Burin ...... 221 Ground Slate Chisel ...... 222 Abraders ...... 224 Xineral Pigments ...... 229 Ocher ...... 229 Slack Shale ...... 230 Hammerstones and rlauls ...... 230 Basalt hlet Weight ...... 231 Gastroliths and Reach Pebbles ...... 234 Artifacts of Sone and ~ntier ...... 235 Drill Caps (3earing Rests) and Wedges .....235 Antler Hoops ...... 239 Bone Scrapers ...... 240 Digging Tools ...... 241 Xiniature Harpoon Socket Piece ...... 242 30ne points ...... 242 Bone Arrow/Dart Points ...... 245 Zoomorphic and Decorative Bone Carvings ....248 Puffin Rill ...... 252 Carved Tooth ...... 252 Bucket Handle ...... 253 Antler Net Weight ...... 256 P!iscellaneous Bone Items of Unknown Function . . 256 Artifact 2/312 ...... 256 Artifact 2/354 ...... 257 Artifact 2/373 ...... 257 Artifact4/116 ...... 258 Artifact 5/255 ...... 258 Artifacts of Plant yiber ...... 259 Cordage ...... 260 Net ...... 264 Insoles ...... 266 Twined Basketry ...... 267 Mats ...... 272 Bags ...... 281 Pottery ...... 285 Check Stamp Pottery ...... 285 Split Sherds ...... 293 Barrow Curvilinear Sherds ...... 294 Yukon pottery Series ...... 297 Plain and/or wiped Sherds ...... 297 Shell/Cord Impressed ...... 301 Lamps ...... 302

Fauna ...... 383

6 . CULTURAL INVENTORY OF COMPONEblTS ...... 305 Similarities Between the Components ...... 305 A Village Overview ...... 305 Houses ...... 306 Superstructure ...... 307 Floors ...... 310 Walls ...... 314 Artifacts ...... 314 Overlaps in Component Inventories ...... 314 Typologically Identical Artifacts ...... 318 Analogous Artifacts ...... 321 Differences in Components ...... 322 Pottery Distribution ...... 322 Check Stamp ...... 325 Plain Ware ...... 327 Lamp ...... 327 Barrow Curvilinear ...... 328 Shell/Cord Impressed ...... 329 Knife Distribution ...... 329 Component1 Knives ...... 330 Component 2 and 3 Knives ...... 331 Other Artifact Class Distribuions ...... 332 Component 1 ...... 332 Component 2 ...... 333 Component 3 ...... 334

The Cultural Environment of Individual Components 335 Component 1 ...... 335 Subsistence ...... 336 Domestic Goods ...... 338 Social Life ...... 341 Component 2 ...... 343 Subsistence ...... 344 Domestic Goods ...... 345 Social/Religious ...... 348 Component 3 ...... 349 7. PREHISTORIC CULTURAL DEVELOPMENTS ON THE YUKON-KUSKOKWIM DELTA ...... 353 The Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta Phase of the Norton Cultural Tradition ...... 353 Regional Expansion ...... 358 The Early Phase of the Norton Cultural Tradition: Technological Limiting Factors . . . 359 The Later Phase of the Norton Cultural Tradition: Technological Innovations . . . . . 360 Expansion Onto the Delta ...... 361 Concluding Remarks ...... 364 BIBLIOGRAPHY ...... 366 LIST OF TABLES

Table Page

1. Yean data of the last spring and first fall occurrence of 32' Fahnreheit ...... 22

2. Precipitation, fog and sky cover data for southwest Alaskan localities ...... 23

3. ?,?easurements (in cm) of kayak paddle blades from fragments found in Trench 1 ...... 141

4. Physical attributes of 1 knife blades and handles found together and/or disassociated . 211

5. Dimensions of ground slate end blades from Trench 1 ...... 216

6. Physical character istics of' abraders arranged by form ...... 225

7. Physical characteristics of wedges and drill caps ...... 238

8. Artifact types which are part of the artifact inventory of all MAR-007 components .....316

9. Artifact types which are present in Component 2 and 3 ...... 317

18. Artifact types unique to Component 3 ....317 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

Figure Page

1. Regional map of western Alaska showing the geographic position of localities mentioned in the text ...... 3 2. Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta schematic cross-section . . . . . 14 3. Temperature data for southwest 4laska ...... 18 4. Wind speed and direction for selected localities in southwest Alaska ...... 25 5. Depiction of immediate area around the iqanokinak site . 47 6. Topographic nap of the Yanokinak site mound ...... 49 7. An aerial view of the Vanokinak site mound and the breached volcanic cone'...... 51 8, Ylanokinak mound and vicinity ...... 54 9. Trench 1 at MAR-007 as it appeared near the end of excavations in 1976 ...... 62

10. Successive stages of excavation in Area 4 during the 1976 field season ...... 67

11. Successive stages of excavation within Area 3 during the 1976 field season ...... 70 12. The north wall of Trench 1 at site XAR-007 ...... 84 13, Cutting of sod blocks ...... 87 14. One of the plan-view drawings required to depict the debris within Floor 1/3 (Component 1) ...... 94

15. A 1976 photo of Floor 1/3 during excavation to show the general appearance ...... 96 16. Basic stratigraphic profile of the north wall of Trench 1 showing super imposed houses ...... 101 17. Detailed stratigraphic diagram of the north wall of Trench 1 at MAR-007 showing individual elements of the successive constructional episodes . . 104 Stratigraphic diagram of the north wall of Trench 1 showing the units assigned to Components 1 through 3 ...... 111

Ages (years R.P.) and locations of radiocarbon samples from Trench 1 ...... 115 Two samples of wood debris ...... 121

Miscellaneous wood scraps illustrating the variety of wooden debris present in the site ..... 123

Fish killing club. composite fishhook. and harpoon blade sheath ...... 126 Arrow. dart. and bow elements ...... 129 Interior surface. edge. and exterior surface views of the trailing edge of a snowshoe frame ...... 137 Reconstruction of single bladed kayak paddles based on four fragments recovered in Trench 1 .....140 Wooden bowl recovered from House Locus 1 of Component 2 ...... ; ...... 144 Composite wooden vessel (4/439 .. Component 1) from House Locus 1...... 147

Bucket bottoms ...... 149 3uzztoyand spoon ...... 155

Human and bird figure from Trench 1 ...... 158 Carved wooden objects from Trench 1 ...... 160 Red ocher painted objects from House Locus 1 .....164 Vessel bottom (artifact 4/272 .. Component 1) with red ocher and black painted design ...... 167 Story knife and engraving tools ...... 172 Flint flaking tool (5/125 .. Component 1) ...... 175 36 . A two view sketch of artifact 6/43 (Component 1). a probable hide working or digging tool ...... 181 37 . A two view sketch of artifact 4/381 (Component 1) ...181 38 . Artifacts of unknown function ...... 185 39 . Artifacts of unknown function ...... 185 xiv

An assortment of wooden artifacts from Trench 1 ....188

A sample of miscellaneous wooden artifacts from Trench 1 ...... 190 Wooden artifacts from Component 1 ...... 192

A sample of stone tools from Trench 1 ...... 196 Ground slate hunting knife with its wooden handle ...200 Knives from the upper components of Trench 1 .....202 Knife handles from the upper two floors of House Locus 1 .. Component 1 ...... 204 Assorted knives from Trench 1 ...... 206 Ynives from the lowest floor of House Locus 1 .....208 Knives from Component 1 ...... 210 Harpoon and/or lance blades of Trench 1 with longitudinal and transverse cross-sections ...... 218 The fragmentary ground bur in from Component 3 conpared with a complete specimen from Goodnews village (GDN-16) ...... 223 4 selection of ground stone artifacts ...... 228 Ground and pecked stone tools ...... 233 A sample of wedges and drill caps from Trench 1 ....237 Top and side view sketch of a large digging tool (aattock) made of a whale rib ...... 244 Harpoon arrow socket piece and two non-toggling dartpoints ...... 244 Large bone points from Trench 1 ...... 247 A selection of bone artifacts from Trench 1 ...... 250 A selection of bone artifacts from Trench 1 ...... 255 Explanatory drawing of cordage from Trench 1 .....261 A net and an insole from House Locus 1 ...... 266 Basketry terminology designated on a simple. open twined mat fragment from Component 2 ...... 269 63. Calamagrostis canadensis mats from Trench 1 ...... 271 64. Woven fragments from Trench 1 ...... 274

65. A corner of mat 3/159 (Component 1) showing selvage fragments on two edges ...... 278 66. A corner of mat 4/264 (Component 1) ...... 280 67. A schematic sketch of a bag (2/241 -- Component 3) . . 283 68. Complete check stamp pot (4/297) from Component 1 . . . 287

69. Partially reconstructed check stamp pot (8/28) from Component 1 ...... 289

70. 4 selection of check stamp pottery and the two plain ware sherds recovered in Locus 1, Component 1 . . 292 71. Sherds from Component 2 ...... 296 72. 4 selection of sherds from Component 3 ...... 300

73. ?, hypothetical schematic showing the structural elements of a sod house ...... 309 74. Projection of all catalog number entries against the trench stratigraphy ...... 313 75. Projection of all catalog entries for pottery against the trench stratigraphy ...... 324 76. Locations of sites in the vicinity of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta that contain check stamp pottery 355 The Yukon-:Zuskokwim Delta is a vast, tundra lowland bounded by the rivers for which it is named ("igure 1).

Throughout the period of Euro-American occupation in Alaska, the area has been one of low economic potential. Coupled with the difficulties and dangers of traversing a land surface which is dominated by thaw lakes and hundreds of meandering streams, the

sea approach is equally hazardous because of the shallow depths of the offshore waters. '?xploration and development of the

region have lagged behind that of other regions of Alaska. The

same is true for archaeological research. The Delta is the most poorly known archaeological region in western Alaska.

Since the 1920's, knowledge of Alaskan Eskimo prehistory has developed with emphasis on the coastal and island areas of

aering Strait. The coastal mainland and major river systems both

north and south of the Delta have received archaeological

attention, particularly since the late 1940's. The archaeo-

logical research effort devoted to unraveling the prehistory of

Eskimo peoples has been widely dispersed over a vast territory.

Wen though investigations have spanned several decades, it is

only in the recent past that broad regional syntheses have begun

to make sense. However, it is generally acknowledged within the

profession, that the data base still remains too sparse within

each region for archaeologists to attempt a grand synthesis. Figure 1. Regional map of western Alaska showing the geographic position of localities mentioned in the text.

Point Barrow Point Hope Wome Iyatayet Site Nukleet Site Unalakleet Saint ?lichael (~ikhailovskiiRedoubt Site) Sheldon Point VcGrath Cape Romanzof Askinuk Pl0untai.n~ Kusilvak Yountains Hooper Bay Chevak Kuskunuk village Site Ingakslugwat Hills Aphrewn River h,lanokinak River Azun River Ilanokinak Site (YAR-007) Ylewtok Hazen Bay Yelson Island Tununak Tooksook Ray Munivak Island 9aird Inlet Vapaskiak Bethel Tuluksak Yalskag Crow Village Site ~olmakovskii Redoubt Site Goodnews Ray Goodnews Platinum Cape Mewenham hlanvak Eay Togiak Dillingham Fort ~leksandrovskaiaSite Naknek tJaknek River

Recent increases in the amount of archaeological work being done state-wide have been sufficient to prompt investigators to establish regional chronologies and approach the problems of area culture relationships. One topic of current interest is the place of Uorton culture (Giddings 1964) in Eskimo prehistory. The west-central coast of Alaska is generally acknowledged as the core area for the development of ?Torton culture. ~houghthe cultural base from which !lorton culture developed is disputed (Shaw and Holmes 1982b), Yorton culture is implicitly accepted by the profession as Eskimo. A demonstration of this connection by use of a continuum of data from early

Yorton culture (c. 2508 9.P.) to Nukleet culture and the subsequent Western Thule tradition in the same general area of western Alaska has several weak linkages.

One particular weakness is evident in the transition period from late :\lorton to more recent prehistoric Eskimo cultural phases. This is mainly because of poor organic preservation in vorton culture sites. Late prehistoric Tskimo sites reveal a heavy use of organic materials in the artifact inventory. Pew Norton tradition organic artifacts have been recovered for comparison. This gap in the data has been partially filled by the recovery of well-preserved artifacts of bone, ivory, hide, and grass at the TQnokinak site (MAR-CJ07). A new delineation of the transitional period between late blorton and late prehistoric Eskimo phases is now possible based on the

UAR-007 data. Giddings defined ?,lorton culture based on an artifact complex that he excavated at the Iyatayet site from 1948 to 1952.

After the full definition of the cultural complex provided in his

1964 publication, use of construct became widespread.

However, problems relating to the proper use of the term exist.

Participants in the Vorton Symposium conducted at the 1981 conference of the Alaskan Anthropological Society (Shaw and

Holmes 1982a; 1982b) failed to agree which taxonomic level to apply to the complex, and whether "Norton" should be defined by tool inventory and technology, or by the subsistence strategy.

Since the XAR-007 data on subsistence strategy are limited, this paper is oriented toward using the characteristics of the artifact inventory to formulate the 'cultural construct.

The data base of t:his report was obtained by excavating a

1 m by S m trench into the margin of the Vanokinak site which is located northwest of 3ethel (see Figure 1). The site is a permanently frozen mound 30 m in diameter. As a consequence of the mound being permanent1.y frozen, the artifact inventory contains a large proportion of organic artifacts relative to artifacts of stone and pottery. 9s a result of poor preservation, the artifact: inventory from most other Morton culture sites consists predominantly of stone. 1 number of sites also contain pottery.

As an artifact class, pottery is a very useful indicator of cultural change. The Manokinak site, as a case in point, contains pottery of four types. One type is a check stamp ware commonly assigned to the Norton culture in the literature (Griffin and Wilmeth 1964:271-303). It is the presence of this check stamp pottery which forms the critical link of the YAR-007 lower component with !lorton culture. The few flaked stone tools from the lowest cultural component also suggest, though not definitively, or ton culture affiliations.

In clear and direct association with the check stamp pottery of the oldest component, there are several classes of artifacts which link the E1AR-007 collection with the artifact inventories of the modern Eskimo. There are ground stone lance/harpoon blades of a modern type (see Figure 50). The blades are identical to specimens Nelson (1899: Plates LVII) collected ethnographically. The collection of hafted knives from the lowest component also is notewoythy. Though somewhat different from knives collected by Nelson, the side and end hafted specimens from MAR-007 are respectively analogous to the modern ulus and crooked knives. Without the handles, the blades would fit within the range of variation of historic ulus that had stone blades. Equally, some of the blades are morphologically analogous to earlier Morton tradition specimens of flaked stone.

The corner notched slate blades shown in Figure 47 C-D are very similar in shape to ground stone specimens recovered by Ackerman

(personal communication) and Ross (1971:Figure 40) at Chagvan

Bay, and by Larsen at Platinum (1950:Figure 56). Taken as a whole the lithic artifacts indicate a transitional position between early Norton culture sites and the late prehistoric sites of the Delta. More important than the stone tools which are relatively conservative typologically, the organic artifacts also show continuity with modern Delta Eskimo. Painting of red ocher designs on ceremonial and hunting paraphernalia is a strong

tradition within the ethnographic and modern culture. Judging

from the considerable number of such objects recovered in House

Locus 1 of Component 1, the practice must have been equally strong in the region 1,200 years ago. Though uncertainty concerning the specific designs involved makes correspondence in

the art motifs impossible to evaluate, the parallels in use are clear. sucket bottoms and lids with red and/or black designs

like those illustrated in Figures 32 and 33 are common in the collections gathered by blelson.

Additional specimens of organic material demonstrating

technological and stylistic equivalence between the early MAR-007

(late Vorton tradition) component and western Tskimo ethnographic

collections are present at the site. The snowshoe fragment

(Figure 24), the flint flaking tool (Figure 35), the woven goods

(see Chapter 5), and zoomorphic bone carvings (Figures 49 and 58)

are cases in point. These items could be included in the

collection gathered by Nelson and not be distinguishable based on

either technological or stylistic criteria.

The similarities between the oldest MAR-007 component and

ethnographic Eskimo material culture are highlighted above, but

there also are distinctive aspects to the respective collections.

It is a case of intersecting sets of artifacts rather than

identity between the two. There are differences in the pottery between the early and late site components, and the knife forms

(though analogous) change significantly.

Aside from the importance of the Manokinak site for defining the position of late Norton cultural assemblages in the general framework of Eskimo prehistory, the site has other values. The site collection can be viewed as representative of the last 1200 years of human occupation on the Delta. Aerial and ground survey in the vicinity of Hooper Day, Chevak, and Newtok have resulted in the discovery of numerous prehistoric sites with settings and general appearance similar to the Yanokinak site.

Five mounds that have been tested have yielded check stamp pottery of the same type as found at the Vanokinak site. Within this vast area where archaeological tesearch is at a beginning stage, the Flanokinak site collection provides an excellent initial insight into the rich cultural resources of the Delta during the last 1,200 years. CHAPTER 2

THE YUKON-KUSYOKWIM DELTA PHYSIOGRAPHIC REGION

General Description

The Yukon-Yuskokwim Delta physiographic region (Delta) is a triangular lowland of western Alaska bounded by the Yukon River on the north and the Kuskokwim River on the south (see =igure 1).

From the head of the Delta where the rivers are only 40 km apart, the channels diverge north and south to skirt the Mulato Hills and foothills of the Kilbuk Fountains. The estuaries of the

~uskokwimand Yukon rivers are separated by a straight line distance of 380 km and by more than 600 km following the irregularities of the coast. Throughout the enclosed triangular area, the land surface is predominantly below 30 m in elevation and is even lower near the coast where vast marshy lowlands are subject to periodic flooding.

4 system of wide, shallow rivers drain directly to the coast. Among the more notable of these rivers are the Aphrewn, the Manokinak and the Azun, all of which empty into Hazen Bay.

The low volume of surface water discharge in these and similar, smaller rivers, coupled with the low river gradients, allows tidal fluctuation to be clearly identifiable more than 60 km inland.

Toward the sea an increasingly close interval network of sloughs are tributary to the rivers. These sloughs contain the daily ebb and flow of tidal water. The dendritic branches of the slough network meander across the shallow topography. Channels of adjacent drainages commonly approach to within only a few meters of each other. In fact, it is not unusual for these meandering branches to interconnect adjacent drainages. It is common to encounter channels of less than 25 crn in width that are

1 m deep. In sloughs 5 m wide and 3 m deep at high tide, water will only be 25 cm deep at low tide (not including the 25 to 75 cm of muck which forms the "bottom").

Surficial Geology

The entire region has an unconsolidated mantle of

(Quaternary age silts and sands transported by the Yukon River and, to a lesser degree, by the Yuskokwim River. On cursory examination, the general triangular shape of the Yukon-!:uskokwim

Delta physiographic region suggests a very large alluvial fan built of deposits at the river's mouth, but the situation is more complex.

Throughout the late Tertiary and Quaternary, surficial deposits to several hundred meters thick were accumulating and being modified by various mechanisms. Successive early

Quaternary parallel beach ridges are identifiable on aerial photographs from south of Nelson Island. Even on U.S. Geological

Survey maps, the features are evident from parallel strings of lakes that occupy the swales between ridges. Parther north on the coast, recent erosion apparently has eliminated such features. Yrosion can be extremely rapid. Dupre (1978: 5) reports coastal cutting in excess of 60 m in some years during severe seasonal storms.

The Yukon is the largest Alaskan river and even today carries a substantial sediment load, but the sediment load was even greater in the past. With widespread ~leistoceneglaciation and the attendant massive erosion in interior Alaska (U.S.

Geological Survey 1965), coastal alluviation and land formation by eolian redeposition was higher than now. In fact, Pleistocene eolian deposits are widespread throughout the state (Black

1951:899), whereas Holocene eolian deposits only occur in restricted localities (Pewe 1975: 34) . Yuch of the Delta mantle consists of Pleistocene age Yukon River sediments redeposited by winds as loess and reworked to dunes inland on the Delta.

The currently aggrading delta of the Yukon River is located at the northwest corner of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta physiographic region 75 km southwest of the historically prominent village of St. Michael. Although individually impressive, it is a relatively insignificant feature relative to the overall scale of the Yukon-Fuskokwim Delta physiographic region. The present estuary of the Yukon River was defined between 1250 and 2500 years ago. Dupre (1978:23-24) outlines several ancient courses of the Yukon over the Delta surface from

3aird Inlet north. The major rivers that drain the Delta internally today were once ancient Yukon River channels cut during the late Pleistocene. Hazen Bay was the terminus of several mid-Wisconsin channels, and Baird Inlet was the outlet for earlier Quaternary age channels. ~houghless radically than the Yukon, the Kuskowkim

River channel has also shifted position. Early meander loops exist north of the current river. The most notable physiographic feature resulting from shifts in the ~uskokwimis the very low, wet area west of Kalskag. There the meandering Kuskokwim channel apparently swept away the accumulating Pleistocene deposits.

While the low coastal flats frequently flood with sea water, this more interior area is flooded almost yearly by spring run-off.

Since Bethel is located within this zone, the ancient river history is very significant in the lives of the inhabitants of the largest community (1980 population 10,671 - Alaska Almanac

1982) on the ~ukon-Kuskokwim Delta.

Primary stream mouth deposition along with the complementary alluvial processes of flood plain deposition, meandering river action, eolian and estuarine processes all played an important role in development of the unconsolidated materials which mantle the region (Dupre 1978 and 1979). These classes of geological process resulted in broad areas in which each was dominant (Tigure 2). The areas formed primarily by estuarine, alluvial, and eolian processes are characterized by differences in elevation that have influenced human history on the Yukon-~uskokwim Delta. Estuarine processes associated with a shallow pro-delta have produced broad, coastal flats below 2 m elevation and vast, low gradient mud beaches that are exposed with the ebbing tide. Mostly inland, but occasionally on the coast, loess deposits occur as dissected terraces with elevations below 10 m. In between, alluvial deposits of Pleistocene and Figure 2. Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta schematic cross-section (adapted from Dupre and Thompson 1979:Fig. 6).

Holocene age are dominant in the surface materials of the landscape.

Sedrock Geology

The unconsolidated mantle of silts and sands overlie widespread basalts from small shield volcanoes. There are few outcrops. Effects of volcanism are widely evident as scattered, unvented domes that protrude slightly above the vast tundra lowland. The domes rise 30 to 75 m above the surrounding flats.

4s in the case that will be described later for the dome immediately adjacent to the ~anokinaksite, sections of a few domes have blown out as small blister cones which interrupt the otherwise smoothly undulating land surface. The extreme topographic relief produced by volcanism occurs near the center of the Delta in a feature officially named the Ingakslugwat

Hills, but known locally as the "Elud Volcanoes". There a series of well preserved volcanic cones range up to 190 m in elevation.

Paleomagnetic data suggest the basalts are younger than 700,000 years (Dupre 1978:3). Analysis of a pollen core (5.35 m long) taken from a crater lake in the Ingakslugwat Hills (Ager

1979:277) suggests that no major ash producing eruptions have occurred in the past 70,000 years from this series of cones.

Though Ager's core contains a volcanic ash that is only 3,500 radiocarbon years old, compositional analysis suggests that it originated in a distant source -- perhaps the Alaska Peninsula (Dupre 1979: 13) . Older sedimentary or metamorphic rocks outcrop only in isolated localities near the coast: Kusilvak Fountains, the ~skinukMountains, and part of the uplands which comprise Nelson

~sland. These oldest, weather resistant rocks are the dominant topographic features on the Delta, reaching elevations of 670 m,

715 m, and 395 m respectively (U.S. Geological Survey 1963;

1966).

On the Delta proper these localities provided a likely source for the siltstone and slate that became prominent in the native's tool inventory with the development of ground stone technology in the region. Isolated beach gravels scattered along the coast of the Delta provided a more varied source of material

for making stone artifacts than did local outcrops. The gravels contain highly metamorphosed slate and occasional cryptocrystaline rocks.

Climate

The climate of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta is influenced by the Rering Sea, but the maritime in£luence diminishes inland, especially east of the bordering uplands. Temperature clearly reflects this trend. The lower portion of Figure 3 illustrates

the increasingly cold temperatures from maritime (St. Paul Island) to interior (McGrath) . The climate of southwest Alaska is a product of the general global circulation of the Arctic determined by the two

semipermanent high pressure systems centered on the geographic

north pole and in the north Pacific Ocean. Those major highs

determine the location of the Pacific polar front which occupies

a position separating the Pacific maritime air mass from the Figure 3. Temperature data for southwest Alaska (Selkregg 1974:8). polar air mass generated within the highs (Petterssen 1958:216). The general position of the Pacific polar front lies along the

Aleutian arc and the Pacific coast of Alaska before turning southward along the mountainous continental coast. The Pacific polar front establishes the path that the cyclonic (low) pressure systems follow in moving eastward. In effect, the lows migrate generally along the boundary between the highs which is the Pacific polar front. The Aleutian Low is a semipermanent climatological feature located at seasonally varying positions along the Aleutian arc. The Aleutian Low plays a dominant role in the synoptic weather patterns of southwest Alaska generally and the Yukon-Xuskokwim Delta specifically. From the seasonally determined position of the Aleutian Low, cyclonic eddies (migrating low pressure systems) are generated and move eastward in advance of, or semi-independently of the Aleutian Low. The "depth" (in terms of the absolute atmospheric pressure) of the cyclone coupled with the track of an individual low system, and the orographic effects of the topography determine the weather at given points on the mainland. As a result of building of the cold continental air mass within interior Alaska and consequent intensification of the Arctic high, the winter position of the center of the Aleutian Low is located in the vicinity of Attu. In addition to holding the Aleutian Low to its extreme west climatological position, the rise in atmospheric pressure within the Arctic high displaces the Pacific polar front southward so that cyclones moving eastward more often track along the Pacific coast of Alaska.

Those circumstances cause the interior air mass to have proportionally greater influence in weather of the Delta during winter. Note the isotherm pattern of Figure 3. In July the

isotherms are aligned more north - south, but in January the alignment is more east - west, paralleling the Pacific polar

front.

~uringspring to fall, the climatological position of the

Aleutian Low is situated in the vicinity of the Alaska Peninsula -

and maritime influences on the mainland intensify. At all

seasons a secondary eastward track of migrating lows exists

northeastward from the Aleutian Low along the east coast of the

Rering Sea, but the frequency with which migrating lows follow it

increases in summer. 4s an individual low moves north of the

Delta, cyclonic (counterclockwise) air flow around the lows

commonly sweeps warm and occluded fronts across the Delta with

the associated frontal weather of rain and high winds. Behind

the fronts there is general onshore flow of maritime air.

In addition to widespread low cloudiness, rain, and wind

associated with the weather fronts, the counterclockwise flow

within low systems moving along the secondary track sweeps moist

sea air onto the land and commonly produces fog. Eecause the

Delta is low elevation land, little air mass cooling through

orographic lifting occurs. The primary mechanism for fog

formation is cooling of the air mass by direct contact with the

land surface of the Delta. The high moisture content of the sea

air readily condenses once it is in contact with the cold ground -5urface. Tog also is cotnmon durinq clear xeath3r 3ssociated with high pressure systems. -JFper level air subsides (flows downwar?) within highs and holds moisture at the surf3ce. '.Tithin hi~lhst+e sky yenerally is elear 3nd t:?e land surf2ce readily looses he~t thr3ugh radi3tion. Since fo~produced by rzIdiation coolin? f,3r~-; by z3ntact with the qr3und, increased ,~indvelocity tends t2 di~si?at3and prsvent foq farmatie~nthrough nixing of air.

=ecau3e fog often is only ZI fsw m2tsrs thick, :nixing need not

2xt3nd very high to destroy it. "bin fog is commonly "Surned

3ff" by 13tz 7orniny t!~rough radiz~tional'?eating from the sun.

3e e~ostnortherly cii~~~t~lo~ical?osi tion of the

',leuti.3n LDW is in the vicinity of 'it. ''atthew Island in late su~mer. Tn addition to enhan~ingt3e g?ner31 maritime influence

3n the gelta, the most northeastsrly ?osi tion of the Ileuti3n Low qaxinizes the frequency 3f migrating lows followi2g the s~condary track. ?or the months of February, april, June, lugust, October,

3qd 3ece~bert5e average nuaber ?f lows ?er nonth on the Qelt? or iq the =?erinq Tea directly to t%e dost 3ra 2.3, 1.2, 2.p, 3.5,

4. ', and 3.2 (

Along with more adverse weather, the most northeaat~rly climatological position of the ylsutian Lox 3150 pr3duces periodically devastating weather conditions. That position produces the synoptic circumst?nces that jenerate videsoread coastal flooding. 'Iith strong counterclockwise winds skirting the southern edge of a deep low centered in the vicinity of St.

'4atthews Island, a long fetch exists to the Delta coast along which significant .nomentJ.n is built in ths surf2ce se,2 water 37 friction from strong surface winds. -,!hen thosz s?eria? 5ynor)t 12 conditions coincide with t!~epeak of the Inconiag tide, sea ~3tsr is drivsn ont3 the i3w elsvation l.2nd surf3ce of the 3elta E3ce.

Coastal sitss ssveral kilometsrs inland ars El3oded and/?r

-! completely surr3und?3 '3:~ sea ,+gat3r. lnese "storm surqss" erode t?e CCI~S?~~face ~n sxtrene f3shlon ov2r very short tine per~~ds

(3upre 1977: 5) . Yro~sn3ssociated with st~rnsurges undoubtzdly ias cut 3uay :many eoaskal archaeologic31 sites. '9ouqh storn surTj?s Is2 not 7ccur svzry year, occ3sionally two or t'nrse ~ly

3ccur ;33son (-\liss, ?3mis4eyl and 'sckzr 1-38?).

Yavinq outlined the nljor clinat~logic~lflatures and ssquenre far the '-ukon-*yuskokwim 3e1,trl in a 'niqhly 3iinpl i f ied for,n, I ?resent cli~nat~1,~gicalsummary dats in 'igures 3-4 and

Tables 1-2. ,Phese data Ners adapted from the southwest region vqlune of the ,Alaska Tegional TroEiles produced hy staff of the

Yrztic E:nvironmen tal Tnf ormation and Qata Center under the

:!irsction of iidia SelXregg (1374) .

T37LE 1.. "ean date of the last spring and E~rstE311 occurr2nce of 32' Fahrenheit.

'7cGra th 'Iay 22 Sep 7

3ethel "ay 23 Seg 12

Cape Romanzof Jun 5 Ssp 18

Cape f.:ewenharn 'Lay 31 Oct 2

St. ~3~1Island Jun 2 Sep 24

S BETHEL

S CAPE ROMANZOF S CAPE NEWENHAM

Average wind speed for direction noted.

Extreme wind for direction noted.

Percentage frequency of occurrence of wind direction.

Percentage of time calm.

S ST. PAUL Wind speeds are in knots. 'legetation of t9e 3el t2 is ?xclusi,:ely tundra. :'undrz~ L.;

sssenti3lly 2 wet nrctic prairie in whizh the ve7zt3tion consists

of lichens (rsin2eer "TOSS") , s=ldqes, -,'r2s;es, .and :jwarf +~o~.?y

?lant~(nduq 1.971:381). "ecjet2tion 'ol3nk;?ts the :r3und dith .?

thick, spon:~y.?at aver .,~~2dk?vdev31,~r)ed 3nd ?oorl:! 3r3ined 53 Ils.

-5e vegetation nat f3llnws the contours 3f the l3nd surface ta rr3atz 3 saoot5ed, gently r3unded z?nt?ur tr~the o1v3rall

!andsca?e. - undr2 :?evel,?:)? i2y 3 ~,:.~?lexinterlztion 25 -3Liqitic 1?n2

e,-:~?hic factors. Low ;it~os?herir:t~i?~er?ti~rc?.~, ii?? whn3s, l?w prsci?it2tion1 the :~r?s?nce of ?er~afrost,g~or w3t2r cdr3inaqe,

2nLl n3ny ot'nsr :3hy3i:17ranhic f3ct9r; in£lxence the est2blishment

3nd Taiqtenance :I£ tundr3. '!roac! seal? vari.3tions on the Delt3.

~hich???ear to be 3ssociated pr inar ily with elevation, drainage,

3n2 Jeologic substrate, have result4 In division of the r~qion's

- .-,et3tir3n, ,=, (.. into wet and ~oisttundr?.

"5s Joint 'ederal-Stat? i3nd -.se 7!2nnin3 ::??mi ;;i ~n

!.?'SL..'PC) far \laska (L97?) classified the "~lt~~45 pr+o$?Inantly

wet tundrzi with ~najorareas of .ngist tundr2 ~n ths '~lsgher, (350~3

- 1,7 to 15 m elsvation) hett3r drained -.re?s. qe ~qoisttu~~(?r 3.

areas correlate predoriinantly with tne ar3as ,sf v3lcanic upli Et.

'7ithin the wet tundra arsas, standing surface wat2r accurs almost

zverywhere during the growing season and watsr t~lerantspecies

are dominant in the phnt community. In addition t3 the land

surface occupied by the numerous and ever changing thaw lakes,

seasonal thaw in the upper layer of pernafrost releases 2dditional watsr on the surface. 9nce thawsd t5e ,i3t2r rs,nrllns in place because of the l3w elevation, low t39ograhis relief, l3w evaporation, and because it is per~hedon t~pof 3ernaErost. :q higher 3lsvatisn arz2s, season31 t5aw of the qraund s1so r2133ses cqat~r,but the 1:olune 3f -

,3113~ or? rapid runoff thr7ugh thz lower 7.3rgin of the

Since tundra i3 not ,defined on t5e basis of the ola~t zo!nmdnity ,3lone, +'?ere arc no unique 3nd/or defining lists of

?13nts '2y uhi.1-h to rq~cl!~~irfr31y .listin7uis'n its sub(3.i~risions.

- .qerz7 t zr? 457 known spr:ii.s of ir3scul~rol.3nts an the 9-lt.2 ('ljer

'-382). Species CoinpOSi tion of the wet 3nd .~oisttundra rea as avorlap consid~r~bly.'.'hers are n.sjor ,3if ferencss in the pr~:>ortionsof given s??cies in the two ty?es of tundra. -!road

3enersliz3tions, however, ars possible based on the plants.

'.olst tundra veqet3tion varies fron uniforaly develo?ed cottqn qrsss ('lriophorum spp .) tussocks wi. th ot'7er scatterld sedges t~

-J-2~~:!.;- 4- rihere dwarf 5hrubs are dolninan?. 'tloody si~ri~bsthat qr?

3bur1d3nt in ths xoist tundr3 !nat include 2~arfSir-:? i'letula nana), Laborador tea (Ledum decu~bens),crodhorry ('npetrum niqrum), lingonberry (Arctostaphylos al~ina), nrsstrate *ill3vs I3alix spp.) , and blueberry ('!acciniurn spp.) . "osses and lichens also are abundant. The d~minantvegetation in wet tundr2 is sedge and c3ttongrass that forms a continuous .?at r3ther than tussocks. Rooted aquatic plants such as bur-reed (Sparqanium spp.) , pondweed (Potamogeton spp.) , and mare's tail (Hippuris spp.) also are more abundant (JFSLUPC 1973). "ven dlthln wet ~nd~3lst tundra drsas, ?ro~ort:ons qf

7lants of a given species .~'3r.jxitn tne 71,-roenvir~~n~ent.-or exa:nple, a stand of Lsdur? decumbens grows on t:~?of the :.xtre,ne

;qest-rn linit sf the '~rsachedTone here sit? '::R-737 is iocat~d

vitis-idaea ;rows on thz sheltered south s1.3pe ,)f t:?e cane rin isze -i,~ur?3 ") . 'Ghil? qbilndznt +Lsewh2rz in the l~icinity,the

~~nusuallyhigh dens: ty of -.3ch in ?articular l ~calities i ; the r~sultqf mi~roenvlrgnJent.i1 :onclitions. "any other nlants of t7e tun'Jr3 s:?o~,d s irnil3r .:lr l3t-; ons l?. Aensi t:r. ;'or ex3.r??, aq'(

, , loc,3lity wherz the tsndr3 ?a+ 1; :)r>icen and t?e s3il is :.u?osec3 i; invaderd '~y2nnu315. 'lu~joint (Calamagrostis canadensis) and, s?condariLy, firewes3 (-pilohiurn angustifoliu-) co1oni.z~

:?~..;tar::nd ars3s such 35 irle-oush~c? berms alon~f'le rivsr, '?ill t~psused rapeatdl7 -~ybir3s, 3nd arzhae~logicalsites. In qerial survey, the Fresence of Calarnaarostis is an excellent first indicntian of the presence of 3 site.

"indr3 is xarked by t3e not3512 2Sszncs ?E trees -?xze?t

'2r alder !\lnus crispa) and r~illow(Salix snp.) xh;.ch ,:rsw in thicket;. 7,:illoo~s~ccur along t'le riy3er cours23 3nc1 li?zr5 33

:Jell drained slopes. mrees within these thickets occ3sianalLy

3re 3 m high, but inost 3r2 below 2 9. -hickets of r,fillaws and

3lders (only rarely do the t~ooccur in the same thicket) usually ars so 4ense that moving through them is extrejriely difficult.

3nly along the 'ukon and .:uskokwim rivers are the thickets so continuous that their existsnce is noted on the regional l~egetationnaps (2FSLUPC 1973; 'Iiereck and Little 1372). !:ear the head of the Deltzi, veqetation in areas adjacent to the rivers

is dominated by with white spruce (Picea glauca), Slack s9ruce

(2. mariana) and balsam ?opl?r (Fopulus balsanifera) trees.

The "ukon- 'usk~ic~~;~3slt3 ?s 3 rlcn an-1 varied r?soures arza during +he snring ?~dsunmer. 39ti ~iqr?tor;~hirfs ,333 fish are abundant seasonally in the rs~ion. - ?urin~:?rill w3t2rfowl 3nd ~horebirdsaF3e.2r in vast rlu!nbsr? ~3nthe n~lt2f?r t'?e hreedin? se3s:rl. .he caa3:31 3rea of t!le 3elt3 i3 dell known as 3ns of ;?e world's .nost ~r?ductive waterfowl 5abitats (7.laska ?e?artment of ?ish and Gaae 7-37? : 27) .

"he watsrE2wl i-n~ort3nttp subsistence inzlude bl3ck Srant

('ranta nigricans) , lesser Zanada geese (7ranta canadensis) , white-fronted geese (Anser albifrons) , whistling swans (31or

columbianus) , enp2rt2r geese (Philacte canaqica) , lesser sandhi 11

cranes (Srus canadensis) , loons (Gavia s?p. 1 , greak?r 5caup

ilythya ~arila), pintail (Inas acuta) , old squ2d !?langula hye~..alis) , n.n\er ican widgeon ("areca arner icana) , green-winged tlal (3.nas- crecca) , common scoter (3idemia ni?ra) , corninon sid;.r (Somateria mollissi~a)2nd Steller's eider ("olysticta stelleri)

along with numerous other ducks, shorebirds, and seabirjs.

\n estiaated 1.5 million ducks ireed on the qelta

annually and produce a migrating fall flight of three nillion

ducks. nensity of breeding birds is very high, especially geese.

'lillions of birds which winter in the continental united States

and Central kqerica breed on the Delta. In the coastil frinye, t'le clensity of brant'JessL? 31nne is nor2 than 2UGl per squar? .nil? ('-.laska Departxent of ,-ish an2

,,.3~e,. 197:: 27) . Qecausz t_hzse 'sir-3~ar? flightl?ss ~h113molting, they 3rs ?s?i?cially su~ci?pt351?to capture in co;?.;nzn31 -7rir;?s.

\long with 313u?t hir.?s, erjqs ar? an jrrc,;?ort3nt F.~odf3r rasi:lents

<~fthe ~~2:t?.

.7,,it5 the ~a~nr~~~c:?of inter, the high birj popul3tion of

.d? <-,Lern L --l.2sk3 ni.j'r~ter;~2~1th into Isia, the ',.xeri.c3s ~nd,+_? 3 lesser ?xt?nt, ;-?to the >3cific islands. ..lost SirJs h2:ie ~oved

~r)~t!l'12 ?C~O:)CK . 3,777,s 523 ':I 'I rjs, r3vens, 3nd ,;no,.vy 3,113 r?,~?iI t'~r,uq!l tile :~int?r,:,ut ?k 3r.nl:l,3n (53qo~~~"53p.) is th? ~vl*/

-,i:jnlfic3nt qane hlr? that 7veruinters on the 3elt3..

5-ll:non runs .3r2 5tri3r1q 3nd dependable in hot11 t:le

.-a2~akwi~2nd yukon ri7;ers frgm June through Se2te:~ber3nd undoubtedly hai?? ~1aye.da .najor role in ?ski-no subsistec~ce t:lraughout tneir 2ccuFation of the rqion. "he five ~ajorsa1,non

nncorhynchus tshawvtscna gorbuscha

rierka (soc'

:;3linon r;lns qccur in sane of the 13~7~~rii~srstn3t ir3in the

1.There is no specific informatian on ~h~zt'~er2r not t5er2

i; 3 salnon run in the "3nokinak Xiver

is locatsd, but therz ~rq'aablyis not.

Tq addition t3 salnon, herr in7 (Zulpe harenqus) , whitefish (Coregonus spp.) , and grayling (Thymallus arcticus) ,

several trout are available for varying periods of tine during

summer. 'ecause tomcod (:leg inus gracilis) and burbot (Lota Iota) spawn and inhabit fresh xater during winter, these fish form an important winter harvest resource along with sticki2back

(Fungitius punfitius) and black£ ish (Dallia pectoralis) which ar?

2vail2ble ~n fresh water the ysar round. "hese winter harvest fish wera im?ortsnt eie~entsi.n ailorirj in31 subsi atence ('iorr3w

1317: 163) .

mhouqh the 12~gradient, mud heaches that front most of the 3eltq are not ideal Aabitst for sea ,namals, a variety of seals 2re present throug5out the year along the coast, especially ln rocky headland areas. "orthern fur seal (Callorhinus

~~rsinus), h3rbor seal (3hoca vi tulina) , spotted seal (phoca largha), ringed seal (pusa hispida), ribbon seal (Vistriophoca f3sciata) , and bearded seal ('lrignabhus barbatus) 3re present in varying nuinbers (Ilaska 3epartnent af Fish and Gax? 1-373).

rQalrus (Odobenus rosmarus) are available in large numbers al.2ng the retrsating qarqin of the qering Sea ice pack. 3y early suxner the ice pack has retreated far enough northward that the

'rinary Yerd is well north of the oelt2. "nirnal; re:n.z~i?i?; south

~.lurii~gt:?e sumner are .nostly young, non-breeLilng 5ulls.

There is no indication of ?rehi;toric 3elta rasi.3ents

'g~untingthe large whales in open xatsr 2f the 'er~ng Sea, jut

'3eluga (Delphinapterus leucas) wer2 killed in bays 3nd shallow wster along the coast. E. variety of large whdles ?ass the 2elt3 in deep water, and animals that die at sza drift onto the beaches. Seached whales 1 ikely provided Delta inhabitants with whales that are represented by bones rscovered from sites in the region. Large land narnmals occur qnly r3rsly on the n2lta

lowlands. ?sribou (R3nqifer tarandus) , noose (Alces-- ,~?ces! , ,and brown bear (!Jrsus arctos) 3re ?~~sentin the surrgundinj u?lan:ris

2nd occ2sionally ~ove2nto tile ?elt3, 5ut their stay usu?il?y is

short. rven polar bear ("hal3rctos Tariti~us)is f~und

13ccasianally. Yooper 33y r?sl:l?nts repor"id killin-; a ?olar !>ear

2t the :-rlouth gf the 'Yanokinak 2iver in 1376.

Though not certjin, r,oose are 33id to ha']? -nov?d oxly

recently (within the past 153 ye3ra) into the ,?reas of riparian veqstation al2nq t:le rivers near the h2ad of the 3elta. The f3~t

that no qoose hones ~zrsfound at ':?.R-327, supports this

zontention. C3ribou, on the other \and, ?Fpar?ntly wers nuch

,nor2 2l2ntiful during t5e ?re?istoriz past than t7d3y. 3uring

t5e l2te 188Bs, z2ribou wers hunted in the uglands both north and

south of the Delta t9 provide hides far the comnercial market.

?y 1395 the hgrds were decimated and caribou essentially disanpearsd froin the rqion (>.laska 9ep3rtm2nt ~f Yish :: Game

?.377:?.3?.).Forner :-listribution of .=3rib~u on the "elk2 pro9er is

uncsrtain, 'nut Oswal t (?352a:43) ropor ts tiat tie ,?l_dec-,t

residsnts of Hooper 3ay rsmentber !~avin,gszen 2.3rib3u in that_

a.The presence of .3 natursl herj on "univak Island durinq

the last century (':elson 1399: ?22) additionally su;qests that

'?er,-3s may have Seen at least periodically nresent ~n the ?elk3 as

late as the 1874s. ',lelson (1899:246) reported that, accor.ding t3

native residents, c3r ibou were abundant along the coast just

north of the current, active delta of the .fukon River in the

1860s. This indirsct evidence, coupled with abundant c3ribou bones in the "JLR-3F7 sl te throughout tile full 120n ysars ,~f occupation, suggests that raribou nay 5ave Seen in residence seasonally near the c2ntsr of the 3elta. If they wera, the vglcanic aplan3s associated xith the IngaksLl~gwat Hills just northeast 3E 4\R-!377 are 3 iik2ly range fqr n3intznance of ,3 her3 seasonally.

Toth red f2x ('iulpes vulpes) and lrctic fox (:,lopex laqopus) are abundant on the 3e?t3 along with a variety of

;nailer land namnal i. 1,aong the srnaller aa.nmals, beavsr (Castor canadensis) .2nd ink ("ustela vison) have pl,3yed, along it:^ fox,

3 Tajor r3le in ths c23h 2c3n3ny 3: the 321t3. 'he vsl~?of fur h,arzrs das established soon after the first ?.us~ian occupation of the rsgion at ':ikhailovsXii Pedoqbt in 1333 (Orth '-3Fj7:227).

:"l i.~?ortanceof fur trap2ing n3s varied with the periot-lic riss4 in fur values since that tine. "hough not nf the s3ne conmercial value, other stnall Land nanmals such as the least weasel ('!ustela rixosa), river otter (Lutra canadensis), tundr3 hars (Lepus othus) , ground squirrel (Citellus undulatus) , woiver ine (Sulo luscus) , TLISL~~~(Ondatra zibethicus) , and various {roles arz oresent. 711 have roles in the subsistence ?eonany qf the nativ? Curopesn lont3ct and ?ovelopm2nt

30~9th~;?an ?3b1 (1375) has luthor~ci3n exeellent 5ist~ry

:>E Zuro-3merican ,-ont~ct3nd development in gest~rn'.laska.

",.dditionally, rtlandel! ls~~3itand J3n-nes -'anSt~nehave Aone

sutonsiTilwork on the ?.:~s;l3nex~loration in the rqion

surroun3in3 the 321 t3. ~?~nsequently, will only briefly outline

the ,najor schelne of :~iro-l,.~erican developnent in the region.

"houqh tr3:ie 2nd :ont?-t across the :?ring tr3lt

undouSt26:;; sx ist2d by t'.~?tine (rababiy 3.;%r1 jefqre) the okvik,/?ld >er lng Sea ::~lltlir+s c3:ne into exi.stsnce ahout 7_,3QG

years ago, fhs influx of trade goods, fron and tilrough 3sj.a

r?nai!led 5;nal.L until the official Xussi2n diszovery of Alaska by

'Titus 72ring in 1741. 'or the following fifty yedrs, Russian

activities wer? zenter2,J exclusively on the :.leutian Islands and

th2 mainland ?,2cific coast 3f Ilaska (?ay ?975:25).

The Xussian ernnh;i;ls on the 'ilsutians ,lillowed nzitly~e

tra,lers ne7ir ?he 3ering 3trait to dev-.lo:~ as ;Feci.3lists in

Turopean ,joods (23y 1375: 12G) . 'Thes? trader; (t'ne fablsd Inupi3.q

speaking "?lalsmiutf' of Seward Peninsuls and ;'otzeSue Sound)

.3.eveloped s. strong econonlc position in western '.lasica via

indirect transfer of goods through the i3huckchee froln trading

centers on the ;:olyma 2iver (Zagoskin "I67:lGg). The first

iiussian explorers penetrated the F:uskokwi!n and 'iukon Jrsinages

during the early 1798s (IianStone 1379:45) and found that the

natives already possessed some utilitarian itarts such as knives and choppers obtained ,113 the ?ering Strait trade r:~utss. Lqro~ the early explorations, it was apparsnt to the Yussi3ns that the rqion was a rich source of furs, and that tl?e n2tives wers eager for 3 jrsat3r variety of 'uropean goods. Yowevor, the ""3?smiut"

~niddlenen in the SiSer L3n tr,.lde actively 3ppos2d %stab1ish~ent ~f the 9ussian tradinq ?osts nort'? of 'ristol >3y 3ecause 3f dirsct tr2de co~peti.tion.

Tonstructian of 'ort :4.leks3ndrovskaic? zit the ;:9uth of the

"ur'nagak River in ;.21S .nolr?d t'7e Pussian prssence farther north, but did not sariously i:p.?3rt native traders near t5e str3its.

',ltio~lg'? tie '"'3' ,. .=-qi.jtt'-,, tra~fiiqq 3r23 ?xt?nded f2r south as the

"akon ?iver, the presence f -art '-.leks.3ndrovs!taia did nake

Xussian 7ood.z :30!?1ewhat nor? 3ccessable to 3elta residents (p2rticulsrly ruskoicwi,n ?.i:r?r inhabitsnts) . ?hers ar2 records of

''us1c~k~ii:npeoples visiting the post 3s early as 7522 (Osor3lt and

'T3nSt3ne 1967:77), ?robably by both coastal and overland rgutes.

In prepar3tion for c:onstruction of post farther north, tie 9ussi2ns c3nducted additional explorations i.9 the i~teriorof the regil3n (-'.,nStc~ne 1-359; 9swal t 1'38rJ: 10) . :,!ith cclnstrilstion of

'fikhailovskii Redoubt at the currsnt L3cation oE St. '4ichat?l in

13?3, and establishment of the satellite post nacnsd 71013akovskii

Redoubt (Clswalt 1980) on the -;uskok!vim River (see 'igure 1) at the head of the Delta, t5e Russians encroached deeply into the

'"'alemiut" trading territory. Though the existence of

"ikhailovskii Redoubt :das threat2ned for the first few years (Ray

1975:179), the post survived and has played a major role in the history of the rzglon since its est3blishrnent. Tt narked the beg inning of accelerated Curo-l.m?r ican invoivensn t in the ~3r.2~3.

quring the 135fls and 1360s, 'irctic whalin~br3uqht nundreds of ,.~!~itemen into the 'ering and Chukcii ieas, 3nd 40 year.; iat~rnining brought thousands mar?. :he ',.nsr ic3n involvement in Ilask3 ,das c~r3,di~gand purchase of :lask3 Ero~n th?

9ussianr; in 186' only f ormliz~d .an establ i3he:l trsnrl of 3vsr

~jreater.:ni tad 3tat~sinvolvment in Alasta.

3rouughout t':le early ex?lorations of the 3ering yea, the zxoansi ~n oE Russian oczu~ati~~n,t'ne qr~wthand dec? ine of

,w?idl iny , ?~~rc'naszby t:le .'n i :?(i rjt3 t3s I 3nd t'le wi.lss~r~3d discovery or' precious :neta1s in t'ne north, t5e gelt? rs.nnained eripher31 t3 early economic ,levelop?ent in Jlaska. Tecause of the shallow offshore fr~ntingths Qelta, ~hir)~invari2Sly stood out to sea. Qsidents of 3reas '29th north and south of the nelta traded directly with sailing ships that ;sntsred their daters, but none approached the 3~13. 'ven a£ter est.3blishr?ent f 'ii:uhailovslcii 8edoubt, the Qus:;i 2n exo?or=?t.i?vs .\r?rs ,3 irscted t.3 the interior and travel routes invari.3Sly fsll.3wed :?it'ler the

. . -'uskok!~i.n or lor^ commonly the 'I~~kon."he . uk~~n-.~us!:3kwi n ortaje 3t the head of the Qeltj. erovidsd .l convsniznt .ne3ns of assing from one drainsqe to the other 3nd :.13s used r?peat?dly

(Zagoskin 1967: 34; VanSt~ne1959: ?9) . In the same year (1333) that "ikhailovskii Xedoubt was

~stablished,a group fron that post .made a trip onto the roast of the 3elta. TJnder the direction of Andrei Glazunov, a party penetrated the Delta via the Aphrewn River and made extensive contacts with the villziyers thern. Yowev?r, this 9arty f3ilsd i3 describe in detail the (jeography of the ar2a (-'anSt3ne 13'?:49).

?ven through a rough 7333rziphy of the coast was 3v3il351e hy :?3!.

("anSt3ne 1959: 33), the interi~rface of the 7elt3 w3s not n;\??z? until 7.T. "elson tra-~erssdIt by rfoq sled during tl?e rlintsr 'sf

1S79-39 elson son 1387).

Qy the tine of "elson's journey, thern iqer=. sDne tra.?.e goods in posession of ths 3elt3 natives, hut their .day ?f lifs was little changed Er3,n the life of the previous 277 year;

("Jsv~altand "3n';t-~ne !.35':?2). Cven t'qe nsxt ~ajori~flux of

<,q?its nen l.~to:,l.2ska In 3szociati.on with l~ininghad Ilttle inpact. Again ths "elks was surr2unded by activity, hut littl2 or no penetr3tion of the qelta propex occurrad. L~rq2numbers of jnen traveled down t:1e on ?iver froin tne *'londiLs on their return tri9s to the continsntal rinited States, hut, 5y the tine they r2achecl St. "ichael, catching a ship south seeans to have

5een their orirrlary interest. '.Jith the discovery 3f ri-ch qold depgsits on ths Teward ?eninsula, even greater ;lu.n.'>?rs 35

-.:uro-l.neric:3ns Sy~assedthe 9elt2 in th? r~shtq ':erne In LW2.

,Though there were several 'vhi ta tr3ders In resld~nc~~ along 50th the vukon and .:uskokwi~ Xivers by the ?37Os, it was not until the beginnin7 of the missionary 3r3 thdt ?he 3elts natives faced the qajor impact of white civilization. In ths late 1389~~both the Jesuits and the '.'oravisns est3blished nissions in the area. The 'Toravians concentr3t2d on the interior

Delta area (Oswal t 1963a) and the Jesuits simultaneously missionized the Delta coast. Though there had been nany years of interaction with whites, dsscriptions of the ..usksk?~imYskivos

(as late as 1885) indicate that the ~~eoplethen :3as3essed -. r?latively few trade items (Osiial t and '.'anStane :357: 32) . ney still manufactured the :?ulL of ths ;132aratus anJ ::93ds nec2s;ary to thsir ;Jay 3f llfe whic!7 ~-m~ai?ecl=.ssznti2lly 353rijinal.

"otn Zaygskin (!96': 'ap 3) 3nd "slson (lL399:?late TI) di~licind tl~e':~ko.rl-~:uskokwim ?ei t;l int~r2gions nazd for the

-c;?ci ?o ~~r~upsinhabit in? each CIK 3-1. -his conveye? tne cl2ar i nplication th3t tribal. .gr,~ups;~er2 '~cing c3slinaat?d. '.:t?lsan

:Izlineated five cjrou~s3nd his ~lassificationnas 52en 23?ul3rly

3cc??tsd, ?r inar ily bec3use little ethnoi.;r3phic ~ork??as Setn done in the 3r2a. ':?lson1s r~rousi.~gs3.~2 T'Kogniut, 'ageniut, v

':el--,on (1399: 25) aoted tht intzr3ction i~et-,.ieendlEf?r+nt groups on the 3elta generally was friendly 2nd t.]at ~ont3ct bet7,qeen them was substantial. Ye nsted that (with \:he exc-32tion of the Yunivagrniut -- "univak Island peonle) the dialect differences were slight and vsrbal com;nunication throughout the

Delta was not hampered substantially. Today the entire area is classed 3s Yupik speaking ("rause 1974).

nnn F'ienup-Riordan (1983) has discussed the general

inconsistencies in and inadequacies of these traditional schemes in defining sociocultural groups on th? Delta. She h3s ~rg?osed an alternative scheme of classifying historic village ~r~upings based on the localities Ern~n which the peo?le originat?2 nd the area t5ey ,~sedfar subsistence activi t iss. Yer scheme I nil icates subst3ntial areal overl3_o in origin 2nd the (area used f(=r subsist3nce acti.~itiesby inhabitant3 of the '~istoricvillages.

She T:isws the qroup bound3ries as flexisle 2nd dot?rr.ins::! in larqe 8ne35ur3 '3y shi Ets i.n the 1-?3il3bility of r3sour.z~~rather than a fixsd yrou? tarrit3ry. :iowever, currsnt 13iq13rslty of

3rigin withiq villages nay be t'hs rssult ?f nassic~epo?ul3tion l3ss (ner'lap.; 75 nuci 3s 5'72) ;1ec3use gf coln:n,.lnic?ible di;tases in the lat? 1333s (?ay :373:L26) and r?structuring oE 3elt2

inhabit3nts into centr2l ized village; associated with schools and tradin7 posts during the ~ast5a2 :~nsr('.'ienu~-Ri3rdan :3R?:12!.

Dreviously, the population was nore dis2ersed with a seasonal

round based on the diverse resources of the rsgion.

'5e subsistence resources oE the 3el ta .?ary ;~;ni f icsntly with locality and season of the y33r. "hersfore, t5e ease witn which residents of each village can obtain and preserve 3

necessary i tern varies. ?ecause of location, s31ne rasourczs .are nore readily available than others. For exanple, inhabitants at

Yus'nunuk TJillage on the coast of the Delt3 north of ':elson Island

lived within a dense goose nesting area, hut salmon runs there

dere poor compared to runs past villages on the Yukon River.

3ecause no one locality supplied all items necessary to survival, Delta residents traditionally havz engaged in a szasonal round of

5arvests.

Today salmon, migratory birds, 2nd seals qr3 i.nport3nt

Eood f,3r 3elta r3sidents and g3thering these ani~slsi.; the center of activities durinq the spring ,and suntner. '.long :~it:i tir~se,i~port?nt supplenznt3ry foods such as walrus, \e?jga, herrinq, L?nprsy eel, hi tsfiah, 3nd yrayling are harvestsd.

\.dditionally, \,qer (1982:43\ as noted that 3t Least ?3 of the

1153 known sgecies af i;3scu13r ~7lantson the aelts arz used.

'9od, howey~>r,is not %e only ?r?rzqui;itz far survival

3 he 1.?idesI fm-lr,ror32,-;re, .:3tting, 2nd '.~2od12st 311 he cre'ecause the? i3rTr3st season E?r ,nost 3f these rssources coincides uith the avail3bility of Food rssourzes, scheduling conflicts occur 3nd decisions ngst he ~3de35 to the wissst

investnnnt of effort. :he people s~ouldface a long and difficult uinter if resourcss were nissecl 5ec3use scheduling

~ic,judgenents3r illness, <3 resource E3llacl to apFe3r in

ruf Eicient ,Tuanltity, or faod stores ,gerz 3cci?.sntall;/ ciestroyed.

'"Q ooviltz t?e need t3 naks conflicting choices, ,~snSersof 3n

ex tended fa~~lilyprobably chose di££?rent 3c:tivities so thak the group obtained the desirzd vari2ty of f3od 3nd supplies t3 last

tbe inter. Trade 3nd ritual gift axchange -1153 insur~ej.the

nzcessary variety of goocls (L. Yckern~an 1952: 2-11) .

'The Delta is a r~213tivelyrich area and supported the

largest Zskiao population in qlaska ('ranSt~neL970:52), but

shortages still occurred. ?ortunately, some winter harvest

resources are available. Xmcod, sculpin, and burbot spawn in the winter and are t3ken through the ire. ?tarniqan, ssal, hlackfish, and stickleback are present year r3und 3nd ar? i!nport3nt supplementary foods. "hey rovide 30th 'i3r iety 3nd insur.znce aqainst starvatign in tilnes of

In the u?l3nds Soundi:~qthe 9elt3, 50t5 c.tribou 3nd ~oose ar2 present. 'or many ?f the T7illages, especially those on the north drl.3 south ~narginsoE the ?clta, thes.3 .3nimals are

iLn?ork3nt. Yven peopl? on the cDast 3f the aelt? soneti~es tr3u-.l the ir? t3 I?!? km nec;.ssary tg hunt t'lese ,anl.x31.;. :.ialrus alir; .ar? abundant i.7 a r?lzitively iist.3:lt setting -- na3317 the r?tr?atiny ice Eront north of "univak 'sland during spring.

=revious ~rchaeoloaicalInvostiaations

?he pr2history of of the v!~kon-!:uskokwim 3elta is poorly known. 3nly a few, widely scattered formal investigations ':lave

5een zonductst-l in the region. Trl l?5;J nsi~altn3de the first

2xcava-tions on the 9elt3 when he cut into the ,?ound of the occuyi23. village of 3ooper 3ay (Oswalt 1352a). '"he tqeposits he t,3stzcI postdate 1.3. 1600 and repressnt 2 late _nrzhi,storic,/ protohistoric Eskimo ada2tation. in subsequent ysars 3swalt continued his interest in the rsgion, 5ut turned ore to the ethnography and historic period archaeology of the ':usXakwin

River. %lone, and in concert with Janes Transtone, 3swal t has added 4~1uchto our knowledge of the 9elta peoples during the historic and recent past (1963a, 19635, 1965, 1967, 1980; Oswalt

and VanStone 1967). Additionally, Vanstone's work (1979) on Ingalik stnnohistory on the lswer ,n.iddle \'ukon and Innoko riYJers contains en1 ightening information for understanding the 3istorie period on the qelta.

7.fter Oswal t's qooper Yay sxcav3tions, 7b.cker~antdas the next 3rrhaeologist to investigate the ?r2history 2f the gelta.

\cker:nan (1972) conductzd ~3eriiildlife 3an:je north of

':elson Island. Jckernan briefly tested several of the 23 sit25 he locatsd. As a result ?f that survey, J.cker9an 2nd T obt3ined funtiin3 t3 excavate 2k tile ianokina's sita (",",R-!JV) and began i~orkthers in 1.375 (322 Zha:>ter ?). "~ll3win~the exzav3tions at

'T;R-'317 in 1,976, 1 worked for the i7.S. 'ish and lcildlife Service at i-ts 'ethel headquartzrs and cqnducttd 3rchaeol9qical surveys

:>n the 3slt.3 Erom the vicinity of :3oo?er 7ay to the nouth of the

Yuskokwin. Some sites were tssted, but aajor excav,ations were not undertaken.

Yir3aki 3nd Itsuko llkada of S3n~or3,J3?an, have initiated ~r,:haeological investigations !n the vicinity of

-ununak village on \-elson Island. Puring two seasgns of work they :~appedand tested several sites i2cluding the 13rs~esits cat by the Tununuk airport runway.

4s is clear from this brief r3vieiq of the archaeological investigations conductsd on the Delta, archaeological studies in this vast #area of southwest Alaska have 5ar2ly begun. '"hough the nel ta has Seen nostly neglzcted 5y ~3rehaeologists,adjacent areas of Torton Sound, r.:uskokwim and sristol nays, and :Junivak Island have received considerable attention. Some investigations in those ar3as have 3 direct rslation to the prehistory af the

Oelta, most notably those studies with sites of ':3rton culkur?

.3nd later co~nponents.

jlong the yuskokwi~?ay coast in the vicinity cf Z3pe

::ewenha~,surveys hav? Seen nore comprehensive than on the ?elk?.

Tn ~94a,Yelqe Larsen (135q) conduct4 archeol3gical 5urv2ys f r:ltc the south spit ?f Goodnews 3.211 to ''anvak "ay. In the mid to :at

1s~.lzker.nsn conductsd and supervised sev-ral s2asons of ;~ork in the sa,yl area. Those inves tigati~nsresult4 in substantial

2fIditions t? the rsqional (?at3 base (',ckernan '-35.1; soch 1'257;

3osa 1'3'1; Trauner 1-9-3).

Slightly farther south, '"akoto "owta (1.96?) testzd i3ta prshl.5torie deposits at the site of Old T0gi.k. 3n the \laska

"cninsul3, ?gn 3u:xond has 2xcavated nunerous sit2s over a oeriod of several years. These sitzs have components pertinent t3 understanding the prehistory of the qelta -- again, particularly with regard to ):orton culture (3um.ond 1977,; 1981) .

qenry Collins (1328) visited "univak Tsl3r7d briefly 1,

L?23 and rsnorted ths occurrsnce of cnec4 st=1:22 pottlry.

TbTanStane(1957) did archaeological rwonqai 3sance on ',!uniYi2k

Island in 1952, hut intensive work xas not conduct3d until

'-ichael :;owak (1974) oegan working there in L367. Yis initial archaeological work on :,Juniv?k Island has been coupled with continuing subsistence research (>!owak 1975). The cultural sequence on Xunivak ls land and the Yukon-:;uskokwiq Delta appear to be quite similar throughout the approxisately 2,CICJg years of prehistory that has been sampled thus far. U 0

C? 7, -4 2 4 .-4 .-I U 2 IJ n! b I"

c 71 0 rr .r' Cl L' .r I fT '7 U n U r4 cU (? C'l CJ rn 01 ..I '7: U m u? 4 -4 .A -c F LJ .A ffl UI C C .A 'I: GJ l" rn Cl C J. 1 !_q:.p-..-Rm 3

ST?? I~S~2~~''~~O

Site Lac3tlan and :ettlnq

7h2 '.anokinak site (9.-7Is loc3ted i-" !

'~rs;~allurn, '.1as1<3) (13t-itude ~.?.'1?I 3i!IIL--, 10nq :!iu~(?e

;5433- t~91t). -52 3i t? is sik:i3t?c.l 3n ths i23nl; 3f the "2nokin3X

?iv?r ur3 ,3?pr?xi?.?itel;7 35 kn upstrsa:? fro? the i,3a:7 c)_F en. ' crzsc3nti :, Srsac:qzd c~?lc3ni\~zone gccurs ,313ng the

'3noki33k 3iver's south hank 2nd tie sits i; near the extreine linit sf the c3ne f57 TI fr9~the river ('iqur? 6 and 7). The sits consists of #3 louncl ?a 3 in dianeter and 3 rn hicrh. rhs :n9und top i3 roughly 1.1 T above norxal high w~ttrin the rivsr.

-, .?ou-j.h ill is rzlativel;~f3r inland fr3,n t':~-.Tsrlnrj ,533, cl~c+da?i.~nsin tht rivsr level 3uz t? tidos 3r2 rsa.3i?.; tp_oar=.nt. -5e normal watlr height .?~iff?renti?Lis 32pr-2xi:n3tsly -. -.c cn. Though storm surges (discussed in the cliaatol.qy szction c~fZhapter 2) influence the watsr lsvel .2t the l2cality, even severe surges could not have severely .2ffected the sit? r2sidents. Yigh flood watsrs of the river flow into ths 5~~312 dest gf the site (see ?igure 7), but do not rise up t9 t5e crest of the basalt rubble ridge on which the aound is locatsd. 'Tnder normal conditions, mud flats up to 25 a~ wide ars ex?osed at low ?, L U 'I: U C C 0 .4

Lrl

tide downstream frsm the sit?. Immediately north of the site, 3

3 T wide cobble beach is exposed along the river at low tide. ?t high tide the river comes u? to the stand of iqillows al3ng the bank (see 'igure 7) .

"he breached cone south of the mound ('igure 7 -- upper

right) is part qf a l.3rge regional .:olcanic eornplsx. "he nost

violent eruntions in the iznediste area occurred in the

Inqakslu3wat :{ills 25 LTI nort':~east3f the site where a series of

xell ?reserved circular cones rzach slevations u~ to 193 m (see

-igure I). I$'ithin tl?e 1?r~13nds,s.??ill shield ~~olcanosreaching

el3vations of 37 ta '5 ? 3ccur 33 ~c3tter?dfeatgrzs with

horizontal di~2nsionssn the or5er of 1'3 kn. '.ost sre :inply

broad bulging dones ~ithno evidence of surface eruptions. The

breached cone ~dj3centto ":8.i?-7Y7 is one of the f,=iq vents that

exists in the outlying dones associ~tedwith the Tngakslugwat

qills.

"ruption of that vent ~ccurredlong before occupation of

the sits, pro53'2ly even before aan entered -.13sk~froin :t.sia.

?upre (1.971!: 3) found nro evidence qf local .~?lcanis~ndcring the

?ast 42,Cgi: year; in a 5.5 m core that '.?e 2nd -Ton '.qer rsmoved

from a lake in the Inakslugwat Hills in 19'5. Zven though no

witnesses were present, the "eruption" at '(:R-367 undoubtedly was

not vory violent. Yxamination of exposed surfzces an the cinder

cone (note how narrow the cone rirn is in 'igure 2 F) reveal a

breccia with coarse inclusions occasionally in the 2Cl to ?B cm

range. Solidified ejecta form the breccia which constitutes the

margin of the C-shaped feature in Figure 7. Ejecta larger than S .r(

C 0 .d U 3 al U .4 "J rC LC a, E m -U a, C 3 U TI s3 3 a 2, LI. C 0 r.n aJ c?l c al U C U a, u 3 0 .d c rn I C L: .rl U 4 5 0 0 C L1 '4 ffl .+ c w 2 '3 5: g C rn IU a L' I- m a m C, I '= z a 4 'A z w

3sh likely was thrown no more than a few neters fro^ the vent.

Wen within 28 m east of the vent margin, angular basalt rubbls

(with no cinder overburden) occurs i,~mediately under t3e tundra

'igur? 3 is presented to convey a sense of the t3poqraphy, and to show spatial rslationships anong 5saturzs in the inmediate vicinity of the site. The locality is not 3s dry as it appears in the photograph. "he "anokinak 4ir7er zuts against the margin of the series of volcanic domes in the area so that on one side of the river, the ground surface is undulating with ?redominant elevations of about 39 (highest slevation point within 28 km is 73 TI at the top of Iwaktak Hill - 7igur~8

6). On the opposite side of the river, elevations unif2rmly ara

Selow 13 TI and the surface i.s domimated by closely spaced thaw lakes and narsh with wet tundra in depressions and noist tundra on rises.

'regetation on the site proper is disturbed. 1. dense

~tandof Calanagrostis canadensis (a tall grass) exists 9n the

?ound with 3 significant admixture of "pilobium angustifoliun (fireweed) , and Spirea beauverdi3na (a low shrub) . ,"he

Calamagrostis limit narked on "igure G coincides closely with the limit of the midden deposits along the east side. st the In2rgin of the mound the vegetation grades into natural moist tundra vegetation that consists of high proportions of 3etula nana

(dwarf birch) , Smpetrum nigrum (crow berry) , Ledurn decuinbens (Labrador tea), TTaccinium spp. (blue berry), Salix spp. (a low growing variety of willow), and sedges. mhe largest plants in the area are patches of a tall willow species along the river banks, and alder on the higher slopes. The trees reach heights of about 2 n. Stands of trees usually are either willow or alder, but a nixed stand occurs within the breached cone.

Solifluction lobes that ?evelop in the seasonally thawed surface material are readily apparent on slopes of the volcanic domes (see Tigure 7). Ihouqh the Delta is a reqion of discontinuous permafrost (Terrians 1365), the "3.R-007 locality has ?ergafrost. "he seasonal thaw is 20 to 13 cn dee~. Such seasonal thawing on the eastern slone of the "AR-fl87 mound has extrene irn?act on the sita. :'hers frost cracks (see Cha9ter 4 --

3gure 17) are causing the nidden to slough away downslope as the deposits repeatedly freeze and thaw over the years.

Ydditional qites in the i,'icinity of '.!AR-307

Aerial and ground surv?ys revealed only seven sites c,~ithin25 km of '."\-nci? (see -igure i). Only one of these is laryer than "AR-?g?. "ost of the sitss 3re only known fr2n aerial sur-ley, and nost 2re historic sites consisting of thres or four houses without significant nidden 3ccunulstions.

TWO sitss were discovered during ground survey activities around "AR-307 during 1975. "he closest of those

('?,R-837) consists of a line of four rectangular house depressions on the cone rim near its western extremity (Yigure 3

2) (Shaw 1976:17). The depressions are only about 15 cm deep and lack midden accumulations. The surface of the :%R-Q37 site

is shown in the foreground of Figure 8 E. Sven when standing at the site, the depressions ars barely discern2ble. A. fringe ,3f scattered -Calamagrostis plants growing on the margin of the ?its led to discovery of the sits. Otherwise the veqet3tion is zli.nax tundra dominated by Lsdum decumbens. The sits nost likely is a P. subsidary lacality associated with the 'I1.,4-7?7 occupation. rharcoal from ths sit2 dated t3 320+1?U- radiocarbon years. 'hi; date f3lls within the tine reprssentzd by "1R-307 nidden.

':KR-g36, lgcat;.d immediately adjacent ta the river about

1.5 km upstream ("iqure 3 151, consists of .3 hearth bounded on thrse sides by slabs of :13salt i,=haw 1376:L3\. "he ground surface is irrqular, but the hearth see?; t3 occupy the northe3st eorner ~f a vlqdely deli~ited,shallow 2 by 3 de?ression. 'hers is no ,?idden accuaJl3tion. 7urinq interviews

it:^ 7ureau of Indi3n '.£fairs ~ersonnsl,~3tiv2 infornants reportsd this historical site.

One of the hrgest nidden sitss on the Qelta is the -ox and 3eavsr ':ound Group ('(3.R-393) .~hichis located I.? km northwest sf "1.R-9537 (:iclc~rnan 1372:27). -?rain tho cone rl.n 3t "~.R-',17,

these ~oundsfrequently can be scen as 3 sli-ii<: L ri,se on t:?~ horizon during early norning or lat3 nvznln:. 't3osoher ic

aberration during the day renders them invisible. .7._ven the s-naller of the txo mounds at "?R-799 is .narltsdly 1ar;er than the

"?R-0g7 mound. There -nay Se as nany as 33 surface house ?its on the ?ox and yeaver .':ounds. 1.rti facts gathered from a sl.2uqned surf.ace on the largest of the mounds clearly indicated a

?rehistoric occupation. Size and thickness of the nidden suggests that the occupation of this locality may span the full 3ge range of "-4R-F07, but the naxirnum age is unknown. rt is likely that 'IAR-007 rssidents were in frequent contact idith inhabitants of the ?ox and 13eaver ':ounds.

An aerial survey of the southwest corner 25 the 'larshall

15 minute 'uadrangls f3iled to dlszlose additional sites of coinpar3ble size and 3;le to the ''anokinak Site, but tgw3rd the coast in the adjacent quadrangles, there are numerous .?iddens equiv2lent in size and age to ''?.R-91;17. Sites '::R-n38 and "lii-039 are small 3itzs of three or faur house pits which ~robablyare of historic 3ges.

3uring 7.ugust of 1972, Calvin Lensink and Jerry Hout

(cnanagers of the Clarence Rhode ',!at ional :aiildl ife Range) invited

Zobert 3ckernan to exa.nine lands under their jurisdiction.

?uring their hiologic31 work in the ares, these qen hecane aware of sever21 sitas and were eager to have 3n assessn.ent =f the

~rehseologicslL20te?ntial of the wildlif? refgge l3nds. !?.R-737 yas Jne of the sites exanined by ;.cker~an (1972:22) during that initial survey.

qckerrnan was the first archaeologist tg exmine the site.

His test of the midden yislded check st3np pottary 2nd well preserved organic materials. We designed a researeh proposal to investigate the site and were funded by the '

7aialigamiut which was visited by 7. bl. ?!elson during his

~x~lor~tionson the 3el ta in 1383 (i,lslson 1792: 667) . Residents of 'lewt3)c indicatzd that the tentative identification was incorrsct. "aiali3aniut is reForkzd to he only 2bout 5 krn frqn

"ewto!~. Tn fact, several older 'lewtok residents are said to naT!o

Seen born at "aiall~amiutwhich was not abandoned 33 a village locality until 195q (1"s personal interview with >'ary .J. Carl

2nd 73b L7ilongak).

;a;ith dirzction and c,un?ork froin lcker~an,1 beg33 exz3vdti ,n at t?e sits in 1975 and conducted the :nost intensi(13 . . excav'3~:.>nsr1:lring 1976. In succeeding years through 1331, I continued internittent 3xcav3tions at the sit2 while employed by the 'I.S. -isn and rj!il.dlife Service as a member of the st2ff of

Clarence Rhode "ational Uildlife Range headquartsred in 7ethel.

%e objective of the intermittent excavations w3s t3 cut t5e trsnch khrough to the bottoi~of the ,1id,?en. qcrnafr3st slowed

;>rs~r..ss, hut in 1981, I finally cut the trench through to the natur3l 5trata underneath the ~ound.

Tn addition to the trench, I excavated two gther ?reas on the '"?R-4rJ7 midden (: and 7 on the sits !nap -- ?igure 5). r cut the trench to penetrate through the aidden, and Areas A and ? to expose broad surface areas. Trench 1

Trench 1 is a 1 3y S m trench al~ngt9e northwest :nar~in

3f the aidden (see "igure 6). In 1975, the trench was 2ligned so that it included 'ckernan'; 1.972 tzst dithin Squarz 9. Tt was laid ~utto cut fron the loser nargin to t3e t3p edge of the mound (?i-qure 3). "rench 1 is divided into nine squarss nu.niere4 cons?cutively from east to west. Tquare 1 was not ?xcav?itsd. Qn the north side of Square 2, a 5? by 139 cm ar2a labeled Square 21 was sxcavated t~ recover 3 very well-?rsserved gr3ss nat

(3rtifact 2/75 -- not illustratsd) that 2xtended into the w?ll.

Once t'?e ,?at v,3s recoT:nred, excavs.ti3n in Square 2P\ was st~~pped.

Dlan-view -;laps ~howingthe lonation of individual

2rtiEacts Nere drawn u.sing t5e nortseast corner-post of sach square 3s the reference point frmapping. flevations werz ohtained by level lines from stakes driven into the midden near tie northern trench wall. ?levation of the l~velline st2kes was d?tsr,nined by 3 transit with rsferenca t3 a sing12 elevation

9oint at the 'nighest ~ointon the mound ~hi:zhwas ,assigned an arbitrary elsvation of 11 a (see -igure 6).

?.rtifacts were cataloged by individual squzira. :tsms have sequential numbering within each squarz causing artif3cts fron the same floor in adjacent squares to have distinctly different numbers. Component assignment of artifacts was ~adeby noting distinct floors in the field and by projection against the stratigraphic drawings during site analysis (see Chapters 4 and

6). 4 total of 1,562 catalog entries were made including assignment of duplicate numbers differentated by use of 9, F, C ?igure 3. ?r2nch 1 ,3t '.'\F.-307 as it appeared near the end of excavations in 1876. etc. 2s suffixss. : Tat3Log entry .nay describe one or ssvsr31

'7bjects. -Thus, the run of the c2talc:! entries should not be regarded as an artifact Zount. "hey 3rs intended 3nly 3s 3 r3ush approx inat ion of the rzlative abundance 2f 1nat.r i3li in each category. T~iithinthi:; rznort :at=i'~og nunhers take the E2rm 2/i.?2 wnich nesn? Yquara 2, artlf3ct ?umber '-32. rhrou75 the ~?q23f

19'5, the site was Aesljnatsd wlt5 ti? 13'2 survey number

3ssigned by ?ckernan which is Clarence Rhode 'Iational '*;il?lif2

Range 'i1.1: (CLR-14). 19 j.375, the site designation was changed tc~ the official 'Ilaska Yer i t3ge Resources Survey deslrjnation which

13 51 t3 In the 'ari'nall 'uadr3ngls (3-. Sequent131 qunSaring i~itiinsach square was continued without regar3 to the change in site designation.

"he investigation of Are.3 began as 3n oxc.3vation of a

.;urf3ce house ?it in 1975. 9uring the iqitial ohass of

?xc*vat if2n, 1.cker:nan 3n3 T rsmoved an hist9r ic comonent lagedi3tely below the living vegetatian. -he cmnonent ~robably ilatss t-3 the late 1930s (?haw 1979) . The structur3l members found over that recent component are light liqbs of less than 17 cm diaitleter. It woulc? appear that a hunting can? shelter

(perhaps canvas coversd) was built over an existing house 2i.t for temporary use. The artifacts recovered consisted prsdominantly of ammunition reloading debris, tin cans, glazed (whits) pottery, scattered seed beads, and secondarily used commercially processed leather. Additionally, scattered trap parts and skulls of several nink were recovered. The structural remains and artifact

inventory-are consistent with an occupation of short duration associated with hunting and trapping probably in response t3 cash

income and secondarily to subsistence needs.

ay the end of the 1975 field season almost 311 of the

r2cent hunting camp nat~rialhad Seen rsaoved. :Jith continued qxeavations in 1976, the size of the araa under 2xcavation began

to be a ?roblern. The lrea 2 excavation initially c3incided with

the di~ensionsof a single house unit. $:ith increased depth, the excavation area only ?artially exposed the older underlying

houses. Is described E3r the trznch 5tratigraphy (see discussion

of !qous? Loci in Chapter 4) , position of the house walls shifted

l.3terally fron one occupation to another ~zausingan overlapping

of house floors 3nd walls when vinwed vertically. The s?eciEic

location and alignment of the walls varied, but only one house

locus was present in 4rea 7.

4re3 1. became an irregular excavation bounded within a 4

;quar? qrid. %ith increasing depth, (naintenanee of :?orizont31

ralstionships within such a large arsa 5eca:ne Incrsasin~ly

difficult. To increase the reliability of :2orizontal

associations and to increase the dspth somewhat, : reduced the

active excavation arza to a 2 by 3 m rectangle within the

existing grid. Tigure 12 A shows the excavation about half way

through the 1975 field season with the string outlining the

r~strictedexcavation area in place. "igure la ? is a similar

view after further excavations in the sinaller area were

underway. ?y the time the ~hotographfor "igure 18 .?, was t3ken, the excavation clearly was into late prshistoric deposits.

3.t least thrse house construct ion episodes wers zncountered and sa~pledin Arsa 1. within each house there wers

,nulti~leliving floors covered ~ithflatted grass and/or woven

~ats(3haw 1975). 4s in the houses cut by Trench 1, Livin~ surfaces :~ithin indi-~idualhouses were rejuvenat2d Fer iadi.z2liy

5y placing a fresh ~rass::overing on the floor. This ,*g3s .nade necessary 5y the accumulation of garbage, thawing of the floor during occupation, and subsequent development a€ "rnuddy" condikions on the tra:npled floor 3urfsce of the house. -he horizontal extsnt f >reserved grass that was used to line living surfaces varied, but such 3urfaces were invaluable aids for

Taintaining stratiqraphic zontr2l in this Large exposure.

figure 19 illustr3tes the features of the ;rea I. sxcavstion. !!ote especially itsm 5. Tt is a very well-preserved sod wall. Qistinguishing this feature in the horizontal exposurn

3nd then cutting it in cross-section was .i ksy gla~nentin the interpret3tion of the trench stratigraohy. lhoulh *difficult to see in the figure, the alignment 3nd horizontal 2osition of =his

all changed with depth. .Additionally, the conjugcti-on of natted grass layers and wall materials over a long wall segment was inportant to later stratigraphic interpretations in the trench.

Sven by restricting the area of active excavation and increasing the man-hours expended, the bottoin of the mound w3s not reached in Arsa A. 9t the end of the field season, an auger boring was made into the floor at the point marked f in Figure Tigure lg. Successive staqes of excavation in area 1. Zurinq the 1976 field season. 2pproxinat3ly 9ne month interval between the photographs.

4. 7;xcavation 2r2a 7 at the tine the decision ~33 nade t3 reduce the active excav3tion arza.

?. Cxcav?iti-on ?rea '1 3?prt7xlmatsly one .-lonth 2ftsr khe ghotsgra?h shown as 7 was tsken.

a. Lower left corner 3f historic age house ?it.

. ?uried sod wall 2ssoci2ted with living floors to the north (left).

c. Qlder gortion of sod wall that is slightly further. north than b. The sod walls marked as 5 and c rspresent two construction episodes within this 9ouse locus.

d. ''atted grass flooring terininatss against sod wall blocks.

e. Debris from roof fall.

f. ?.uger hole (3 cm dianetsr) cut ko sterile strata underlyin,~mound.

g. Control balk.

h. Entrance to historic age house pit.

i. Living floor south of wsll designated as 0 L.

j. Grid north-south string line.

k. Worth-south trending sod wall.

1. Caribou antler.

m. Cuts through wall of historic house pit.

1. "hat boring revealzd t3at 1.2 a of cultural nidden exists

Setxeen the lower linit ~f excavation and t5e gray silt upon which the mound accumulatsd.

':he artifacts recovered froin Irea 1, ty?oloqically resembls the ,n.lterials rscovered from the upper two conponents oE

Trsnch 1, 3nd the !natzri,als rocovered 5y Osw3lt (1952a 3nd 13525) from t5s Hooper 'iay ini3den which dates to the 1ats prehistoric period. Samplss from law in the excavation produced dates in the

792 r2diocarSon ye3ra 2.P. range that 3rs consistent with the dat?s 3nd ty2es 3f .2rtiE3cts within Trzncn 1. It is es?eci3lly si.jnificant to not2 that Ilnlikz Trznc'n 1., the pro~ortionof check st3,?1?sherds r?cov~rs~rlfr~m .lr?a 1 is comparatively s:l?alL. T r~~ot~erer!no crilsh~d and/or whole check stam? pots.

7xeav3tian 1-raa 7

\ '1;xzavations within Area 1 w2r2 designed to reinova the historic romponent from a surface house ?it. The latest

,3ccu~ationof 3rna was coTparlbl? t~ thst ?f 1.rsa 7. It was 3 tan?or3ry 5unting camp established wit hi^ an existing house 2i t.

Tbree to 6 cm diaaeter Limbs were used to support 3 fabric cover.

That light framework is very evident in ?i~ure11 -, along with the associated stone lined hearth. YJnlike &rsa I, Srea 3 had remnants of the superstructure of an earlier per:nanent house over the surface pit. In "qure 11 3 three 9osts of the four corner-post house support system (up to 20 crn in digmeter) are in place. 'igure 11. Successive stsges of excavation wit9in 4rsa during the 1976 field season.

1.. Light wooden fra~eworkof a recent (c. 1947) , temporary camp established within an aban2oned surface house pit (July 8, 1976 ?hotogr2ph) . ("olding rule is extsncled 1. n.1

1,. 2. later view of 1.re; ? taken from 9g0 away froln the cainera angls in 7igure 11 A (July 10, 1976 ~hotograph).

a. 9alk b. Tin cans c. Yearth d. Fragments of ?osts fron four zorner-~ost roof support 2rr3ngement oE last peraanent roof aver house ?it. e. "trance passage

03pth of the excL2v3tion did not 1xc2eed 43 cm, ~ndthe

Sulk of thS materials recoversd clearly ar? af 2ost-cont3ct age.

Once the recent, historic coinponent ,das rs'noved, excavatlcn was ztopped In Area 7. 1 decided at that >oint t? concentr3te on

Trsnch ? 3nd ?re3 A. "nsequently, thers wers fewer artifacts froin this arsa than the ot5er two excavation uni's. CHAPTER 4

STRATIGRAPHY

Analysis of the strata exposed in the trench required successive abstraction of detailed stratigraphic drawings and field descriptions. The stratigraphic analysis is synthesized in the discussions and summarized in the schematic drawings that follow. The drawings provide the basic frame of reference for evaluating relationships between artifact groups within the trench and are the means of establishing cultural components at the site. Analysis of the stratigraphy required two preliminary steps. First, a model was developed for explaining both the cultural and natural changes to which site deposits were subjected once in place in the mound (subheading -- "Transformation of Deposits") . Second, the materials that constitute the midden were described and categorized into four specific classes based primarily on cultural function rather than strictly upon composition and physical characteristics (subheading -- "Physical Characteristics of the Mound"). The four classes are 1)House Walls, 2)House Floors, 3) House Pit Fill, and 4)Midden. Raw material forming the mound is similar regardless of the class to which it is assigned, it is basically peat. Origin of or uses to which the peat was put and changes (transformations) it underwent at the site are more critical to understanding the stratigraphy and cultural sequence than is detailed knowledge of the specific substances that constitute the deposit.

The trench provides a cross-section through the mound which reveals successively occupied, abandoned, and reoccupied semi-subterranean pit houses. House remains consisted of sod block walls surrounding a pit which contained a floor zone overlain by fill. Artifacts were scattered throughout the trench, but the highest density occurred in house floor zones.

911 within house pits has the second highest artifact density.

Contemporaneous midden deposits surround house remains.

Successive occupational episodes resulted in gradual increase of the mound height and diameter by construction, use, and rebuilding of houses along with the accumulation of midden outside houses as site inhabitants hauled the necessities for their way of life to the locality over the past 1208 years.

Though food remains, manufacturing debris, and tools are important elenents in the site, house remains constitute the greatest bulk of the mound. Semi-subterranean houses similar (if not identical) to those that were constructed at the site, remained in use into the 1950s on the Delta. Historic pit houses consisted of a wooden framework centered within an excavated pit.

Sod blocks were employed to build a wall to supplement the depth of the excavated pit and to create the roof over the internal wooden framework. As part of seasonal maintenance and occasional rebuilding of houses, sod blocks were hauled to the site in great numbers. ~uringthe period of site occupation, the mound gradually increased in height by accumulation of sod blocks during successive building episodes. Because a large part of the mound consists of sod blocks in varying degrees of disintergration, sod blocks receive much attention in the interpretative discussions that follow. Identification of sod blocks and house floors within the midden was critical to understanding stratigraphy of the trench and interpreting cultural activities at the site. The remainder of this chapter describes and explains the relationships between the constructional features and artifacts within the mound. During the 1200 or more years over which the mound accumulated, transformations by both natural and cultural processes changed the site deposits and, consequently, altered spatial relationships within the culturally derived mound. In reconstructing cultural activities at the site, the transformations (regardless of the agency producing the effect) must be considered in order to draw inferences on the original relationships of artifacts and features.

Transformation of Deposits

The mound is a cultural feature throughout. It is located too high above the river to be an aggradational feature, the tundra vegetation is too solid over the entire region to allow eolian erosion and redeposition by wind, and all colluvial material present is part of the surface upon which the site is located. The height of the mound results, in part, from freezing and consequent expansion of interstitial water retained within the mound deposits by permafrost, but most of the mound is attributable to the accumulated trash of inhabitants repeatedly using the small area on which the mound is located. In discussing the problem of interpreting archeological deposits, Schiffer (1976:ll) made the point that once materials are incorporated into a site, they are subjected to a series of cultural and noncultural processes which change them physically, spatially, quantitatively, and relationally. He viewed the processes as transformations of the deposits and the spatial interrelationships within the site. He categorized the disorganizing processes as cultural and noncultural (natural)

transformations. In somewhat modified form, I am using Schiffer's dichotomy as an explanatory framework in the stratigraphic description and discussions that follow.

Cultural Transformations

Residents generally bring raw materials to a site for

some purpose. Processing of the material is related to intended use which, in turn, determines not only the activity area within the site for processing, but the resultant modified physical appearance of raw material itself. For example, wood brought to a site for use as house posts, constructing an umiak, or for a fire will have widely differing forms when found by an archaeologist even if the original raw materials were similar. .Aside from the readily obvious differences between a major house post that retains much of the character of the original tree and the ash resulting from a fire, there can even be major

differences in the material procured for a single purpose. Take, for example, the manufacture of a hypothetical umiak frame. Much wood would be transformed into wood chips by adzing, but there would also be roughly split chunks, partially

finished broken dowels, and a variety of other forms of waste material. After its useful life, parts of the umiak -- having repeatedly been taken to and from the site -- may or may not

finally be incorporated into the site where it was manufactured. Along with direct physical transformations wrought in the raw material during manufacturing stages, there are also culturally patterned transformations involving location.

Individuals have habitual or prescribed use of areas on the site where they live. In some cases the areas of a site used by an

individual is determined by social status, family or friendship ties. In other instances, the nature of the activity itself determines the locus. For instance, major reduction steps in

wood working may be done in one or only a few areas on the site

while butchering may be done at any convenient location. The

point is that cultural activity is patterned and is reflected in

the deposits of a site.

While site inhabitants deposit debris in a patterned way,

they also disturb these ordered deposits. The transformations

may be accomplished by the simple act of walking on the debris of

their previous work thereby scattering it laterally and mechanically breaking the debris into smaller pieces. In

addition to disturbing their own deposits, successive site inhabitants disturb the deposits left by their progenators. By

doing so, the older deposits are intermixed with their own debris. As part of their cultural activity, people dig into the surface upon which they live. Site residents invariably engage in activities such as excavating cache and house pits, embedding posts, and salvaging structural materials from abandoned dwellings. These and many other activities directly change underlying layers and intermix artifacts with deposits forming at the time of disturbance. The successively deposited layers of a mound are invariably perforated, thinned or thickened, or truncated by each generation that inhabits a site. The term "cultural transformation" includes construction, degradation through use, maintenance, reuse and finally discard of all materials incorporated into the mound. Cultural transformations include not only the destructive aspects of human activity at the site, but include the construction and manufacturing aspects as well. People transform materials by both building and destroying artifacts and site features in their normal course of activities.

The XAR-007 trench was excavated primarily to sample all mound components by penetrating through the lowest cultural deposits to the parent material on which the site was initially located. The trench measured 1 m wide by 8 m long; consequently, the area exposed on any given horizontal surface is relatively small. The largest surface area exposed on any single house floor (occupation surface) is approximately 3.5 m2. With this

size restriction, the potential for horizontal activity area analysis is limited. Because of the limited horizontal exposures, the vertical distribution of stratigraphic units and artifacts is emphasized in this report. Differences between stratigraphic units are indistinct, and interrelationships between the strata are complicated. Therefore, chronological relationships and development of the deposits received disproportionate attention in the field.

The stratigraphic analysis of the [IAR-007 trench revealed data about house construction, the pattern of repeated use of house pits by rejuvenating old walls and, apparently, replacing internal supports and roofs over decayed or abandoned houses. In the discussions that follow, the sequence of rejuvenating or building new houses upon old house locations receives strong emphasis along with division of the deposits into culturally meaningful components both within and outside houses.

Noncultural Transformations

Moncultural transformations are alterations caused by natural forces. Flowing water may cut a drainage channel across the surface, while lower within the midden microbial decomposition destroys vegetal fiber, and organic acids dissolve bone and shell. Included in such natural processes, mechanisms, and forces are: wind, precipitation, gravity, alternately freezing and thawing, microbial and chemical decay (of plant, animal, and mineral matter), penetration of growing plant roots, animal burrowing, and volume changes during crystalization of mineral salts. 411 are agencies of noncultural transformation which alter the cultural patterning of site deposits. In the majority of cases, noncultural transformations are destructive to cultural patterning within sites; however, in special instances, noncultural transformations inhibit destruction of cultural deposits. Examples of the latter instance are rapid, deep burial of a stratum or, as at MAR-007, establishment of permafrost enclosing the lower deposits. Whether the site is occupied or abandoned, natural processes continue. 3ut when the site is fully occupied, cultural transformations are dominant on the site as a whole. People build and attempt, at least for a time, to maintain their dwellings against destruction by noncultural transformation. However, noncultural transformations begin immediately after construction to alter cultural features by the integrated effects of varied natural forces and processes. Degradation of a new house though cultural transformation during occupancy probably is greater than degradation through noncultural transformations. Throughout the useful life of a house, cultural transformations for maintenance override combined effects of, the destructive transformations of both cultural and noncultural origin. People maintain the house so that they can live in it, but eventually transformations destroy the usefulness of the house. Upon abandonment, maintenance ends, and noncultural transformations become dominant. These are almost always destructive to the cultural patterning. House timbers rot, plant roots penetrate the sod and allow water to wash enlarged holes in the roof, the weight of accumulated snow snaps roof supports and the superstructure eventually collapses. Continuous degradation causes successive failures in structural components of houses. With each small structural failure, disintegration of the house accelerates until it either is reduced to a pit in the mound surface or is extensively rehabilitated. Voncultural (natural) transformations are varied and effects from them mostly reinforce degradation, but sometimes (as with permanent freezing of deposits) natural transformations oppose degeneration of the cultural materials (features and/or artifacts). I will not deal with the noncultural transformations exhaustively, but there are two noncultural transformations - evident in the site that are critical to interpretation of the stratigraphy and, consequently, to the cultural sequence of the site. One is intensive disturbance and intermixing caused by slump block faulting developed during cryogenic processes on the steep margins of the mound. The other is development of a paleosol (buried soil) above the three stratigraphically lowest floors exposed in Squares 4-6 (Figure 17).

I have interpreted the top of buried midden unit Y3 in Figure 17 as a paleosol. There is a matted grass layer (in place under the wall unit W2/1) that is rooted into the top of the M3 stratum. Yore importantly, there is a slight color shift from light to dark in the top 10 cm of unit Y3 that appears to be the result of incipient development of an A2 soil horizon (Soil

Survey Staff 1962:177). The top of El3 may represent a stable surface that existed over a substantial period of time. Phvsical Characteristics of Deposits

Because the mound is permanently f ro zen , preservation of materials within the mound is excellent. In addition to decay-resistant artifacts of stone and pottery that survive at most archaeological sites, articles of normally perishable materials such as wood, grass, sod, feathers, bone, and hide have survived for centuries at YP-R-007. These materials frequently are close to their original condition, even from the earliest occupation of the site. TJnlike most archaeological sites where all but the most durable organic articles such as bone have disappeared, many different types of organic materials are preserved within of the mound matrix. Only rarely (in sites having unusual conditions of preservation due to water-logged or consistently dry deposits) does organic preservation equal that at the Manokinak Site. Permafrost is directly responsible for the excellent preservation of the organic goods from which the site derives its major importance. Tests were made on eleven samples removed from the mound matrix to determine organic vs. mineral content. Dry weight of the samples was compared to the weight of the residue remaining after ignition in a furnace at 600'~. Weight loss on ignition varies from 6% to 61% with most values being about 40%. Though these values indicate a relatively high mineral' admixture, visual examination of the site matrix gives the distinct impression that organic constituents are dominant. The mineral component is not readily noticeable. The deposits are primarily peat. A secondary result of the high organic content of the mound is that visual and tactile data are supplemented with an abundance of olfactory data once the material thaws. ~houghno data were systematically recorded via the sense of smell, odor varies considerably within the trench and even uniquely characterizes some stratigraphic units. The odor of rancid seal oil (best described to the uninitiated as the concentrated essence of fish) is very common in occupation floor zones. blumerous artifacts were impregnated with seal oil. Some

individual items retained a strong odor for months after excavation.

Only in a few places were major stratigraphic separations obvious. Thin lenses, small patches of differing material or mottled color, and very gradual horizontal changes in composition gave the profile a very complicated, gradational appearance.

~houghon a very fine scale (dealing generally with less than 5

cm intervals) the color, texture, structure, and composition

varies considerably, there appears to be little variation when

the profile is considered as a whole. One area looks much like

another (Figure 12). The same elements (clumps of sedges and mosses, wood chips, grass lenses, silt layers, ash and charcoal

lenses) occur almost everywhere. After several aborted starts

during two days of intensively examining the wall, a synthesis of

the stratigraphy began to take shape, The logical stratigraphic

groupings are not naturally occurring depositional units or soils

horizons, but rather are the remains of archaeological features -- predominantly house remnants, Figure 12. The north wall of Trench 1 at site MAR-007.

4. The north wall profile (1976 photo) showing Squares 2, 2A, 3, and part of 4.

B. The north wall profile (197'6 photo) showing Squares 3, 4, and 5.

During synthesis of the stratigraphy, I concentrated on four general categories: 1) House Walls 2) House Floors 3) House Pit Fill and 4) Midden. The first three general classes of deposit are functional categories based on cultural transformations of raw materials into structural elements and later alteration during use of a dwelling. The fourth is a broad category which includes all debris outside and between houses. Following is a summary of the characteristics which were used to identify and differentiate the four classes of material.

House Walls

Remnants of house walls consist of stacked sod blocks.

Width of a wall generally is 50 to 80 cm; height varies depending on the extent of the destruction of the wall. Identification of individual sod blocks and aggregations of blocks that once were house walls is critical to interpreting the MAR-007 stratigraphy. Had I not recognized the blocks, the stratigraphic interpretation would have been significantly different. Sod blocks for houses were obtained by cutting living vegetation and underlying organic horizons (peat) from the tundra surface down into mineral soil or to the limit of seasonal thaw in permafrost areas (Figure 13 A). Figure 13 B shows a locality near the modern village of Sheldon Point where sod was recently cut. Block size varies, but roughly rectangular blocks measuring 30 x 50 x 15 cm are common. When blocks are cut, the natural stratigraphy peculiar to the quarry locality is contained within

the block. Obviously, the appearance of individual horizons Figure 13. Cutting of sod blocks.

A. Schematic drawing of a hypothetical sod block in place at the quarry and after deformation (cultural and noncultural transformation) within the mound.

LEGEND: 1. 0 soil horizons 2. A and R soil horizons 3. C horizon/parent material

S. Revegetated sod quarry adjacent to Kwemeluk River near the modern village of Sheldon Point (Shaw and Sheppard 1976). Quarry margin indicated by arrows. J

_----x-section within ---===- == a quarry area . . . . * ...... ".

3 buried surface

Block deformed during and after placement in midden.

Note layers remain parallel. v (layers) within individual blocks varies greatly since some are wholly mineral and others are primarily organic. Composition and stratigraphy of individual sod blocks can vary greatly because composition is determined by the conditions at the locality where the blocks were quarried. Sod blocks also were quarried from earlier archaeological deposits. In that case, internal composition and stratigraphy strongly reflect the cultural origin of the deposits. Because houses at YAR-007 were semi-subterranean, digging a pit was the first step of aboriginal house construction. The material removed in excavating the pit probably provided raw material for the wall or roof. Other areas on the site also may have been excavated solely to supply building material. Use of cultural deposits for sod blocks undoubtedly is a major contributing cause of the mixing within cultural deposits at YAR-007. Blocks cut from the surface of cultural deposits have greater internal stratigraphic variability and are more difficult to differentiate from the adjacent matrix of the mound than blocks cut from a non-cultural quarry area. In excavating an historic house at Chagvan Bay, Yoch (1968:44) found that lithic debris and pottery predating the house by several hundred years was incorporated into the house structure because sod blocks were cut from older archaeological deposits. Though not directly demonstrable, similar mixing undoubtedly occurred at

HAR-007. This assertion plays an important part in the conclusions I have reached about the vertical distribution of artifacts (particularly pottery) within the midden. Within and between horizons of each block, plant fibers intertwine to create a firmly interconnected mass. I am designating the fibrous, intertwining and interconnecting character of sod blocks as a structural class called "felted". Intra-horizon felting is produced mostly by stems and blades of plants that constitute each horizon. Inter-horizon felting is provided by micro-roots which extend across horizon boundaries. The term "felted" is used here even though there is a preponderance of vertically a1 igned fibers rather than an unoriented intertwining as in the man-made felts to which this structural class designation alludes. Existence of natural internal horizons and distinct inter-horizon felting by roots are the most critical characteristics, but the overall appearance of sod blocks is important to identification during excavation. The following is a summary description of sod blocks.

OVERALL DIPTENS IONS Thickness - 5 to 25 cm Lenath/Width - less than 40 x 60 cm

NATURAL INTERNAL (SOIL) HORIZONS Distinctiveness of Boundary - Intersections between horizons mostly very abrupt when peat abuts mineral soil. With adjacent horizons of peat there is slightly more of a transition zone, but boundary distinctiveness .invariably falls within the 1 to 25 mm thick range that is called abrupt in soils terminology. Topography of -130undary - Mostly smooth, but sometimes wavy. If wavy, the undalations mostly have width on the-order of 5-to 10 times greater than the depth. Thickness of Layers - orm mill^ about 2.5 cm -with the range being 1 to 5 cm; rarely greater. Occasionally, platy structure within horizons gives the appearance of very fine horizontal laminations. Orientation of Horizons - All boundaries between internal strata (natural horizons) within a block are generally parallel indicating blocks were usually cut from flat surfaces with uniform (not tussock) vegetation. Due to deformation (both cultural and noncultural transformation) after incorporation into the mound as house construction elements, internal horizons are frequently curved but layers within each block remain parallel when viewed in cross-section (Figures 12, 13) . Though most blocks appear to have been laid in place with the living vegetation up, a few blocks were placed upside-down. With both cultural and noncultural transformations, inclination of individual blocks varies form horizontal to vertical to upside down depending on the degree of disturbance during and since collapse of the house.

COLOR Peat Horizons - Predominantly very dark brown (7.5YR3/2) , but with both chroma and value commonly varying by + two color chips; value/chroma sometimes being as great as 6/5 when dry. Hue is frequently somewhat more red or yellow within the 5YR to l0YR range. Color is less mottled within sod block horizons than in floor zones or pit fill so that internal stratification is more readily apparent because of the existence of parallel layers of relatively uniform color. Mineral Soil/Sediment - Predominantly grayish brown with value/chroma varying by + one when encountered as relatively pure silt. with-admixture of peat, the color of the organic materials predominate. TEXTURE Peat Horizons - In most cases where sod blocks are identifiable the predominant material within blocks is peat. Plant remains are well enough preserved that the plant taxon is identifiable. Of course, many sod blocks have been mechanically pulverized by human trampling and have been incorporated into the more amorphous materials categories called floor zones, pit fill, and midden in this report. With the mechanical destruction of individually identifiable sod blocks, blocks are transformed to muck (Soil Survey Staff 1951:153). Though the origin and function of the material was the same for well preserved and mechanically pulverized blocks, highly transformed blocks are unidentifiable. There is frequently a mineral component in natural peat deposits, but the relatively high mineral admixture in ?IAR-007 deposits (6% to 61% in samples of assorted origin) is likely caused primarily by cultural activity on site. In samples with the highest mineral content and greatest disintergration of organic material, the material approximates the character of loam to silt loam. Mineral Soil/Sediment - Silt is the dominant textural class and grain size of the mineral component of blocks. Silt most frequently occurs at the bottom of sod blocks where parent material on which the block grew was cut into during quarrying. Sand size mineral constituents occur rarely. STRUCTURE Felted - Structure within and between horizons of individual blocks is dominated by the fibrous nature of the plant remains. In addition to the roots (predominantly less than 2 mm diameter) that connect several horizons, the preserved fiber from plant leaves and stems provide interconnection within horizons. Since plant remains from several generations are present, the interconnecting fibers overide normal soil structure characteristics and give the blocks an interlocking fibrous structure much like felt. Roots interlock the several horizons of each block. CONSISTENCE In evaluating consistence, felting was ignored as much as possible. 9 - Small samples are generally soft to slightly hard and are easily broken and crushed to single fiber constituents between the thumb and forefinger. Moist - Compresses with moderate pressure between thumb and forefinger, but resistance is distinctly noticeable. The greater the felting the greater the pressure required. -Wet - Nonsticky; pratically no material adheres to either finger when a wet sample is pressed between the thumb and forefinger.

House Floors

As is the case with sod blocks, identification of house floors is critical to stratigraphic interpretation. However, calling these features floors, may be somewhat misleading.

Kashims (community and men's ceremonial houses) sometimes had hewn plank floors, but floors of normal sod residences in the Delta region were not paved with rigid materials such as wood or stone. 30th materials are in short supply over much of the region. House floors consisted of a zone of accumulation and mixing which differs from that expected with floors that are permanently maintained on a paved surface. In describing houses observed on the ~ukon-~uskokwimDelta in 1879, Nelson (1899: 249) stated "On the earthen floors were layers of soft, decaying garbage of every description....'I This floor character was developed by two aspects of cultural transformation:

1) deposition of debris directly on the floor and 2) shallow thawing of underlying deposits caused by occupants warming the house interior with lamps, fires, and body heat.

Figures 14 and 15 illustrate the visual plan view character of floors. Figures 14 and 15 are samples from the several drawings and photographs required to depict the uppermost floor of House Locus 1 (Figure 17 - ~1/3). That floor was the most distinct, best preserved, and contained the densest concentration of artifacts encountered in excavating the trench.

Seven plan-view drawings closely resembling ~igure14 were required to depict the concentrated debris that constituted the floor zone which is about 20 cm thick. Following is a summary of the physical characteristics of house floors.

OVERALL DIMENS IONS Thickness - 15 -+ 10 cm ~ength/~idth- Complete floors not observed in trench, but the widest dimensions of floors observed is in lowest component. Three floors there are all more than 3 m wide.

INTERNAL STRATIGRAPHIC LAYERS General Comments - Interf ingering patchy layers of matted grass and grass mats with intervening layers of Figure 14. One of the plan-view drawings required to depict the debris within Floor 1/3 (Component 1).

SQUARE 5 SQUARE 6

Kayak paddle * 68 Feather Flint flaking tool* 69 Abrader Wooden dowel 70 Abrader Bucket bottom * 71 Fur scrap Wooden dowel 74 Whittled wood Wooden dowel 75 Wooden dowel Wooden dowel 76 Wooden dowel Feather 77 Wooden dowel Split wood 78 Wooden dowel Bone fragment 79 Grass cord Bone fragment 80 Drill bearing plate Abrader 81 Slate harpoon blade * Story knife * 82 Whittled peg Pottery rim sherd 83 Grass cord Wood fragment 84 Grass cord Leather scrap 85 Grass mat fragment Blunt dart foreshaft * 86 Grass mat fragment Leather scrap 87 Three dowel fragments Split wood &88 Wooden stake Fur sample 89 Abrader fragment Bird bone 90 Wooden stake Wooden dowel 91 Pottery sherd Caribou hoof 92 Leather scrap Grass cord 93 Grass cordage Feather 94 Wooden dowel Fur sample 95 Wooden dowel Fur sample 96 Ground slate knife * Wood chips 97 Wooden dowel Split wood 98 Fur sample/grass Ocher painted disk * 99 Grass cord Grass mat * 100 Grass cord Slate harpoon blade * 101 Ocher Cut wood peg 102 Pumice abrader Fur sample 103 Feather Leather scrap 104 Wood chip Wound plug * 106 Wooden dowel Whittled wood 107 Bone fragment Bone fragment 108 Wood fragment Bone fraqment Feather Wood chips

*Indicates that the item is illustrated in a figure in Chapter 5.

Figure 15. A 1976 photo of Floor 1/3 during excacation to show the general appearance.

REMARKS :

This floor was the most distinct and artifact laden floor cut by the trench. It is pproximately contemporaneous with the drawing shown as Figure 14, though part of the materials illustrated in the drawing do not show in the photograph. mottled muck and wood debris constitute the most obvious layering within floor deposits. Otherwide there is little internal stratigraphy. The muck between grass layers is highly mixed mechanically and presents a mottled appearance with irregular intersections between mottles. Top and bottom surfaces of floor zones usually grade into stratigraphic horizons both above and below over 2.5 to 7.5 cm (clear boundary in soils terminology). Distinctiveness - Interface between grass layers and muck is very abrupt (< 1 mm), but otherwise boundaries are irregular and, more importantly, discontinuous as a result of mixing. Horizontal grass surfaces often have limited horizontal extent (< 1 x 1 m) . Since layering overlaps, following a given horizontal surface is difficult since its physical characteristics vary laterally and grade into adjacent stratigraphic units. Abrupt boundaries usually occur only where floor zones meet sod blocks at the wall Topography of Boundary - Wavy to frequently irregular. Pockets in the surfaces are often greater in depth than width at the intersection of mottles. Thickness of Mottles and Layers - Highly variable from 8.5 to 5 cm with horizontal extent being discontinuous. Orientation of Layers - ~oughlihorizontal with slight tendencv to tilt downward to west to conform with slope of natiral (underlying) topography. Slope of surface of mottles and discontinuous layers within floor zones are variable over short distances so that material has a jumbled appearance overall. 4t walls, floors tilt upward to lap onto sod blocks of the wall.

COLOR Grass - Very dark brown (10YR2/2) when oil content is high to very pale brown (10YR7/4) when clean and dry. It is common to have full range of colors in a given sample, with one end of the range dominating. Muck - Highly variable through the full range of colors of all materials within the midden when viewing individual elements making up the muck in detail, but the predominant color is generally dark brown (near 10YR3/2) with larger scale mottles varying within -+ 2 color chips.

TEXTURE Grass - Calamogristis canadensis is the dominant, almost exclusive, plant in the grass material - either woven or unwoven. Though this material is totally organic in origin, its single species composition and lack of felted structure give it a character and appearance very different from other peat of the mound. Yuck - The soils textural class that best describes this material is loam. There was a higher content of clay size fraction. It has a relatively high dispersed mineral component (patches of pure silt are present, but rare), but is predominantly of organic origin. The source of the organic components is very diverse. In the case of sod blocks, processes within a natural system interacted to create horizons within individual blocks - mostly without human intervention. Human activity, however, was dominant in forming muck. ?dot only did mechanical mixing occur via their feet, but people brought the diverse constituents incorporated into the muck to the mound - usually in a highly transformed form. The muck is fibrous, but fibers have generally been broken down during mixing into short fiber lengths. Debris derived from animals is much more abundant than other types of deposits which generally gives the material a greasy character. The smell of seal oil is common in floor zones, but it is frequently sour smelling also -- probably because it was thawed much of the time during occupation and has been consequently decomposing.

STRUCTURE With fibers of the original constituents having been heavily broken down, there is not a felted structure; there is too great a ~roport~onof structureless humus. The deposits generally are structureless organic debris. Individual constituents are sometimes identifiable -- hair, feathers, scales, etc., but the bulk of the mass is unidentifiable.

CONSISTENCE ~ry- Samples from the muck usually dry hard. Samples crush to constituent components with moderate pressure between the thumb and forefinger, but crushing was sometimes more difficult . This probably reflects greater content of fine particles in the clay size range. Moist - A sample formed into a ball crushes with moderate pressure between thumb and forefinger, but the fiber component usually keeps the material in several large fragments. wet consistence - The material is sticky and usually adheres to both thumb and forefinser after beina pressed between them. This is likely the result of the higher content of clay size materials.

During occupation of a house, the floor surface inevitably thawed downward. Once thawed, the floor became a zone of mixing and homogenization as house occupants pushed into and trampled the midden deposits within several centimeters of the floor surface. Trampling was not done by design, but was simply a result of living in the house. From observations made while camping on living tundra vegetation, spending a few nights in a sod house at the abandoned village of Kushunuk, and walking on thawed midden during excavation, mixing up to 30 cm deep by house residents seems possible. Judging from stratigraphic observations of the prehistoric floors in the UAR-807 midden, active mixing to depths of 20 cm or less appears to have occurred regularly (note thickness of floors revealed by artifact cross-section plots in Figure 74) .

House Loci

The process of mound building at MAR-007 was not simply the successive reuse of a single house pit. Sight surface pits exist there today (see Figure 6) and, judging from the mound diameter, approximately that number of houses probably existed simultaneously through most of the time the site was occupied.

Though the MAR-007 trench extends less than one-third of the distance across the mound, three house loci are exposed vertically in the profile. Figure 16 shows the stratigraphic units assigned to each of the three house loci -- the unpatterned areas are midden. The deposits assigned to each locus consist of house walls, floors, and pit fill materials of successive

occupations. These were built at approximately the same position

on the midden so that the house remains are roughly superimposed

one above the other. The wall areas show several stages of rebuilding and refurbishing, recognizable by subtle differences

in composition or slope of groups of wall blocks.

The approximate horizontal positions where successive houses were built and buried by accumulating midden are designated as "house loci". The precise horizontal position varies slightly as new houses were built at progressively higher elevations as the mound height increased through time. Both the horizontal position and the precise direction of wall alignment varied with each new structure built (construction episode) over

the house locus.

Loci cut by the trench are designated one through three

(Figure 16). Use of Locus 1 began first and ended before Locus 2

came into use. Locus 3 extends from about the middle of the midden to the top. The first use of Locus 3 may have occurred

before use of Locus 2, but use of Locus 3 continued long after

abandonment of Locus 2.

Figure 17 is provided to depict more of the detailed

stratigraphy and for reference to elements of the successive

houses. On Figure 17, each of the units is classified by

or igin/function using the following designators : House Wall blocks.. . .W House Floor...... F

House Pit Fill...... PF Midden...... M Stratagraphic units are designated within loci by Arabic

numerals. The first Arabic numeral gives the locus number, and Figure 17. Detailed stratigraphic diagram of the north wall of Trench 1 at VAR-007 showing individual elements of the successive constructional episodes. the numeral (or numerals) following the slash identifies the particular stratum of that type designated from oldest to youngest within the locus. For instance, ~Fl/3designates the third layer of pit fill from the bottom in House Locus 1.

Clearly identifiable sod blocks that were found in pit fill are designated with an R. The presence of isolated sod blocks is indicative of house fill.

There are three very distinct, exceptionally well-preserved floor zones in Locus 1 (Figure 17). Each represents one episode of house construction. Each is relatively

thick and artifacts were abundant in all. Locus 1 contains much cultural debris and a variety of exceptionally well preserved

artifacts.

Locus 1 is bounded on the west end by a saall remnant of

sod block wall (W1/2), but most wall material seems to have been

reincorporated into the adjacent midden through slump block

activity. The M6 stratum adjacent to the large crack on the west

probably consists primarily of highly transformed sod block

remnants that once bounded Locus 1. That stratum has felted

structure, and intensively folded layers resembling deformed

internal sod block horizons. There is no house wall material

labeled W1/1 because material of F1/1 extends under the W1/2

blocks. The W1/1 blocks lay slightly farther west and were

destroyed by preparation of the locus for the occupation that

produced F1/2. On the east, the W1/3 blocks are a remnant of the wall associated with F1/3. Sod walls (or the margin of a pit excavated into basalt rubble) that bound F1/1 and 1/2 to the east remain unexcavated because of the presence of permafrost. The total length of F1/3 in comparison with the two lower floors indicates the lower floors do not extend far into the unexcavated zone (probably less than 50 cm). Artifacts occurred throughout the pit fill of Locus 1 and distinct sod blocks from roof fall are obvious in the profile.

The artifacts from Locus 1 constitute the collection assigned to the vorton tradition in Chapter 7.

Locus 2

Locus 2 consists of a single phase of house construction.

The remains consisted of sod blocks forming a single wall (W2/1)

(see Figure 17). About 75 cm east of the wall, a floor (F2/1) was directly overlain by a house wall (~3/2)assigned to Locus 3 (see

Figure 16). P?ost of the floor was destroyed during construction

in Locus 3. Though only a short segment of floor exists, artifacts were relatively abundant.

The material designated PF2/1 is not typical House Pit

Fill. It was markedly less compacted and lacks the internally

laminated characteristics of sod block material. It also contained fewer bones, hair, hide, scales and other animal

remains than most House Pit Fill. It was composed of clumps and hunks of relatively clean peat with few artifacts. I believe

that this material represents debris that was deposited rapidly between units W2/1 and W3/2 during construction of the latter. Locus 3 was used repeatedly so that remains of

superimposed houses were evident throughout most of the height of

upper part of the mound. The occupation, abandonment and reuse of the locus is consequently complex, and my interpretations are speculative.

AS shown by :cf2 lapping onto W1/3, use of Locus 3 did not begin until the abandonment of Locus 1 (see Figures 16 and 17).

Existence of the paleosol (top of X3) and the juxtaposition of

W3/1 to the lower deposits suggests that first use of Locus 3

significantly post dated abandonment of Locus 1.

The relationship of Locus 3 to Locus 2 is unceratin.

Though it is my interpretation that Locus 3 came into use

slightly before Locus 2, first use of the two loci could not have differed by many years. The difference in age may be no more

than the length of time the single house of Locus 2 was in use --

perhaps less than 40 years. In fact, the Locus 2 house may have

been used as little as one year. Locus 2 may simply be an

unusually westward placement of a house belonging to Locus 3.

Subsuming Locus 2 within Locus 3 would simplify explanations of

the stratigraphy, but the obvious westward position of Locus 2

requires separate locus designation.

Floors 3/1, 3/2, and 3/3 consisted of a comparatively

thick zone with many interfingering lenses of matted grass. In a

few instances, it is apparent that some of the grass layers were

highly decomposed mats. Only at the upper, western margin of the

zone in the area specifically labeled F3/3 was the artifact density great enough to say that F3/3 is distinct. The three floor zones that were assigned to this thick layer are based on the presence of three wall construction phases. Though there were no distinct house floors in the F3/1-3 deposit, density of artifacts shown in the cross-section plot (see Figure 74) is higher than in deposits above and below. The linear arrangement of cultural debris evident on the cross-section plot re-enforces my interpretation of the material as deposits of three house floors.

The overlying pit fill (PF3/3) contained numerous well defined sod blocks. Had there not been loose material between blocks, I would have considered assigning the blocks to wall units. Note on Figure 74, that the artifact density is relatively low in PF3/3.

There are several use and reuse possibilities that might produce the strata bounded by the house wall materials labeled

W3/4 through 3/7. I prefer the following interpretation. Units

W3/4 and P3/4 were part of the same construction phase, but only a small fragment of P3/4 remains. Yost of Y3/4 was destroyed during later phases of construction in the pit. \Tote that the east margin of W3/5 through W3/7 blocks constituted a near vertical face, and W3/5 seems to have been notched by excavation.

I hypothesize that when W3/7 blocks were set in place, the pit was re-excavated prior to construction and floor materials associated with W3/5 and W3/6 were completely destroyed.

~lternatively,the w3/5 through 3/7 blocks may be of the same construction phase and may simply represent courses of sod blocks quarried at different localities. In either case, the result is the same; F3/5 through F3/7 were deposited within a single house with no appreciable pit fill accumulated between the occupations that produced the floor zones. The two isolated sod block fragments overlying F3/5 and F3/6 at the west end suggest that there was some degradation of the roof or wall during occupation, but the character of the deposits between F3/5 and F3/6 was quite different than that of the F3/4 deposits. The F3/4 material contained a maze of sod blocks from roof fall.

The last house constructed over Locus 3 was not visible as a surface pit. However, the sharply projecting slump block above Square 3 on the profile may be a remnant of the house wall.

The pit within which F3/8 and ~F3/5existed was clearly excavated into wall material of an earlier house. Although there were few artifacts on the floor, a large complete mat (artifact 2/78) extended from Square 2 into the wall thereby making the floor obvious. I excavated only as much of Square 2A as was necessary to recover the complete mat (see Figure 12 4).

There were at least four houses constructed over Locus 3 and there may have been as many as nine. Obviously, the explanations I have provided above are speculative. "rther excavation is the only way to produce a more accurate account.

Formation of Components

Figure 18 is a summary diagram of the Trench 1 strata showing the stratigraphic units assigned to Components 1 through

3. Deposits within components are intended to group artifacts Figure 18. Stratigraphic diagram of the north wall of Trench 1 showing the units assigned to Components 1 through 3.

and features of related cultural manifestations. Though components cross-cut the House Locus designations, individual components do group material within loci as much as possible.

Component 1 is designated as late !lorton. Component 2 is a late prehistoric occupation contemporaneous with Nukleet culture.

Component 3 is a prehistoric to protohistoric.

The boundary of Component 1 is based primarily on the near exclusive occurrence of check stamp pottery, and the presence of the paleosol. Differences in the artifact inventory above and below the paleosol suggest an occupation hiatus

(probably less than 400 years) that is marked by incipient soil development . The upper boundary of Component 2 is based on the stratigraphic evidence of an excavation in Locus 3 through older deposits during a late construction episode (associated with floors 3/5 through 3/7). A glass spall recovered low in this aboriginally excavated area is assigned to Component 3. The glass spall nay be intrusive, but it calls the accuracy of the radiocarbon dates near it into question (see Figure 19 A-C).

Because no other Euro-American manufactures were recovered from the trench, the abundant collection of commercial goods from

~xcavationAreas A and B, should be condisered yet another site component. That component was deposited within this century and most likely represents a seasonal occupation by hunters and trappers participating in the .-er ican cash economy. Radiocarbon Dates

Figure 19 gives the radiocarbon dates and the stratigraphic positions of the samples which were dated. The dates of Components 2 and 3 form one age class while dates at or below the paleosol (Component 1) form a second group.

Sample F yielded a 1005+125- B.P. age which suggests abandonment of the site between the paleosol and overlying stratum which dates to the 450 to 800 year range. Samples G and

H reinforce the increasing ages of the dates in line with the stratigraphy. Based on the presence of the check stamp sherds as the dominant type in Component 1, the dates and artifact seriation are in basic agreement. An age estimate of 900 to

1,200 years for the upper floor of component 1 is reasonable.

The stratigraphically lowest date (455+75- years B.P.) is not reasonable. It is at variance with the eight overlying dates and with age estimates based on the pottery typology. I conclude that the date should be disregarded.

Stratigraphic Summary and Cultural Components Diagrams

Stratigraphy of the trench reveals that site inhabitants repeatedly rebuilt houses over approximately the same positions on the mound. Those positions are defined as "house loci".

Three house loci were intersected by the trench. The oldest had three distinct construction episodes, the second construction phase had one, and the youngest at least four.

Episodes of construction are marked by approximately contemporaneous deposits consisting of a sod block wall, house floor, house pit fill, and midden deposited outside the house. Detailed stratigraphic separations within the mound are based on these four categories. During successive occupations of the house loci, midden accumulated and remnants of earlier houses (construction episodes) were gradually buried.

A paleosol overlies the oldest house locus and constitutes the most distinct, horizontally extensive horizon in the profile. Elsewhere, the deposits are peat with subtle boundaries between stratigraphic units. Identification of sod blocks (singly and in aggregates as walls) and the paleosol were critical to synthesis of the stratigraphy. Figure 18 is a summary diagram of the trench stratigraphy which is overlain with the cultural component assignments I have made for the deposits. Age and cultural significance of the components are discussed in Chapter 6. CHAPTER 5

ARTIFFCT DESCRIPTION

There are 1,562 catalog entries for ~rench1. As noted previously these entries do not indicate the actual number of artifacts recovered because some catalog entries designate groups of like items. Yore than 70-f the catalog entries are artifacts only in the sense that the items are present in the midden. These items basically are unmodified, or are the debris of manufacturing and building processes. The largest category of classification (36%) is faunal remains which consists mostly of bones, hide, fur, feather, scales, antler, and teeth. The second largest category (23%) is cut wood debris such as chips, dowels, split slats and chunks, along with various other house and artifact manufacturing debris. Combining those two categories with the smaller categories of floral samples (bark, grass, seed, and shrub), radiocarbon samples, and miscellaneous stone materials such as gastroliths and unmodified pebbles, the remaining objects constitute 30% of the collections. mhese are the repeatedly used items that we usually classify as artifacts.

Most of the artifacts are pottery sherds (15%) and various woven grass articles (9%). The remaining 6% of the collection includes other well-preserved organic specimens.

Since organic artifacts are poorly represented in the archaeological inventory of southwestern Alaska for the time period covered by the lowest component of the Manokinak Site, the recovery of such artifacts is one of the major contributions of this research project.

Distribution of the artifacts and comparison of the collection with the reported archaeological complexes of western

Alaska is dealt with in Chapter 6. Chapter 5 is an unadorned description of the artifacts. The materials are described and grouped on the basis of morphology under headings based on the material from which the articles are made. Artifacts from all levels within the site are intermixed in the descriptive section.

The stratum and/or cultural component to which individual items have been assigned is given in the descriptions and on facing pages for figures. Refer to figures 17 and 18 for the designation of strata and components.

With composite tools, I could not adhere rigidly to the division of artifacts by material. Some articles consist of several types of material. For example, some knives have parts made of wood, bone, and stone. Since readers are accustomed to finding knives classed as stone in archaeological reports, I classed knives under stone regardless of the nature of the specimens. There are other similar idiosyncrasies in the arrangement.

4rtifacts of Wood

Wooden artifacts include very artfully carved figurines and utilitarian objects, but most of the catalog entries are samples of wooden manufacturing debris. Two samples of such debris (3/45 and 6/104) are illustrated in ~igure20. Other samples include wood chips from chopping and whittling activities. The catalog entries frequently indicate that a sample lot was taken as representative of a large group of waste materials, most of which were discarded during excavation. In addition to manufacturing debris, there are scraps of large structural members from house frames and miscellaneous worked wood scraps illustrated by the items included in Figure 21. The items collected include dowel fraqments of varying cross-section and size, curiously shaped whittled specimens, birch bark rolls, split wood fraqments, and broken pieces of larger wooden tools. Collecting the various types of wood debris aided site analysis primarily by increasing the density of the artifact sample in floor zones. As a consequence of collecting wood debris, floors show as distinct horizontal bands in cross-section plots of artifacts against the stratigraphy (see Figure 73).

I have described individually the wooden objects that are identifiable by function. Additionally, I described items that are finished tools of unknown function which I believe someone might be able to identify if provided with a description. The artifacts are grouped loosely under three headings: (1) Wooden

Fishing and Hunting Tools, (2) Wooden Tools for On-site Use, and

(3) Miscellaneous Wooden Items of Unknown Function.

Wooden Fishing and Hunting Tools

Fish Traps

Conical fish traps constructed of split wood slats lashed together by split roots were in widespread and common use on the

Delta during the historic period. Nelson (1899: 183) discusses the pattern of use and structure of the traps. Artifacts 2/71 and 5/13 (Figure 40) are parts of such conical traps. These specimens are the best preserved trap fragments in the collection, but concentrations and scattered fragments of slats are common in the midden. Wen on slats that are widely dispersed there are bands caused by differential staining which indicate that the fragments once were actually incorporated in traps (Yigure 28). The slats are longitudinally split and made of a straight grained wood; probably spruce. Their approximate width and thickness is I .0 X 0.2 cm. Length varies up to one meter.

The hoop or rim part of (5/13 -- Figure 40) a basket trap consists of four split slats that are lashed together.

~vidently,the split hoop construction facilitated bending by allowing differential slippage internally in the hoop.

~ndividualperpendicular slats were lashed to the hoop element by split root wrapping.

Fish Killing Club

Artifact 3/43 (Figure 22 A) is a club for killing fish.

Similar implements are used to kill fish on the Kuskokwim River

today. This particular club is 53.3 cm long with the maximum 1- 1- 53.3 crn -1 diameter of 4.72 cm near the distal end. "idway along the tool and 1 cm from the proximal end, the diameters are 3.96 and 3.40 cm respectively. The entire surface of the implement has been scraped longitudinally to produce a faceted effect. The last 10 cm of the shaft has been reduced in diameter by about 0.5 cm and constricted at the point of juncture with the club shaft to provide a hand hold. A narrow grove encircles the tool 1 cm above the hand hold. Without obliterating the scraped surfaces and the whittled facets within the hand hold, the entire tool has been polished (possibly by use) to a dull sheen. The distal end is a rough, faceted cone produced by chopping. hJo attempt to smooth the chopped end is evident. As with many other wood items and scraps at the site, the two natural knots in the wood have been drilled out near the distal end.

A second club (4/207 -- Component 1) represented by a handle fragment 25 cm long was also recovered. The constriction of the handle to provide a better grip closely resembles the handle treatment of artifact 2/43.

Fishing Rod

Figure 23 A illustrates one end of a fishing rod which probably was used with a hand line during ice fishing. Nelson

(1899:Plate LXVIII) and Murdoch (1892: 281) illustrate similar devices. The tool served not only as a rod during fishing, but as a reel upon which to wind the line for storage. There was a notch in each end of the rod. The line was wrapped

longitudinally along the rod and held in place by passing through the notchs with each revolution. This particular specimen is oval in cross-section (0.6 by 1.5 cm) and probably was at least

60 cm long before being broken.

Fishhook

The composite, wooden fishhook shank (2/76) recovered

from the Trench 1 excavation (Figure 22 E), is of the general

type illustrated by b?elson (1899) in Plate LXIX. mhe barb is missing, but the slot (0.65 cm wide) cut diagonally into the distal end of the shank clearly indicates the position and

inclination (about 30') of the barb to the shank. There are six

barb-like wooden pegs from the trench. Some probably are

fishhook barbs. The form is simple and there is considerable

variety among the specimens. The barb was lashed into position

with split root just as the leader was attached. The leader

attachment is still in place on artifact 2/76 (Figure 22 9).

The leader was attached by laying it along the upper part

of the tapered shank, and wrapping it with a split root -- spruce root according to blelson (1899: 188) . The split root wrapping was

first laid parallel to the leader along the shank and then the

wrapping of the three elements was started at the upper end of

the shank. As shown in Figure 22 9, the encircling strand was

wrapped at a close interval near the top, spaced gradually to a

loose spiral in the mid-section of the wrap, and spaced closer

together again in the lower part of the wrapping. To end the

wrapping, the split root was simply passed under the last wrap of the root and pulled tight. The last loop holds the end in pl-ace after the excess is cut off. The leader is missing except for tiny segments where the split root crosses the leader.

The shank is tapered from a distal diameter of g.65 cm to a point at the proximal end. On the side where the leader is located under the root wrapping, the shank is flattened by cutting away one-half of its thickness. Doing so results in the diameter of the combined parts being minimized. The leader is inissing except for tiny segments where the split root crosses the leader. Though it is impossible to identify the leader material conclusively, Ylelson mentions the use of rawhide for leaders.

The remaining small segments appear to be leather.

Harpoon Sheath

Several harpoon sheaths (Nelson 1899:147) were recovered in excavating Area A, but only one (2/99 -- Component 3) was recovered from Trench 1. The artifact is illustrated in Figure

22 C and C1. The function of the specimen is to slide over, and protect by encasing, a ground slate lance and/or harpoon blade mounted on a foreshaft. It served the same function as a modern knife scabard. It protected the sharp, fragile cutting edge and kept the edge from cutting materials it inadvertantly pressed against. Figure 50 shows the type of blades covered by that type of sheath. The sheath was employed over blades mounted on lance foreshafts or toggling harpoon heads (Yelson 1899:Plate LVII) . The sheath consists of three elements. There are two mirror-image wooden sides, and a lashing to hold them together. The interior face of each side is excavated to form a hollow to

accommodate the blade and the tapering tip of the foreshaft or

toggling harpoon head in which the blade was inserted. The two

halves are bound together by split root lashing. Pigure 22 C

shows one side of the sheath. The other side is present, but is

mostly hidden in the illustration (note the schematic

cross-section -- "igure 22 C1).

Sow Fragments

Hunting bows are represented by three fragments; two of

which are from toy bows. The third (5/23 - Component 3) is a medial fragment of a' bow arm (not illustrated). This fragment is

1.0 an thick along its entire 32 cm length. Width tapers

slightly from 3.34 to 3.15 cm. In cross-section the shape is

rectanglar with smoothly rounded corners. On the concave face of

the fragment there are three equally spaced, parallel grooves

that run the length of the surface. The width and depth of the

grooves is 0.25 by 0.04 cm. This fragment is probably part of a

sinew backed hunting bow.

30th toy bow fragments (2/54, 4100) are identified by the

presence of an end knob or nock for the attachment of a bow

string (Figure 23 R, C) . Length, width, and thickness of artifacts 2/54 (Figure 23 C -- Component 3) and 4/100 (rigure 23

9 -- Component 2) are 18.9 X 1.11 X 0.70 cm and 4.83 X 1.03 X

0.26 cm respectively. The nock end of specimen 2/54 is painted

with red ocher for 1.9 cm. Slightly more than half the bow remains. The rest was evidently burned since one end is charred.

Arrow Fragments

Shaft fragments of 67.5 to 1.0 cm diameter with round to oval cross-section are common in the collection. ?!any are probably arrow fragments. Shaft fragments 1 to 2 m in diameter may be portions of dart points used with a throwing board

(atlatl). Fut shafts were used for a variety of functions by

~skimos,and function usually is difficult to determine from an

individual fragment.

4rrows are positively represented by two nock ends of

shafts (artifacts 2/77, 2/98) illustrated in Figure 48 I and J.

~llare flattened near the nock so that the cross-section is a

flattened oval. Width and thickness just below the nock on each

is 0.81 X 0.22 cm and 1.14 X 0.45 cm. Poth specimens have traces of red ocher.

I identified one wooden arrow blunt (2/311 - Figure 40 H) . Its end was formed by carving a conical end on the shaft,

then gouging away opposite faces of the cone to form a V-shaped depression on opposite faces. The thinnest part within the gouged area (0.16 cm) is at the center line of the arrow shaft.

Width of the blunt perpendicular to the shaft is 1.73 cm.

Diameter of the shaft where it is broken off is 0.89 cm. The gouged out area on both sides has been stained with red ocher. Dart Fragments

our dart parts of darts for use with throwing boards have distinctive enough features to allow positive identification. One (5/150) is a blunt foreshaft with the shape illustrated in Figure 23 D. The specimen is 17.9 cm long and is

1.75 cm in diameter at the center point where the shaft has a cross-section shape that is basically square, but with rounded corners. There are no traces of ocher. This item constitutes a foreshaft for an atlatl dart. The proximal end is cut diagonally at about 30' and has a shallow lashing groove 2.7 cm from the proximal end. A corresponding diagonal cut on the main shaft of the dart allowed the blunt-end foreshaft to be lashed on without significantly increasing diameter of the tool at that point.

Yurdoch (1892:212) illustrates this hafting form in discussing bird darts.

Artifact 6/186 (Component 1 -- not illustrated) is a 1.10 cm diameter dart shaft fraqment that has the distal end broken off and also a short part of the proximal end. The function of the fragment would have remained unknown without the presence of the diagonal Sevel cut at the proximal end. Red ocher was applied over a lashing that bound the foreshaft to the main dart shaft. A light shadow of the lashing position exists. With the relatively large circular diameter, the bevel cut end, and the lashing impression, I am confident of my functional assignment.

Artifact 2/107 (Figure 40 G) also is part of an atlatl dart, but the form is considerably different. The specimen is broken proximally and at least somewhat eroded distally. At the proximal end a V-shaped groove is cut two-thirds of the way through the end. Length, width, and depth of the groove are 1.75 x 0.58 X 0.74 cm respectively. Total length of the tapering shaft is 14.3 cm. Diameter varies from 1.05 to 1.45 cm through a roughly circular cross-section. Giddinqs (1964:Plate 10) illustrates several similar speciinens. A point probably was placed directly into this crude end socket.

Snowshoe Frame

One snowshoe part (6/124 -- Component 1) was recovered from House Locus 1. Figure 24 illustrates the portion critical to identification. The fragment is a part from the trailing edge or rear end of the frame. The total length is 58 cm, but it is broken off on the end opposite the part shown in Figure 24.

Dimensions of the part illustrated are given on the drawing. On the interior surface of the part, three rectangular holes have been cut in the specimen. The holes measure approximately 1.4 X

0.5 cm. The hole to the right of the drawing in Figure 24 goes only two thirds of the way through the specimen. The other two holes go completely through. The holes are respectively 28, 37, and 55 cm away from the end illustrated. The axis of the holes is parallel to the slits through which the lashing was inserted.

The peculiar shape of the end helped to identify this as part of a snowshoe frame. Illustrations in both Nelson

(1899: 213) and Murdoch (1892: 347) were comparable. The flat, diagonal surface on the end of the specimen is the key to identification, If the flat area is pressed against the edge of a table, the shaft of the specimen diverges at 15' and curves away from the table edge (Figure 24 B). The snowshoe illustrated by Nelson in Figure 64 resembles the :.!AR-007 specimen with regard to the pattern of webbing. There was no webbing between the rear cross-piece position (the hole that does not go all the way through the specimen) and the back end of the showshoe from

MAR-007.

Kayak Paddles

Four broken paddle fragments were recovered from Trench

1. Figures 25 shows blade shapes reconstructed from the fragments. The artifact fragments are shaded in the drawings.

Melson (1899: 224) noted that single bladed kayak paddles are "...flat on the surfsce which is to be used against the water, and are strengthened along the backs by a ridge down the middle." The surface which was pulled against the water is flattened to slightly concave in all Trench 1 fragments as is shown by the cross-section sketches included as A through G on

Figure 25. The strengthening ridge on the opposite paddle face is not as distinct as in the specimens illustrated by !;elson

(1899: Plate LXXX). Strengthening was accomplished in the

MAR-007 specimens by a more smooth convex surface. Specimens illustrated in Nelson also show variety in the shape of blade ends. The two YAR-007 specimens have pointed tips.

Secondary use of artifacts 5/116 and 4/73 as cutting boards is clearly evident. The flat side of both show narrow, criss-crossing cuts of less than 1 mrn depth. ~rtifact5/116 is charred on the flat side and the opposite edges of the paddle fragment have been burned away (see dashed lines in

Reconstruction 2) to the left of cross-section B. Ueither distal end fragment shows secondary use.

Three paddle fragments were found relatively close together in Component 1 (floors 7 3/2 and 3/3) . The fourth (artifact 4/73) is from a significantly higher (Component 2 -- above the paleosol) stratum. The two tip fragments are from floor F1/2. vote that the elements that make up each reconstruction are from stratigraphicaily separate units. 1n the case of Reconstruction 1, the stratigraphic separation between the two items is quite marked, so there may be considerable difference in age between these artifacts.

The particular part of paddles found makes it clear that a minumum of three paddles are represented by the fragments.

Stratigraphic separation makes it likely that four paddles are represented; measurements of the paddle fragments are given in

Table 3. Length of handles is unknown because no identifiable handles were found.

TAZLE 3. Measurements (in cm) of kayak paddle blades from fragments found in Trench 1.

A B C D E F G Width 3.24 7.45 4.42 2.90 3.12 9+1 3.88 Thickness 2.65 1.39 1.02 0.87 2.64 1,20 1.07

~stimatedBlade Length Reconstruction 1 -- 60+10 Reconstruction 2 -- 70T3- Cord Handle

Artifact 2/322 (Figure 40 C) is a segment of limb without bark that has been girdled and snapped at each end to form an object with a length and diameter of 11.7 X 2.9 cm. The specimen is girdled medially by an irregular groove with a width and depth of 0.7Q X 0.20 cm. It probably was a handle around which a cord was tied.

Wooden Plugs

Three morphologically identified oval buttons were recovered from the upper floor of House Locus 1 (Figure 41 G-I) .

The largest measures 2.01 X 1.62 X 0.77 cm and the smallest has diameter and thickness of 1.6 X 0.70 cm. Each has one flat surface and the other surface is slightly convex. The edge is perpendicular to the flat surface and is girdled by a very thin

(about 0.5 mm) groove about midway on the edge. All are from

Component 1.

7hough I was unable to find comparable ethnographic specimens, I speculate that these items may be plugs to patch holes in artifacts made of thin skins such as gut raincoats or fish skin bags.

Wooden Tools for On-Site Use

Wooden Bowl

Artifact 2/223 (Figure 26) is a simple bowl carved from one piece of wood by gouging and whittling. The bowl was

recovered from F3/4 in House Locus 3 -- Component 2. Dimensions of the bowl are given on Figure 26~. Thickness of the bottom and walls of the vessel are indicated by the dashed line on the side view drawing.

Sent Wood Sox

Artifact 4/439 (Figure 27 PIS 42 A, A1) is a small bucket or box consisting basically of two pieces -- the bottom (shaded darker in each view of Yigure 27) and a bent wood wall 2.5 cm high. A detailed section of the vessel (Figure 27 side view) illustrates that the bottom is notched (F-G) to insure a tight fit between the walls of the vessel and the bottom (F, G, H measurements are slightly off scale in the drawing). Fnds of the bent walls overlap by 4.5 crn and are held together by a root lashing (Figure W 27 side view). An interesting feature is evident in the bottom view. A peg was used to permanently secure the end of the lashing. Six additional wooden pegs hold the walls to the base by piercing through the walls into the bottom at the point of the overlap. As a decorative element, tufts of hair have been inserted into the exterior wall surface at about 3 cm intervals approximately 0.5 cm below the vessel lip. There are scattered fish scales adhering to the interior of the container and part of a fish fin remains on the vessel bottom

(f in top view of Figure 27).

Vessel Bottoms Ten items are included in this category, although one

item (5/133 Figure 28 E) may be the top of a vessel rather than a I SIDE

BOTTOM bottom. The vessel form varies considerably from large buckets to tubular containers of hollowed antler. Two of the specimens

(artifacts 2A/44 and 2A/45 -- Component 3) are fragmentary, but because of proximity, similarity of thickness, and the appearance of staining on the faces, both items undoubtedly are from a single vessel bottom similar to specimens 4 and B of Figure 28.

The two fragments are treated as a single bucket bottom (neither is illustrated).

There are four large, oval bucket bottoms that consist of a single wooden slab about 1 cm thick with horizontal dimensions varying from 37.5 X 22.0 to 19 X 12.5 cm. The edge of each of these specimens is slightly concave and has 3 cm diameter holes drilled into the edge at intervals. Some holes have pegs in them which indicates that the sides were held in place by peg.

Shaping of the side to fit the edge concavity probably reenforced the tightness of fit at the abuttment of the bucket wall with the bottom.

Though much smaller (4.9 X 3.41 X 0.70 cm), artifact

2/244 of Component 2 has the same general form as the larger bucket bottoms. Most notably, the edge is concave. It is about the right size to have been used with an antler tube container.

Items D and E of Figure 28, have painted designs on one surface. ~nterpretationsof the design of artifact 4/272 (Figure

28 D) is depicted in Figure 33. The surface of artifact 5/133

(Figure 28 E -- Component 1) is rough, and the design is visible only in a few isolated areas. With such a faint design no attempt at reconstruction was made. Parts of the design are faintly visible in Figure 28. The design was done with black paint. The edges of both specimens are flat because the bottoms are relatively thin.

The remaining two specimens are shown as items ? and G

(5/140 and 4/365) of Figure 28. One side of each item is flat and the other side mostly parallels it except that the edge is thinned by beveling. 9pparently this thinning was intended to allow the part to fit into a groove in a bent wood vessel wall.

Pegs

There are six loose pegs in the collection. These are the same size and shapes as those used to peg vessel walls to vessel bottoms. The specimens closely resemble the pegs in bucket 2/365 and bucket bottom 4/439 (Figures 28 and 27). Pigure

21 R-T illustrates three of the pegs. The two shapes were used for the same function. Generally, the unsharpened pegs are smoothly finished on all surfaces (including the ends).

There are six additional sharply pointed pegs of larger size that undoubtedly served different functions (Figure 21 37,

N). At least some pegs may be fishhook barbs. Yote that the blunt end of both specimens illustrated was formed by girdling and snapping the peg from the wooden shaft on which it was manufactured. Length of these specimens is 5 to 8 cm.

Stakes

Several stakes with length and diameters above 13 X 2 cm also are present. The specimen illustrated in Figure 40 F was crudely shaped by chopping and splitting, but some were more

carefully shaped.

Birch Bark Container

There are nine birch bark fragments from the trench

(Figure 21, F-G). t.lost simply are small rolls of bark that show

no particular modification other than having been cut or even more simply being present in the midden. However, fragments

2/335 (Component 2) and 5/122 (Component 2) show slightly more modification. 80th are so fragmentary that little can be said

about the form of the original artifacts.

Artifact 2/235 (Component 2 -- not illustrated) is the

largest piece of birch bark. The dimensions are 16 X 9 X 0.08

cm. A double row of awl holes were placed vertically across the

fragment. Spacing of the rows and interval of the holes within

each row is a.95 cm. 4 split root lashing was sewn into the

holes. The lashing attached the overlapping ends of the bark

together to form an oval to round vessel wall. One small

fragment of the overlapping layer remains attached. The bark

probably was the wall of a bucket or basket-like device, though

the specific form is uncertain.

When unfolded a birch strip (5/122, Component 2; not

illustrated) measured 14 X 1.2 X 0.11 cm. A line of awl holes of

very small diameter is positioned lengthwise half way across the

strip of bark. The holes occur at 0.5 cm intervals or less. The

size of the holes suggests sewing with cord or sinew rather than

lashing with split root. Buzz Tov

Given the placement of holes on the specimen, artifact

2/319 (Figure 29 A) probably is a buzz toy of the type illustrated by Murdoch (1892: 378). The teeth would have given it increased air resistance, thus increasing the noise made as the toy spun on a loop of string threaded through the two holes. The two holes barely go through the object. The holes were not drilled, but were gouged from each side with a narrow bit cutting tool. The depressions meet in the middle. The object measures

7.40 x 4.86 x 0.58 cm.

Artifact 2/319 may be a comb. It shows some attributes

(specif ic.ally, teeth) in common with the combs reported by Nelson

(1899:57). Though not as elaborate as specimens in the Nelson collection, artifact 2/319 would function reasonably well as a comb.

Spoon

Artifact 3/53 (Figure 29) is a spoon. As is illustrated

in Figure 29, a portion of the spoon has been split away along

the wood grain. The estimated original width is 4.7 cm and the length is 18.9 an. As is evident in the cross section drawing,

the bowl bottom bulges to accommodate the gouged out bowl.

Though very faint, the entire handle was stained on all surfaces with red ocher.

Carvings and Elaborately Painted Wood

~nthropomorphicFigures

In excavations outside the trench, four anthropomorphic figures were found. Three are full length representations of the human body and, in comparison, the two specimens from Trench 1 are crude sketches of the human face (Figure 30, A-R). These figures (2/28 and 3/21) were recovered from the F3/8 stratum of

House Locus 3 -- Component 3. Both are of late age (probably historic) . The essential shape and design of both carvings are conveyed in Figure 30 where the items are depicted full size.

Though the cross-sections differ, both were made from shaft fragments and separated from the original shaft by the girdle-and-snap method. Features to note on Figure 30 are the three tatoo marks below the mouth. Damage by rot has deformed the originally parallel margins of the dowel, as well as producing distinct cracks midway down the artifact. Artifact

2/28 (Figure 30 B) is painted with red ocher on all sides, but the density of the pigment is greatest on the face area. >lo attempt to paint a design is evident. The paint was applied as a wash over the entire object.

Zoomorphic Figures

There are four wooden zoomorphic figures from House Locus

1 -- Component 1 (Figures 30, 31 and 49). Three are bird figures that are stylistically sculpted in three dimensions. Though identification of the species represented is problematic and

I projection ( certainly debatable, I believe that the carvings represent a sandhill crane, a loon, and a ptarmigan. Identification of artifact 5/108 as a sandhill crane is the most tenuous; others have suggested that it may represent a seal.

The loon (4/404 Figure 30 C) is the least embellished of the three birds. No paint is evident and it is not perforated for attachment as an element of a multi-component artifact. Both of the other birds are perforated and originally were attached to other pieces. In fact, the sandhill crane (5/108, Figure 31 A,

91) was found affixed to a wooden base (5/109, Figure 31 S). The projection on 5/109 was inserted into the rectangular hole present at the bottom of the bird figure. Figure 31 B is a side view drawing of artifact 5/109. The long axis of the bird carving was perpendicular to the slightly concave surface of this base element. To hold the two elements together, a small wooden wedge (a tree nail) was driven into the wooden projection in the base piece (5/109). Because the base of the bird figure (5/108)

has split, the two elements could be separated without damage to

either and without removing the wedge.

The ptarmigan (3/144, figure 30 D) also is perfarated,

hut was not found attached to another element. The perforation

may have been used for insertion of a dowel-like rod or for

passing a thong to lash the carving to a multi-element artifact

such as a mask. It may possibly have been a finger rest on a

throwing board.

Item E of Figure 30 is a knife with a bone handle and

slate blade. It is described in the discussion of knives, but is illustrated in Figure 30 to complete the grouping of bird motif artifacts. It also is shown in Figure 49.

Carved and/or Painted Disks

The face of the fourth zoomorphic object is carved in low bas-relief. It is not sculpted in the round as are the bird figurines. It has a flat back and is 0.89 cm thick. Artifact

4/317 (Figure 32 A) is a disk-like object that is structurally more akin to the "painted buttons" illustrated as 9-D of Figure

32 than it is to the other zoomorphic figurines; accordingly, I have grouped these artifacts together. A red ocher design is used to enhance the effect of the low bas-relief shaping on the face of artifact 4/317. A tuft of hair was inserted into a slit in the central forehead position. The central part of the artifact may represent a human face. The paired projections on each side of the oval face represent two fish with the tails on the left and the heads on the right. Function of the object is unknown, but it may have served as a finger mask (Nelson

1899:~lateCIV) , or an attachment to a larger dance mask. A drawing of this artifact is presented on page 248 of Fitzhugh and

Raplan (1982).

Artifacts 5/163. 4/231, and 6/42 (Figure 32 E-D) were recovered from Floor 1/3. Though the details of shape differ, the three items have many characteristics in common. The plan-view shape is subrectangular, and the dimensions are 5 to

6.5 an. Thickness is 0.7 to 1.0 cm and cross-section shapes generally are plano-convex. Artifacts 4/231 and 6/42 are perforated by one hole -- artifact 5/163 by two holes. One side of each is painted with an ocher design as shown by stippling on the illustration. The designs on 4/231 and 6/42 are vaguely similar.

Though function of the items is uncertain, each item probably was part of a composite mask or similar festival paraphernalia ("elson 1899:Plate C) . It is also possible that these disks served as toggles on a belt for attaching miscellaneous objects by a string.

.Artifact 6/65 (Figure 31 C) is from the same zone of the site (Component 1) as the four artifacts on Figure 32. The form

is similar to artifact 4/317, and it also is grouped with the carved and/or painted disks. The specimen is 0.65 cm thick, but the central area (as illustrated in Figure 31 C1) is thinned to

0.50 cm by gouging. Vo paint was observed on the object. The highly contrasting zones visible in Figure 31 are wood layers of different density.

Painted Vessel 3ottom

Figure 33, A-B are two artistic 'interpretations of one wooden vessel bottom (4/272). The painted design is

predominantly red ocher, but light black staining fills the

intervening areas within the central circular figure. The design

is very faint everywhere and has been completely worn off in some

areas. Representation A shows the strongest portion of the ocher design. Representation a is more tenuous. The artist attempted

to project and bring out even the faintest ocher stains, but without becoming excessively imaginative. The designs presented may differ somewhat from the original, but both infrared and ultraviolet photography failed to enhance the image beyond the designs presented. The specimen measures 13.2 X 8.2 X Cl.5 cm.

The opposite face shows scattered knife cut marks that indicate rare use as a cutting board surface.

Drum Rim

Eskimo drums are made by stretching a membrane over a hoop of bent wood. The membrane is tied in place with a cord laid along a groove on the exterior surface of the rim. Figure

40 E shows the hoop fragment (2/320 -- Component 2) with the exterior groove for securing the membrane. The end with the subrectangular holes is thinned by beveling so that the ends of the hoop overlap without increasing thickness of the rim. The ends were secured together by dowels or lashing. ~n the view shown in Figure 40 ?, curvature of the rim and the beveled end perforated with holes is not apparent. Both would be readily apparent if the rim were rotated 90'. Length, width, and thickness of the rim, and the width/depth of the groove are 34.0,

2.25, 4.95, 9.65, 0.45 cm respectively. The beveled end was split accidentally. There are traces of red ocher on the rim.

Fire Drills

Historically, the Eskimo used bow drills to create fire.

In addition to the bow and the bearing plate (described along with wedges in the section on bone), a shaft, a piece of softwood to drill against (fire hearth or fire stick) and tinder were necessary items (Nelson 1899:Plate XXXIV). The point of the shaft was rotated rapidly against the fire stick until friction created sufficient heat to cause the fire stick to glow and

ignite the tinder. The rapid twisting motion and consequent burning cause the shaft end to become hemispherical and create a corresponding hemispheric depression in the fire stick (Nelson

1899:76). Several hemispherical depressions usually occur on each fire stick (Figure 40 Y). Once a depression was worn

through the board, a new spot on the stick was chosen; eventually, the board was marked by several charred depressions.

In Trench 1, the only materials recovered that definitively were connected with fire making are three shafts and

one fire stick (Figure 40 K). The dowel fragments (2/303 --

Component 2 and 4/63 -- Component 2) (Figures 40 B and 21 J) are obviously broken segments. The proximal ends are irregular. Had

the ends been held directly against the bearing plate, they would

have become rounded from pressure and wear. The third shaft

(4/147 -- Component 1, Figure 41 F) is substantially larger than

the other two. The distal ends of all three are charred and

rounded. Diameter of the shafts respectively are 0.91, Q.64, and

2.5 cm. The proximal end of artifact 4/417 (figure 41 ?) has

been.chopped to a rough point with an end diameter of 0.9 cm.

The specimen closely resembles the specimen shown by Nelson

(1899:Plate XXXIV). The thinnest specimen has a red ocher band 1

cm wide painted on it. Such red bands commonly were painted on

arrows and this specimen probably originally was an arrow shaft. The fire stick (2/274 -- Component 3) measures 4.7 X 3.0 cm. Despite its fragmentary state (Figure 40 5), the specimen shows remnants of five charred depressions on the single utilized face.

Story Knives

Two wooden story knives were recovered from Component 1.

30th are simple blade-like forms. Artifact 5/260 (Figure 34 A) and 5/148 (Figure 41 9, Al) have length, width, and thickness of

23.1 X 2.1 X 0.70 cm and 11.35 X 1.61 X 0.81 cm.

Engraving Tools

Three wooden engraving tools resembling those found by

Giddings at Iyatayet (1964:Plate 30) were recovered. A11 are illustrated in Figure 34 3-D. Artifact 2/15 is a specimen deformed from both rot and partial charring. The illustration shown in Figure 34 3 is a reconstruction of the original tool that somewhat emphasizes the salient characteristics of the tool shape. Consequently, the illustration presents a more rugged appearance than the tool itself, especially at the bit end.

Though less prominent on the tool, constriction and flaring in the bit area have been particularly enhanced for illustrative purposes.

Artifacts 2/228 and 4/418 illustrated as C and D in

Figure 34 were drawn from photographs of the artifacts and represent shapes more true to form since it was not necessary to

reconstruct deformed features as with item B (artifact 2/15). NO

remnants of the cutting bit were present on the tools.

The three rods illustrated in Figure 34 T are bound

together by a grass wrapping with no knot. Though one rod is

broken, all were originally of the same size and shape. Each

consists of a round wooden rod 6.0 cm long and 0.35 cm in diameter. At the upper ends shown in Figure 34 E, the rods are

thinned by tapering from opposite sides to produce a flattened base only 0.15 cm thick. The opposite end of the rods are cut diagonally to form a convex end and the rods are split down the

center for approximately 1 cm. Remnants of inserted material

remain in two of the specimens. Though its small size precludes

definitive identification, the material looks like thin slate.

Overall form of the specimen is similar to engraving tools, but

they are sufficiently different to indicate that their function

may have differed. Although the items probably are not engraving

tools, I grouped them with engraving tools because no similar

spec imens exist.

Flaking Tool

Artifact 5/125 is a composite tool consisting of three

elements: a wooden haft, a bone bit, and a wrapping of grass to

hold the parts together (Figure 35). In Figure 35 3, the bit is

shown isolated in top, side and end views. Dimensions of the bit

are 6.56 X 1.28 X 0.91 cm. As indicated in the end view drawing,

there are distinct striations from use perpendicular to the width

of the tool. Overall dimensions of the slotted wooden handle and dimensions of the slot are 14.1 X 2.08 X 1.57 cm and 13.16 X 1.50

X 0.89 m. The grass wrapping was not tied.

Several such tools are illustrated in Nelson (1899:91) and he discusses their function. The tool is used in pressure

flaking of stone. Yven for ground stone implements, flaking

(mostly percussion) is used in initial stages of manufacture to establish the gross form of the implement.

Stand for Pottery Vessel

While studying the stratigraphic sequence, I removed this

item (4/436 -- Component I) from the lowest midden deposits. The artifact (Figure 42 C, C1) consists of a crooked tree brancn

fragment that has been cut on three faces, but bark remains on most of the exterior surface. The two main parts of the artifact

are at right angles. One of these main parts is forked. I will

refer to the forked portion as the horizontal element and the

other as the vertical element. Additionally, I will refer to the

90' angle between the elements as the interior angle. The face

of the branch facing the 270' angle between the elements is the back (see Figure 42 Cl).

The side of the horizontal element bounding the interior

angle has been flattened by chopping about one-third of the limb

thickness away along the entire length of the element. The cut

extends onto the vertical element about 3 cm so that the angle

between the elements approaches 90O. The back of the vertical

element has also been thinned and flattened by chopping away

one-third of the limb. On the opposite face, about 4 cm from the top of the vertical element, a notch measuring 0.7 cm girdles the face of the vertical element. The original diameter of the limb was 5 cm. Lengths of the horizontal and vertical elements are both approximately 13 cm.

When found, the vertical element pointed upward and a crushed, check stamp vessel (4/435) was directly on and around artifact 4/436. I concluded that 4/436 was a stand or protective brace for the pot.

Wooden Items of Vnknown Function

In all components of the mound, worked fragments and complete; but functionally unidentifiable wooden objects occur.

~houghI have described several items under highly speculative functional headings, I have stopped when it comes to the objects that follow. Though possible uses occur to me for some of the items, I have chosen not to highlight my suspicions by using functional referents in the heading for this class of objects.

In some cases, I have no idea what the items were used for.

Consequently, I will occasionally mention a possible function and in other instances will simply describe the object without comment. The more distinctive objects are described and illustrated under individual headings consisting of an artifact catalog number.

Artifact 4/338

For artifact 4/338 (Component 1) (Figure 42 3), I can

suggest no functional use. Its largest dimensions are 16.1 X 9.6 x 2.30 cm. The largest dimensionsof the holes are 4.49 and 2.52

cm. The ends of the artifact are pitted and rough from being cut

to shape. The faces are essentially ummodified split surfaces, but on all surfaces sharp points and ridges have been lightly

smoothed, apparently by wear. The most intensively worn,

therefore smoothed, areas are the lateral (those roughly

paralleling the long axis of the artifact) sides of the largest

hole. The entire interior surface of the hole, however, shows

wear. Though smoothing is evident on sides of the smaller hole,

it is less than in the larger hole. The wall of the larger hole

is convex rather than perpendicular to the broad faces of the

artifact.. Though I do not equate function, the closest

ethnographic form I have been able to find is that of umiak

rigging blocks illustrated by Thiry and Thiry (1977:195).

Artifact 4/438

Artifact 4/438 (Component 1 -- Figure 42 D) consists of a

wooden object wrapped with leather. Length and diameter are

12.50 X 4.3 cm. The wood part is roughly chopped to a point at

one end. At the other end, the object tapers toward a point, but

an uneven break indicates it was separated from the main piece it

was being cut from by snapping off rather than completing the

cut. The hide wrapping the wooden object is fragmentary, but has

some sewn seams. Though possible, it is unlikely that the seams

indicate the wooden object was sewn within a leather hide. The

hide appears to have been wrapped around the wooden object.

Function of the object is unknown. Artifacts 6/43 and 4/259

These specimens are grouped on the basis of gross morphology. 90th artifacts were recovered from the upper floor of House Locus 1 (F1/3 -- Component 1) . The basic form is a stout wooden beam with one wedge-shaped end.

Artifact 6/43 (Component 1 -- uigure 36) is a large wooden artifact 1.13 m long. The maximum width is 8.1 cm and the minumum width is 5.1 cm near the opposite end of the tool. The wide end has been flattened on opposing faces to form a wedge shape. The edge of the wedge-shaped end is crushed from battering. The surfaces are all well smoothed, and only remnants of the chopping marks produced during primary shaping (probably by adzing) remain evident in a few places. The surface finish is that of a tool that appears to have been use? corsiderably by hand. There is a dull luster and a very smooth finish on the object in it's mid-length area. Though function of the artifact is unknown, end battering coupled with the sheen in the mid-section, and the overall shape of the item suggests it was held in both hands and used to strike against pliable material.

There are no distinct gouges on the wedged faces like those on the large-scale digging tools of bone and ivory, but it may also have been a digging implement. rJse as part of a drying rack is also a possibility.

Artifact 4/259 (Component 1 -- not illustrated) is more crudely shaped than 6/43. The entire surface is roughly chopped to form the overall shape and wedging at the end is less distinct. The specimen is 79 cm long and is 5+0.5- cm in Figure 36. A two view sketch of artifact 6/43 (Component l), a probable hide working or digging tool.

Figure 37. A two view sketch of artifact 4/381 (Component 1) . 4 45.1crn c diameter. As with artifact 6/43, the cross-section is roughly square with the corners distinctly rounded. The wedge tip is not pulverized by battering. Though grouped with artifact 6/43 on the basis of shape and size, the function may be entirely different. Artifact 4/259 would make an excellent stake.

Artifact 4/381

Artifact 4/381 (Figure 37) is from the pit fill (PF1/1,

Component 1) overlying the lowest floor of House Locus 1. his wooden object has two holes gouged through it (a portion of the tool that once bounded the larger hole is missing.) Axes of the holes are perpendicular to the broadest surfaces and have dimensions of 2 X 1.3 and 4.5 X 4.5 cm. Corners are squared in each hole and give a slightly square to rectangular appearance.

411 surfaces are smooth except within the holes where cutting went across the natural wood grain and produced a pitted surface. aut the interior face of the smaller hole at the cross-grain position is smoothed and rounded onto the exterior surface as would be the case if a rope had been passed through the hole and pressure had been exerted on the rope in line with the long axis of the tool. That is the only use wear evident on the item.

Widths at intervals from left to right in the drawing and thicknesses given in matched pairs for points A through !3 are:

3.61/1.64 cm, 4.47/3.12 cm, 5.21/2.32 an , 92.5/1.63 an. Artifacts 4/384 and 7/31

The size and shape of these two items (Figure 38 A-B) is

similar, but their function is unknown. Qoth were formed

primarily by chopping to final shape with no effort to smooth the

resulting surface by "sanding." The widest end of 4/384 was

clearly chopped on the opposite broad surfaces to score and

weaken wood fibers of the piece before it was broken by bending

at that chopped line across the item. Additionally, the a knot

in the wood has been drilled out of 4/384. Artifact 4/384 is

from the lowest floor of House Locus 1 and 7/31 is from midden in

Square 7. Given the constraints imposed by disturbance in Square

7, I assigned these two items to the same basic cultural unit.

Lengths for artifacts 4/384 and 7/31 respectively are 22.1 and

21.8 cm. Widths and thicknesses are given as matched pairs in

centimeters for the points marked A through D in Figure 38 A.

Artifact 4/384 measures 4.38/1.10 cm, 4.35/1.82 cm, 3.28/1.92 cm,

2.65/1.85 cm. Artifact 7/31 at similar points measures 5.18/1.94

cm, 5.03/2.54 cm, 3.43/2.54 cm, 3.19/1.66 cm.

Artifact 3/123

Two views which are 90' apart are shown as A and A1 of

Figure 39. Though function is unknown, several archaeologists

have suggested it is a game piece for checkers. It may also be

the end of a blunt arrow.

4rtifact 5/232

Artifact 5/232 (Figure 39 B) measures 12.73 X 1.95 x 1.20 cm. There is one hole cut through it and a second slot that did not originally go all the way through the object. In one small spot a hole has broken through the thin wall that was originally present.

0 5 crn -4 ..,. L....J . .. I

Artifacts of Stone

Few stone artifacts were recovered from the "anokinak site. If the site were located where organic materials were not preserved by permafrost, the site would consist of an unimpressive scatter of stone artifacts and pottery beneath the tundra vegetation. Thousands of Alaskan surface sites span far greater periods of time and consist of no more. In the uplands bordering the Delta on the south, Ackerman (1982) has located many exposed surface sites that likely span 8,000 to 19,000 years. Though rare, there are even coastal sites that may be

4,000 to 6,008 years old. The Security Cove Site (Ackerman 1967) is a notable example. P14R-007 clearly does not have comparable age. ~tsimportance is derived from the well-preserved organic artifacts rather than the lithic artifacts or great antiquity.

There are only 55 flakes and/or related chunks of debitage from flaking activity. Of those, only two are cryptocrystaline flakes. This is peculiar because there are six finished cryptocrystaline tools. During manufacture of flaked stone tools, hundreds of flakes are produced for every finished tool. Since the finished cryptocrystaline tools in the collection outnumber the flakes, I believe that the cryptocrystaline tools were manufactured elsewhere.

The remainder of the debitage is predominantly slate.

Even though the number of slate flakes in comparison to finished tools is not as disproportionate as noted for cryptocrystaline tools, usable ground stone tools also outnumber flakes. Secause flaking often is the initial stage in the manufacture of slate tools, I would expect a much higher proportion of slate flakes to completed ground stone tools. Given the relatively small number of flakes, slate tools probably also were manufactured away from the site. Except for one or two flakes, all debitage and all finished tools are made from slate, siltstone, or cryptocrystaline rocks that are exotic to the site area. Elanks for the slate tools probably were prepared at a geographically remote quarry. Apparently, only final grinding and resharpening were done at YAR-007. The fact that 11 of the 55 flakes recovered have ground faczts strongly supports my assertion that reshaping and sharpening of existing ground slate tools was the primary stoneworking activity being carried on at the site.

4 single flaking tool (Figure 35), resembling the type collected during the historic period by tielson (1899:91) and

Yurdoch (1892:288), was recovered in House Locus 1 (PF 1/3).

During the ethnographic period ground stone tools predominated, but both Nelson and Vurdoch state that such flaking implements were associated with the manufacture and maintenance of cryptocrystaline tools. The same is true of the lowest component at the ~qanokinaksite where ground slate predominates, but chipped stone is present.

Flaked Stone Tools

Slaked End Blades

One complete and three fragmentary flaked stone end

blades were recovered from the trench. Artifact 2/344 (Figure 43

I) is complete and enough remains of artifact 7/6 (Figure 43 H), a large basal fragment, to indicate that in size and shape it closely approximates artifact 2/344. Length, width, and thickness measurements for the specimens are 4.45, 1.07, 0.31 cm and 4.50+.1,- 1.11, 0.35 cm respectively. The other two specimens

5/58 (Component 2), 6/117 (Component 1 - not illustrated) are medial segments that retain only enough physical characteristics to indicate that each probably closely resembles the size and shape of the more complete specimens described above. Artifact

5/58 as a whole specimen would have been somewhat larger than the others.

"d Scraper

One unifacially flaked end scraper (2/85A -- Figure 43 E,

El) was recovered from PY 3/4 (Component 3) in House Locus 3. It measures 2.20 x 1.51 cm and is 0.86 an thick. Retouch also extends along the lateral margins.

Flake-Knife

A single flake-knife (8/32 -- Figure 43 GI GI) with length, width, and thickness of 2.29, 0.77, and 0.32 cm was recovered from the disturbed Y1 deposits west of House Locus I.

The tool was manufactured from a blade like flake by unifacially flaking the dorsal surface (mixier 1974:4) and leaving the ventral surface of the original flake unmodified. The tool has a planoconvex cross-section. Both lateral edges were retouched

from the dorsal surface. It resembles Norton component material

illustrated by Giddings (1964: Plate 54) from Iyatayet. Utilized Flakes

Two utilized flakes (not illustrated) show extensive retouch and wear on the edges. Length, width and thickness of artifacts 5/97 (Component 2) and 4/413 (Component 1) are 4.31 X

3.98 X 0.78 cm and 3.21 X 4.44 X 8.67 cm respectively. qoth are slate and are thickly coated with a dense shiny black residue.

The utilized flakes were likely used for both cutting and scraping. Artifact 5/97 shows especially heavy use wear.

Ground Stone Tools

Knives

Hafted knives, along with individual knife parts, were surprisingly abundant in Trench 1. Six knives were found with blades in the handles and eight more handles without blades were recovered. A variety of types is represented based on both blade and haft morphology. 411 the hafted knives and most loose, complete blades are illustrated in Figures 44 through 49. The arrangement of Tigures 44 to 48 is roughly from most recent to the oldest. Table 4 gives physical attributes of the knives in catalog number order. Length, width, and thickness measurments are for the greatest values observable on the specimen. In addition to the specimens illustrated in the figures or listed in

Table 4, there were six fragments of ground slate blades. Those fragments were not measured.

A characteristic notch is ground into the cutting edge at one corner of three ground slate blades from Component 1 (6/16 -

Figure 47 D, 4/306 - ~igures47 C, 49 R and 5/293 -Figures 48 A,

Figure 45. Xnives from the upper components of ~rench1.

4. End socketed antler knife handle 7/54 -- Component 1.

A1. Cross-sections of artifact 7/54.

9. Ground slate ulu blade (artifact 2/285 -- Component 2) .

C. Half of composite knife or chisel handle (2/151 -- Component 3)

End view of artifact

D. Slotted bone knife handle 2/243.

E. Antler handle knife with lashing in place (artifact 3/108 -- Component 2) . El. Blade from knife 3/108 - it is probably in the proper orientation to fit into the slot.

Figure 46. Knife handles from the upper two floors of House Locus 1 -- Component 1.

A. Slate knife with a zoomorphic carved and engraved handle (5/266 -- Component 1).

Al. Opposite face of artifact 5/266. Note hair used as packing to hold the blade in place.

B. Carved and engraved knife handle 4/305.

B1. Opposite face of artifact 4/305.

C. Wooden knife handle 4/233 -- Component 1.

C1. Side view of artifact 4/233.

D. Engraved antler knife handle 4/329 -- Component 1.

Dl. Side view of artifact 4/329.

Figure 47. Assorted knives from Trench 1.

A. Side view of wooden knife handle 4/215 -- Component I.

Al. Edge view of artifact 4/215.

9. Wooden handle and slate knife blade 5/190 -- Component 1.

C. Corner notched slate blade mounted in its wooden handle (artifact 4/306 -- Component 1)

D. Corner-notched slate knife blade 6/16 -- Component 1.

Figure 48. Knives from the lowest floor of House Locus 1.

A. Corner-notched slate blade in antler handle with thin split root lashing (artifact 5/293 -- Component 1).

B. Engraved bone knife handle 4/415 -- Component I.

TABLE 4. Physical attributes of knife blades and handles found together and/or disassociated. Yeasurements in centimeters.

Catalog Part Length Width Thick Material Figure Number

SQUARE 2

2/101 handle 11.39 2.65 1.86 wood 44 A1 Remarks: One side of composite handle.

blade 12.63 3.73 0.63 slate 44 A Remarks: Part of blade hollow-ground. Tang 4.35 long.

handle 11.34 2.96 1.87 wood 44 A2 Remarks: Parts A and A2 appear to have been whittled out and the split to form two knife halves. No concavity exists on either interior surface to accommodate tang.

2/151 handle 6.28 1.28 1.04 ivory 45 C Remarks: Half of a composite handle.

2/243 handle 14t 2.26 1.03 bone 45 D Remarks: Proximal end broken off. Length of blade slot 3.2.

2/285 blade 7.97 4.96 0.54 slate 45 S

2/367 blade 3.22 1.91 8.36 slate 43 D Remarks: Resembles form expected for use with 2/242 haft.

SQUARE 3

3/108 blade 2.80 1.96 0.29 slate 45 E

handle 11.03 1.50 0.92 antler TABLE 4 -- (Continued)

Catalog -Part Length -Width -Thick Material Figure Number

SOUARE 4

4/215 handle 8.3t 1.02 g.78 wood 47 A Remarks: Length of blade slot 2.85. Proximal end broken off.

4/233 handle 7.06 1.81 1.18 wood 46 C Remarks: Length of blade slot 3.20. Blade slot open on one end.

4/305 handle 6.16 1.16 0.68 bone 46 9, 49 E Remarks: Length of blade slot 4.10. Design and form closely resembles 5/266.

4/306 blade 9.22 3.13 0.60 slate 47 C, 49 B Remarks: Corner-notched' slate blade.

handle 19.8 2.98 1.49 wood 47 C Remarks: Wrapping for handle missing, but shadow of position visible. No packing in blade slot. Slade wedged directly against wood.

4/329 handle 18.6 2.03 1.32 antler 46 D, 49 A Remarks: Length of blade slot 7.18. Wood shaving packed into base of slot.

4/415 handle 6.5 1.48 0.72 bone 48 B Remarks: Length of blade slot 8.65. Slade slot .closed on end with bulb decoration; open at other end (ground smooth, not broken). Leather packing material present in slot.

SQUARE 5

5/190 blade 7.19 3.38 0.35 slate 47 B, 49 C Remarks: Is not corner-notched variety.

handle 15.7 2.45 1.34 wood 47 B Remarks: Length of blade slot 6.90. Blade wedged directly against wood with no packing material. TABLE 4 -- (Continued)

Catalog Part Length Width Thick Yaterial Figure Number

5/266 blade 5.72 3.47 0.31 slate 46 A, 49 F

handle 7.95 1.25 0.58 bone Remarks: Length of blade slot 4.62. Hair used along one side for packing blade into slot.

5/293 blade 7.40 3.03 .52 slate 48 A, 49 F Remarks: Corner-notched slate blade.

handle 16.9 2.24 1.27 antler Remarks: Lashing probably very thin split root. Length of blade slot 8.05. ~hinleather (?) sheet used to wedge between blade and handle within slot.

SQUARE 6

6/16 blade 9.85 2.43 0.43 slate 48 D Remarks: End-notched slate blade.

6/96 blade 2.48 1.09 0.21 slate 43 I3 Remarks: Form is the same as the blade of 3/108.

SQUARE 7

7/54 handle 15.1 3.27 2.01 antler 45 A Remarks: End socketed for insertion of blade. Socket closed on all sides. Collar 1.9 wide.

SOUARE 8

8/19 blade 2.53 0.77 0.31 slate 43 A Remarks: Appears to be essentially a used up ground blade. Cuttinq edqe is retouched alonq- entire length by fiaking. 49 D). Since two of the specimens are hafted, the position of the notch relative to the haft is clearly known. As is evident from the lashing on artifacts 4/306 and 5/293, the purpose of the notch is to allow the lashing to secure the blade in the haft.

Note that hafts in which corner-notched slate blades occur are of two different forms. qoth the cleaver (4/306 - Figures 47 C, 49

E) and side/end hafted knife (5/293 - Figures 48 A, 49 D)

(Murdoch 1892: 161) varieties are represented. The fact that similar blade forms occur in Sifacially flaked, cryptocrystaline blades from the Platinum (Larsen 1950:Figure 56, All) and Chagvan

3ay area is discussed in Chapter 6. Blades with the notch are referred to here as corner-notched slate blades.

Slades fitted into slots in wooden handles were simply forced into the slot without packing material. The surface within the slots is deformed and it is clear that a force fit was used to hold the blade in place. In the case of artifact 5/190

(Figure 47 3), there is no lashing or packing to tighten the fit.

Though there was a thin lashing on artifact 4/306, (Figure 47 C) the blade was held in place by a friction fit independent of the lashing. In the case of handles made of bone and antler, rigidity of the material prevented compression of the sides of the slot to produce the required closeness of fit to hold the blade in place. With bone and antler handles, a resilient bushing material is present between the blade and sides of the slot to produce the necessary tight fit. Hair was used in artifact 5/266 (Figure 46 Ab and 49 F), fine wood shavings in 4/329 (Figure 46 D and 49 A), and very thin leather (or more likely gut) was used in several others.

Though most of the knife handles are not decorated, four of the bone and antler handles have incised designs and are carved to rather exact and intricate overall form. Artifacts

5/266 and 4/305 are especially artistically executed (Figure 46

A, B and Figure 49 E, F) . i.!ote the similarity of the incised line designs on both faces of these two knives. Design similarity coupled with recovery from the same floor (F1/2) make it likely that these knives were made or used by the same person.

The simple line designs on artifacts 4/415 (Bigure 48 a) and

4/329 (Figure 46 D) also resemble each other. There is a possibility that the designs may be totemic (Nelson 1899:322) or owner ship marks.

The differences and similarities of knife form with regard to time, space and function are discussed in Chapter 6.

The specific stratigraphic locations of each knife is given in the figure captions.

Slate End Blades

There are a total of eight ground slate end blades from the trench. Dimensions of each are presented in Table 5. In

instances where specimens are broken, dimensions are estimated or a plus (t) is used to indicate that no accurate estimate is possible beyond saying that the specimen likely falls within the

size range recorded for other examples of the artifact type. TABLE 5. Dimensions of qround slate end blades from Trench 1.

Catalog Leng th Width 'Yax irnum Ground Component Number Thickness Sase*

5.25t 2.83 0.60 2.90 2.15t.05 0.21 2.11t ?.67T 0.23 3.30+.05 I.. 38 0.26 3.36- 1.77 0.34 2.54 1.60 0.23t 3.24 1.54 G1.30 2.50t 1.62t 0.38

* Y = Yes 0 = gnobserved because the artifact is broken ** Illustrated in Figure 50.

Seven of the end blades are of an unstemmed, elongated triangular form assignable to a single type. Yhe form is shown

in Figure 50 where the three most complete specimens are

illustrated true size as items B-D. The lateral blade margins are sharpened to a cutting edge, but the base, though relatively thin, has been ground perpendicular to the blade faces to flatten and thereby strengthen it; presumably to prevent crushing since the base is the bearing surface where the artifact is pushed against the mounting device when the harpoon strikes. Of these seven specimens, only artifact 6/81 (Figure 50 9) has unique characteristics. A notch has been ground into the center of the base and an X has been deeply incised into one face of the tool.

The X probably is the owner's identifying mark. Chapter 6 contains a discussion of the use of this type of end blade in both toggling harpoon heads and in lance foreshafts during the historic period.

The eighth ground slate end blade is markedly different

in form from the other seven. ~rtifact2A/18 (Figures 43 C, 50

A) is a lance head (or perhaps a knife blade) that is distinctly stemmed. The stem shape is uncertain because the top of the tang has been broken off just above the shoulder. Deep scratches made during coarse grinding to produce the general artifact shape are visible on many parts. In a few depressions, remnants of the original fracture surface of the slate slab remain but, for the most part, the tool has been finished by secondary grinding with a fine grit stone that destroyed the deep, coarse striations of the initial shaping. 4s indicated in Figure 50 A, the deepest grinding striations on the blade above the shoulder roughly parallel the long axis. That part of the tool is very smoothly ground. The fine striations indicate that the final surface finish and cutting edge were produced by grinding perpendicular to the long axis. Qeep striations from coarse initial grinding are especially evident above the shoulder where coarse grinding to produce the tang was perpendicular to the long axis. On that area secondary grinding with a fine grit stone was not as thorough as that applied to the blade section.

There are two adze fragments and one complete adze

(Figure 53 C). Both fragments are slate. Remnants of flake scars are clearly discernable although artifact 2/315 (Component 2 -- not illustrated) is much more smoothly ground than 6/111

(Component 1 -- not illustrated). The cutting edge of 6/111 is broken away from the base of the tool. ~rtifact2/315 is a fragment of the cutting edge of a different adze. The cross-section angle of the bit is approximately 25O and the edge is sharpened to less than 1 mrn thick.

The complete adze (5/2) is extensively and smoothly ground on the face shown in Figure 53 C. Rather than being totally the result of grinding, the smooth surface may partially be the original cortex of a river cobble from which the artifact was manufactured. The origin of the smooth surface is unclear and may be the result of a combination of the two effects. Flake scars from primary shaping are deep and clearly evident on the margin. The opposite face has very little ground surface. It is covered mostly with overlapping flake scars. Length, width, and thickness of the artifact are 18.2 X 6.1 X 2.3 an. The tool is made from a fine grained graywacke. The bit angle is about 25' to a mid-line in cross-section and the cutting edge is dull in comparison with slate adzes of similar size.

Drill

~rtifact4/429 (Component 1) is a hand drill made from green slate with small contrasting white specks ("gure 43 F).

It measures 8.37 X 3.38 X 0.67 cm overall. width of the neck-down drill bit is 0.98 cm. 50th faces of the drill are polished very smoothly, but the tool perimeter, except for the flat edge segment at the lower left in Figure 43 is bifacially retouched by flaking. The tool probably was not hafted. It fits comfortably in the hand. Width of the upper part gives sufficient leverage fox twisting by hand. Ground Eurin

Artifact 2/209 is a medial fragment of a ground burin made from a high quality, hard, gray slate. "igure 51 A illustrates a complete ground burin from an undated context at the Goodnews Village airport site (GDN-16) along with the fragment (Pigure 51 R) found at YAR-007. The fragmentary specimen is rectangular in cross-section with the flattened bottom edge being at sharp right angles to both sides of the tool. The top edge is slightly more convex. Both lateral surfaces and the two flat edges are ground to a polished finish.

The ends of the fragment are broken irregularly. A checked pattern of cracks on the polished surfaces of the tool resemble checking in stones that have been heated and air cooled. The chunk missing from the lower edge appears to be a fragment missing from the pattern of cracking rather than a fault with the original tool.

Comparing the curvature of the lower edges of the

Goodnews artifact to that Yanokinak specimen, a high degree of correspondence can be noted (Figure 57 C). Additionally, the two

items are very similar in degree of surface finish, size, cross-section shape, width and material type. Though incomplete,

I am confident that artifact 2/209 is a ground burin fragment.

Ground Slate Chisel

Artifact 5/261 (Component 1 -- not illustrated) measures

2.15 X 0.93 X 0.19 cm. One side is ground flat and the opposite

face (though approximately parallel to the ground face) is a uigure 51. The fragmentary ground burin from Component 2 compared with a complete specimen from Goodnews village (GDN-16).

A. Views of a ground burin artifact 297 from site GDN-16.

1. End view. 2. Sideview. 3. Edgeview. 4. Oblique view showing the side opposite to that shown in side view 2. Note that the flat facets that form the cutting edge of the tool show partly on the top and left sides of the tool as foreshortened surfaces.

5. Three views of the fragment of a ground burin (2/209 -- Component 2) from MAR-007.

1. End view of a broken surface. 2. Side view of the medial section (both ends broken away) of artifact 2/209. In this view both the top and bottom edges have been ground - the fragment has remnants of the opposite edges. 3. Edge view -- the surface shown is ground.

C. Artifact 2/209 shown projected onto the outline of the complete burin from Goodnews to show the location of the medial fragment.

NOTE: The orientation of the artifacts in A1-3 and R1-3 is the same. natural cleavage plane. At one end a beveled surface was ground at approximately, 45' so that a 0.93 cm wide cutting edge was formed . The tool may originally have been hafted in a handle similar to that shown in Figure 45 C. Similar artifacts are illustrated by ~'lurdoch (1892:173) though these held bits of iron.

Abraders

Abraders from Trench 1 are mostly irregular rock chunks with a largest dimension of less than 6 cm. The raw material is predominantly sedimentary rocks with grain size ranging from silt to fine sand. Abraders of volcanic rocks are also present, but the adjacent cone was not the primary source of the volcanic rock for abraders. ?Iost abraders of volcanic rock are vessicular basalt or pumice which is exotic to the PIAR-007 locality.

Within Table 6, the abraders are listed by material type.

The first is siltstone (SS) which is soft enough to be abraded by rubbing with the finger. The second category is just as fine grained, but the material is distinctly harder. The sedimentary rock had been metamorphosed into slate (HS). Abraders of this hard, fine grained material have polished surfaces which probably

indicates use in polishing or finish grinding stone or bone. The

third rock type category is hard, fine grained sandstone (PS) .

The last three rock types are vessicular basalt (VB), pumice (P),

and andesi te (A) . TABLE 6. Physical characteristics of abraders arranged by form.

Catalog Material Length Width Thickness ?aces Ydges Ocher Number Ground Ground Staln

CHUNK FORPI 2/157 SS 2/333 SS 2/339 SS 2/97 FS 2/298 HS 2/366 VS 2A/ 8 SS 3/11 VS 3/63 SS

3/105 P 1.37 3/118 A 15.0 3/122 HS 4.13 3/137 HS 3.38 4/41 * PS 4.81 4/156 A 1.72 5/33 SS 3.49 5/44* SS 4.28 5/50 SS 4.19 5/57 SS 1.54 6/24 SS 3.22 6/45 SS 3.55 6/50 P 2.46 6/69 FS 4.19 6/70 VR 3.27 6/89 SS 4.12 6/102 P 1.14 SLAD FQRN 3/128* FS 2.25 4/194 HS 1.34 4/293* FS 5.12 4/433; SS-HS 2.65 5/85 FS 1.50 6/35* FS 3.5 9/11 SS 1.67 V SHAPED GROOVE FORM 3/16$j HS 2.42 6/15 HS 3.57 TRIANGULAR CROSS-SECTION 2/321 FS 5.30 5/144 HS 3.42 BOULDER SPALL FORK 2A/34 FS 9.90

* Specimen only small fragment of original tool. ** Y indicates ocher on tool; Y indicates no ocher. bfost abraders are irregular chunks of material that have been ground on one or more face and edge. The unground surface areas are irregular fracture surfaces. "igure 52 R-C illustrates

the irregular form of abraders that are designated as being of chunk form in Table 6. The location and number of ground surfaces (faces, edges) are given on Table 6. Figure 52 4 illustrates the second most abundant abrader form. It consists of a thin flat slab on which both ground faces are parallel.

Thin slab abraders with ground edges sometimes were used as saws.

The third abrader form (not illustrated) has a deep V-shaped groove ground into the surface. The V-shaped groove form is represent.ed by only three small fragments which apparently were used to grind pointed tools. Figure 53 D shows a three sided abrader (2/321) that has been ground on all surfaces except the ends. The cross-section is triangular. Artifact 5/144 (not illustrated) is the only other abrader with this form, but it has been modified. It is of slate and the thin edges have been

flaked, apparently for use as a scraping tool. ~esidesthe abraders listed in Table 6 and assigned to the forms described above, there are two unique specimens that are described below.

Artifact 3/118 (Component 2 -- not illustrated) is unique because of its size. It is a rectangular slab, 15 X 11 X 5 cm

with only one face ground.

Artifact 2A/34 is a large boulder spa11 (ventral surface

shown in Figure 53 D). It is composed of dense, very fine grain

sandstone. The dorsal surface has broad, deep grinding facets

(up to 3 cm wide and 3 rnrn deep) that appear to have been created Figure 52. A selection of ground stone artifacts.

4. A slab form abrader (4/293 -- Component 1).

a. A chunk form abrader (3/63 -- Component 2) .

C. A chunk form abrader (4/41 -- Component 2) .

D. A triangular cross-section form abrader (2/321 -- Component 2).

Dl. An end view of artifact 2/321.

. Vessicular basalt chunk form abrader (3/11 -- Component 3) .

F. A pyramid shaped chunk of red ocher mineral pigment (4/256 -- Component 1)

G. An assortment of ground chunks of red ocher mineral pigment. before removal from the boulder. The boulder spa11 almost certainly was used as a very large abrader. The edge of the flake is distinctly rounded as if it was used in its present form primarily as a scraper. ?he presence of a distinct patch of red ocher on the ventral surface makes it equally obvious that even

in its current form, the item was used as an abrader for grinding ocher pigment . On Table 6, 1 have indicated if an abrader has ocher stain on it. Generally, sandstone abraders are ocher stained and abraders of finer grained materials are not.

Mineral Pigments

Ocher

Ocher is a red, sometimes yellow, mineral pigment. The mineral is collected as a stone. It is reduced to a usable paint by grinding and mixing with a liquid. Several of the coarse grit grinding stones are stained with red ocher.

The largest ocher fragment found (4/256 -- Component 1)

is the pyramidal stone shown as Figure 52 5'. Since the mineral

is very brittle and can be crushed with hand pressure, most

fragments found are highly angular chunks only a millimeter or

two in diameter. When chunks with a dimension of 0.5 to 1 cm are

found, one or more faces are invariably flattened by grinding.

Figure 52 G shows 6 of the 20 ocher fragments that were

collected. Smaller fragments without a clearly faceted face

occurred in all components of the trench, but were not collected.

Red is the dominant ocher color. Of the 20 specimens collected only one tiny fragment is of the yellow variety. ~t was collected because of its rarity in the midden.

Numerous wooden artifacts from House Locus 1 have elaborate painted designs in red ocher. Two bucket bottoms,

(Figures 28 D and 33) four disk shaped objects (Figure 32), and the ptarmigan carving (Tigure 30) are notable examples. Simpler ocher designs also occur on wooden scraps higher in the midden.

Some shaft fragments (probably arrow shaft remnants) from the

YAR-007 collection have 0.5 to 1 cm wide bands painted around the circumference. Ocher was intensively used into the historic period on wooden household, ceremonial, and hunting paraphernalia

(Nelson 1899, Ray 1967, and ~hiryand Thiry 1977). The presence of ocher fragments throughout the site is not surprising in view of the abundant ocher painted objects in all three components.

Slack Shale One specimen of highly organic black shale (9/12 --

Component 1, not illustrated) measuring 4.5 X 3.5 X 1.5 cm was recovered. About one-third of the edge has been ground. It is apparent that this chunk of slate was the object being ground rather than being an abrader. It probably was used as black mineral pigment.

Hammerstones and Xauls

Two hammerstones (3/6 -- Component 2 and 5/225 --

Component 1) and a maul were recovered from Trench 1. One hammerstone is a small, subrounded beach or stream cobble (5/225 -- not illustrated) measuring 17 X 8 X 4 cm and weighing 796 grams. Except at one end where a flake measuring 3 cm wide has been removed with additional surrounding light battering, the natural form of the cobble is unmodified. The stone is fine grained qraywacke. The second hammerstone (3/6 -- not illustrated) is a beach pebble with a pecked corner measuring

3.40 X 3.25 X 2.45 cm. It has a pecked corner.

Artifact 6/12 (Component 3 -- Figure 53 5) is a small diorite cobble that has been transformed into a maul for hafting.

The maul measures 15.6 X 6.8 X 4.5 cm and weighs 791 grams. The overall shape of the stone is natural. It is well-rounded, probably from working as part of a beach or stream gravel deposit, and though not polished, is relatively smooth. One end is heavily pitted from battering. Four centimeters from the opposite end, a 2.5 cm notch has been purposefully pecked into the lower margin and one lateral face to a depth of 2 to 4 mm.

This notch and groove feature undoubtedly were used to facilitate lashing to a handle. The maul resembles the hafted mauls from

Point Sarrow illustrated by Murdoch (1892:95).

Basalt Net Weight

Artifact 3/44 (Figure 53 A) consists of two angular basalt stones (probably from local outcrops) that are bound together by a a leather thong. The bundle measures roughly 10 X

7 X 5 cm and weighs 182 grams. Though questionable, it is Figure 53. Ground and picked stone tools.

4. Basalt net weight (3/44 -- Component 2) consisting of two stones lashed together with a leather thong.

4. Ha£ ted maul (6/12 -- Component 3) .

C. Adze (5/2 -- Component 3).

D. Boulder spa11 scraper (2A/34 -- Component 3) . E. Ground slate ulu blade (2/285 -- Component 2) . possible that the two stones were lashed together for use as a net weight.

Gastroliths and Beach Pebbles

Single subangular to well-rounded quartzite pebbles with dimensions in the 4 to 8 mrn range occasionally were found in the midden. The origin of the isolated pebbles went unrecognized until we found concentrations of six to eight of these exotic stones. Though rare (only two or three examples) it became apparent that the concentrations marked the final resting place of a bird gizzard and that the stones are gastroliths.

Rounded to well-rounded beach pebbles of slightly larger dimension (2 to 4 cm) also are rare occurrences in the deposits.

Rather than being gastroliths, these stones appear to have been transported to the site by inhabitants for other purposes. Two

(5/78 -- Component 1 and 5/168 -- Component 1) exhibit no apparent modification from their natural state, but the remaining two have been modified. 4rtifact 8/5 (Component 3) has been split and 3/6 (Component 2) has a pock marked corner that was apparently produced by use as a hammerstone. Yone of these pebbles are illustrated. Artifacts of Bone and Antler

Drill Caps (3earing Rests) and Wedges

Drill caps or bearing rests illustrated by :,!elson

(1899:Plate XXXVII) and Yurdoch (1892:177) for use with bow drills are mostly of the elaborately carved variety for holding

in the mouth. However, Yelson also illustrates a few simple specimens (Plate XXXVII, 24, 29, and 3G) that obviously were hand-held pieces. Only specimens of the simple hand-held variety were recovered from YAR-007. Drill caps consist of segments of antler beam with one hemispherical depression (0.8 to 1.5 cm diameter) on one of the broad sides.

Wedges from the site are also segments of antler.

Several of the wedges have a hemispherical depression which

indicates secondary use as a hand-held drill caps. I have

combined the description of wedges and drill caps, but it is

important to note that there are three categories of tools: those

that are only wedges, those that are only drill caps, and those

that served both functions. The artifacts that served these

three functions are listed in ?able 7. Within the "tool type"

column of Table 7, W, C, and WC are respectively used to indicate

the three funtional categories.

Figure 54 illustrates three of the tools. PJote the

hemispherical depressions on specimens 6/13 and 6/80. Specimen

2/103 is a wedge only. Length ranges from about 5 to 20 an. .

Specific measurements are given in Table 7 along with width and

thickness. Lengths are the maximum dimension that exist on the Figure 54. A sample of wedges and drill caps from Trench 1.

A. A combination wedge/drill cap (artifact 6/13 -- Component 2). Al. Side view of artifact 6/13. B. b!ote the distinct beveling from one side to creats the cutting bit on this combination antler wedge/drill cap (artifact 6/80 -- Component 1) .

B1. Side view of artifact 6/80. C. An antler wedge (artifact 2/103 -- Component 3)

C1. Side view of artifact 2/103. tools. Width and thickness measurments are from the mid-point at right angles to each other.

Oval, rather than round cross-sectional antler segments predominate. ,Antler wedges were sharpened from one side to form the beveled edge. The bevel is readily apparent in Figure 54 81.

Though the antler wedges are symmetrically tapered with respect to a longitudinal plane, one face is natural antler cortex. The symmetry is the result of natural curvature on one face and artificial curvature on the opposite. The single ivory wedge

(Figur? 54 4) was shaped by working both faces.

TASLE 7. Physical characteristics of wedges and drill caps.

Catalog Length Width Thickness later ial Tool* Plumber Type

antler antler antler antler

ivory antler

antler antler antler

pp * W = used as wedge only -- C = used as drill cap only -- WC = used as both wedge and drill cap. Antler Hoops

There are four antler hoop fragments from the trench.

The hoops were made from the exterior cortex of antler. Height and thickness are approximately 2.5 X 8.5 cm. All are badly deteriorated. Only artifact 4/252 (Component 1) is illustrated

(Figure 59 D). It is fragmentary.

The two most complete hoops (2/281 and 2/282) and a third small fragment (2/283) were found together on F 3/5 of Component

3. % hoop formed by the two most complete specimens is circular witha diameter of roughly 25 crn. Each artifact forms half the circle. If the ends were overlapped and bound together, the diameter of the circle would be about 15 cm. In addition to having several holes drilled within 7 cm of the ends, each hoop has 0.5 cm diameter holes drilled at approximately 3.5 cm

intervals along their length 0.3 cm from one edge of the hoop.

The form and size suggest these antler hoops probably were part of an ice scoop like those illustrated by Elurdoch (1892:308) and

Velson (1899:LXII). ~?urdoch'sline drawing best illustrates the

form. The several holes at the ends were used to bind the two pieces together for attachment to a long handle. In the specimen

illustrated by Murdoch, baleen was used to lace across the hoop

in the fashion of a tennis racket. The holes drilled along the

scoop margin were used to pass the lashing from one side to

another. Bone Scrapers

There are three bone scrapers that were made from the back surface (longitudinal half) of caribou metatarsals. Only artifact 2/333 is illustrated (rigure 59 a). Specimen ?/I38

(Component 2) is so deteriorated that no worked surface remains.

Function is infered from the portion of bone which constitutes the specimen and the specific position of the "breaks" that formed it. Had the two better preserved specimens not been recovered this artifact would have gone unrecognized.

Artifact 2/52 (Component 3) consists of the entire longitudinal section of the back surface of a caribou metatarsal.

The cutting edge is on the distal end. It is very similar to the tool illustrated by Giddings (1964:Plate 22) as a "two handed scraper, bone". It is too deteriorated to tell if the sides were used as scraping surfaces as Giddings' figure caption suggests.

Dimensions of the specimen are 19.9 X 2.32 X 0.86 cm.

The best preserved of the three specimens is artifact

2/333 -- Component 2 (Figure 59 B). It consists of only one of the two ridges that form the back surface of a caribou metatarsal. The gross form of the tool was produced by splitting the bone longitudinally by cutting between the ridges and on one lateral surface of the bone. Only at the distal end does a portion of the second ridge remain. Leaving a portion of the second ridge at the end widened the cutting edge to 1.76 cm. The cutting edge is perpendicular to the long axis of the tool.

Dimensions of the tool are 19.3 X 1.76 X 1.35 cm. Digging Tools

TWO digging tools were recovered very close together in

House Locus 3 (Y2). Both are large-scale digging implements.

The first (2/355 -- Component 2 not illustrated) is the distal

8.2 cm of a walrus tusk that is part of a composite tool which

Nelson (1899:75) called a "root pick." The break pattern

indicates that the tusk was broken by a prying motion such as would be exerted in using a root pick. The tip has been shaped

to a wedge form; in fact, I would have designated it as a wedge

if the proximal end was battered rather than being a cleanly broken surface. Distinct gouge marks from shaping and/or use exist on the tool fragment. Other than within the gouged zones,

the ivory surface is polished. 80th effects probably are the result of use; the gouged areas from abrasion against stone and

the polish by abrasion against fine grained material.

The second digging tool (2/359 -- Component 2) is a

spatulate bone implement (mattock) (Figure 55). One surface is a

natural exterior bone surface. The opposite face is the interior

surface of the compact substance that constitutes the bone cortex. That face is rough, porous surface of the spongy medullary cavity (Sisson 1953: 21) . Judging from the slightly

curved shape when viewed in cross-section and from the general

thickness of the cortex, it probably was made from a whale rib.

The working edge is battered from striking rocks and scattered

gouge marks occur on both faces. Within 6 cm of the cutting edge

of the tool, both surfaces have a dull polish from use. The

necked down area at the proximal end may have facilitated hafting similar to that of root picks. Pitting of the surface across the tool at position C in Figure 55 also may indicate hafting.

'Tiniature Harpoon Socket Piece

Artifact 4/425 (Component 1) is a tiny replica of a harpoon socket piece. It is illustrated as 7igure 56 A.

Dimensions of the specimen are 5.04 X 0.74 X 0.72 cm with the flattened tang being 1.40 cm long. Cross-section at the largest diameter is square with slightly rounded corners. A 0.30 cm diameter hole is drilled into the distal end. The item probably was a toy, but it may have been a functional hunting tool.

Though usually somewhat larger, socket pieces for use with harpoon arrows (used with bone points described below) approach the size of artifact 4/425 ("tzhugh and Raplan 1982:71).

Bone Points

Artifact 2/236 (Cgmponent 2) consists of two nontoggling dart points (Fitzhugh and Kaplan 1982:70) tied together with a single, untwisted strand of grass. Ts illustrated in Figure R3, the condition of the antler points is quite deteriorated. An artist's reconstruction illustrates the dart points as they probably appeared. As illustrated, one of the points has two barbs, the other has a single barb. Reconstructed length, width, and thickness are 6.72 X 1.30 X 0.38 cm and 5.46 X 0.98 X 0.45 cm. Both have line holes for tying to the dart shaft and flat, and tapering tangs for insertion into the dart socket piece. The Figure 55. Top and side view sketch of a large digging tool (mattock) made of a whale rib (artifact 2/359 -- Component 2) .

Figure 56. Harpoon socket piece and two non-toggling dart points.

A. A miniature harpoon socket piece (4/425 -- Component 1) .

B. Drawing of two, non-toggling harpoon points in highly deteriorated condition (2/236 -- Component 2) . 51. Reconstruction of artifact 2/236. Vote that a blade of grass ties the blades together.

C. Drawing of the opposite face of artifact 2/236 -- Component 2.

C1. Reconstruction of opposite face of artifact 2/236. overall arrangement for use of this type of dart point is illustrated in Plate LVa of hielson (1899).

Rone lrrow/Dart Points

Though in very poor condition, artifact 6/11 (Component

3) is the conical tang of a bone arrow point. Yelson (1899:Plate

LXI) illustrates the arrow point type, but no detail shows in his greatly reduced plate. ''urdoch (1892: 205) shows the general form much better in a line drawing. "gure 57 A is a hypothetical reconstruction of the general artifact form based on ethnographic examples and the existing fragment. For the blade shape, I followed 'lurdoch's drawing. There is considerable variation in the specific form of bone arrow points in western Alaska and the specific form of the blade of the YAR-007 specimen likely differed from the reconstruction sketch.

The bone point illustrated in Figures 57 B and 59 C, C7

(4/4@1 -- Component 1) has a different tang form than artifact

6/11. Though it may have been an arrowhead, it was more likely a bone spear point or dart point. Length of the tang, total specimen length, width, and thickness are 2.58, 20.1 X 1.25 X

0.85 an. The surface illustrated in Figure 57 B is decorated with incised lines. The opposite face is the rough material of

the spongy substance of the bone interior and is not decorated

(Figure 59 Cl). The decorated surface has a single incised line

along the entire length of the point. Along one margin there is

a prominent spur near the tip and further along the margin

towards the tang a second less pronounced barb.

Though fragmentary and having a badly deteriorated surface, artifact 5/103 (Component 1 -- not illustrated) probably is an spear point similar to 4/401. It is a medial segment with remnants of one barb and incised lines originating at the corner of the barb as in 4/401. ~t is roughly of the same diameter as

4/401 and was of similar size.

Artifact 7/36 (Component 3 -- not illustrated) is an ivory rod with length and diameter neasuring 10.47 X 8.82 cm. It tapers slightly along its entire length, but at the end with largest diameter, the rod is abruptly tapered (beveled) . The rod is broken at this point. It may be a conical tang arrow point, but further identification is not possible.

Zoomorphic and Decorative 3one Carvings

There are several artfully carved bone knife handles. In fact, one of the three bone zoomorphic carvings is the knife handle illustrated in Figures 9, 30, and 46. The other two zoomorphic carvings are artifacts 2/284 and 6/144 (Yigure 58).

Artifact 2/284 (Component 2) is a device designated as a "drag handle" by Nelson (1899:712) . This particular specimen is a carving of a seal (Figure 58 A). It has two holes drilled through it with the space between the holes on one side cut away for about half the thickness of the artifact. The complete tool had a loop of cord permanently attached which passed through the holes in the carving. The carving served as a hand hold in dragging heavy loads. For example, if a seal were killed, a small double slit could be cut in the skin (perhaps through the Figure 58. A selection of bone artifacts from Trench 1.

A. "drag handle" carved in the shaped of a seal (2/284 -- Component 2).

~l.Opposite side of artifact (2/284).

5. Bone hunting helmet decoration (6/144 -- Component 1) in its deteriorated state.

91. Reconstruction sketch of artifact 6/144.

C. Sent bone bucket handle with split root and braided grass lashing in place at one end (4/147 -- Component 2). See also Figure P18F3.

D. 4 decorated bone or stone "button" (5/234 -- Component 1).

E. A puffin bill with part of a vegetal fiber inside (2/132 -- Coinponent 1).

F. A bone item of unknown function (5/255 -- Component 1) . lip) and the end of the cord loop passed under the patch of skin produced by the cuts. Once the loop protruded, the handle was passed through the loop and the cord pulled tight producing a short line attachment to the animal with a convenient hand size cross-piece. Dimensions of the drag handle are 7.83 X 2.05 X

1.42 cm.

Yrtifact 6/144 (Component 2) probably is a decoration for

a hunting helmet (Nelson 1899:166). The specimen has the general

outline of a whale with a human face superimposed near the center

(Figure 58 8). The opposite surface has no design and is flat to

slightly concave. The four black spots on the drawing are pin

size drilled holes that do not go through to the opposite side.

Perhaps the holes were insertion points for hair decorations such

as are present on some of the wood carvings from the site (Figure

27). The larger holes at the two ends probably were for

attachment to the surface of a wooden hunting helmet. Overall

dimensions of the carving are 6.20 X 2.00 X 0.53 cm.

Artifact 5/234 (Component 1)is a button-shaped object

with incised lines and drilled holes decorating one surface

(Figure 58 D). The undecorated opposite face is irregularly

concave. An oval hole at the center goes through the object, but

the four pin size holes at the corners go only about half way

through the button. In cross-section, the button is

concavo-convex. Dimensions of the button are 1.22 X 1.22 X 0.32

crn. I am unsure of the material from which the button is made.

It is black. It might be charred ivory or jet (a variety of

coal). Puffin Rill

~rtifact2/132 (Component 3) is the horn sheath from the beak of puffin (Figure 58 E) . It has been flattened by compression in the midden, but otherwise is in excellent condition. ~t measures 3.27 X 1.45 cm. In addition to having a notch cut into the upper margin near the distal end, there are strands of vegetal fiber projecting from the proximal opening that appear to have been intentionally placed there.

Puffin beaks were used as decorative elements and for rattles. Both Fitzhugh and Kaplan (1982:209), and Thiry and

Thiry (1977:278) illustrate dance paraphernalia with puffin beaks attached.

Carved Tooth

Artifact 5/71 (Component 2 -- not illustrated) is a canine that was originally 3.8 cm long and is probably from a canid. The distal 63.5 cm of the enamel tip of the tooth has been cut perpendicular to the tooth core and a 0.5 mm diameter hole has been drilled into the flat surface. qdditionally, the lateral margins of the enamel crown have been carved away to expose the core of the tooth, The cut faces of the crown are parallel. The root of the tooth is unmodified. The function is uncertain, but it may have been a pendant. Bucket Handle

Artifact 4/147 consists of three elements: a curved bone handle, a split root lashing that connected the handle to the bucket, and a fragment of three-strand, plated grass cord

(Figures 58 C and 59 A). A straight line drawn between the ends of the curved bucket bottom is 14.8 cm long. he length from the midpoint of that line to the bottom of the bucket handle is 2.9 cm. At the center of the handle, the cross-section is roughly circular and the diameter is 0.60 cm. Near the ends, the diameter is slightly less where the handle starts to flare and flatten about 2.5 cm from the ends. There are two drilled holes in the end without the split root material, but one is broken through to form the current end of the handle. At the other end

there is only one hole. Four strands of split root pass through the hole. One of those strands is wrapped around the others

immediately after passing through the hole. After wrapping the bundle of split roots eight times, the end of the strand is tucked under the last wrap and snipped off. The split roots are broken off flush with or less than 2 cm below the wrapping. This bundle of roots is the mechanism by which the handle and bucket

were attached. The three-strand, plated cord is wraped around

the root wraped bundle and is tied with two overhand knots. The

two loose cord ends flank the split root bundle in Figure 58 C.

The specific nature of the bucket to which the handle was

attached is unknown. Figure 59. A selection of bone artifacts from Trench 1.

A. Bone bucket handle (4/147 -- Component 2) B. Caribou metapodial scraper (2/333 -- Component 2)

C. Bone spearpoint (4/401 -- Component 1)

C1 Opposite side of 4/401 D. Antler hoop fragment (4/252 -- Component 2) E. Artifact (2/354 -- Component 2) El. Opposite side of 2/354 F. Artifact (2/312 -- Component 2)

G. Dog mandible with a strand of grass tied around it (4/116 -- Component 2) H. Antler tine for flaking stone (2/373 -- Component 1)

Antler Net Weight

Artifact 3/7 (Component 3 -- not illustrated) is a fragment of an antler net weight. Such weights were common in the historic period, and Nelson (1899:188) illustrated the means of attaching such weights to the lower margin of seines. This particular specimen has one end missing, but probably was not over 3 cm longer originally. Current length, width, and thickness are 12.1 X 3.0 X 1.85 cm. The weight is 39 grams.

Miscellaneous Bone Items Of Unknown Function

There are several interesting bone and antler specimens for which the function is unknown. These are distinctive enough to warrant separate description. Length and width measurements are taken approximately as shown in the illustrations and thickness is taken perpendicular to that view. Perhaps with the data presented, the reader will be able to identify the specimen more reliably than the speculative function suggested in the text or figure captions. The descriptions are simply presented by catalog number.

Artifact 2/312

This specimen is obviously a finished, whole item (Figure

59 F). It probably is part of a composite tool, but I do not

know what the function was. Length and largest diameter are 17.5 cm and 2.15 cm. The cross-section is roughly round except that the side of the item with the large side prong is flattened

slightly. It was recovered from Component 2.

~rtifact2/354

~othsides of bone artifact 2/354 (Component 2) are shown

in Figure 59. The face of the tool shown as Figure 59 E is

slightly concave within 5 cm of the narrow end. It measures 14.6 x 1.74 X 0.75 and is 0.77 cm thick near the center. The drilled holes suggest that the item was lashed or pegged to another part.

Rone plate armor is superficially similar and occurs on the

Delta, but this specimen is not plate armor. No plate armor was

found at MAR-007.

Artifact 2/373

Artifact 2/373 (Component 1) is made from an antler tine

(Figure 59 H). The distal tip is broken off, but the proximal

end has facets from being cut from the antler beam and being

carved to shape. The object is roughly oval in cross-section.

The small diameter end has been scraped along its length to form

long, narrow, parallel flats around the tool circumference for

two thirds of the tool length. The length and maximum diameter

of the specimen are 8.43 and 1.75 an.

The overall shape of this object approximates that of the

bone fishhook illustrated by Fitzhugh and Kaplan (1982:96) from

the Nelson collection. This item may be an unfinished fishhook,

but I am reluctant to designate it as such because there are no other indications of line fishing in Component 1, and this item probably is a stone flaking tool.

Artifact 4/116

The dog mandible shown in Figure 59 G is unmodified other than having a strand of grass tied around it. I can suggest no functional purpose. It is simply a curiosity. It was recovered from Component 2.

Artifact 5/255

Artifact 5/255 (Component 1) is made of bone in the shape illustrated in Figure 55 F. Rectangular holes occur through both sides illustrated in the cross-section. Dimensions of the object are 3.39 x 1.06 X 0.57 cm. The item obviously was designed to slip over the edge of another item, but I have no idea what was the specific function. Artifacts of Plant Fiber

Even though woven materials and miscellaneous other articles made mostly of grass account for 9% of the catalog entries, there is little variety among the 134 woven artifacts.

I will briefly describe a selection of the better preserved woven artifacts. Intensive analysis of the basketry is reserved for a later paper. From the examination of the artifacts and the analysis of stratigraphic distribution conducted thus far, woven goods appear to be of the same types throughout the midden. Items such as the small bag filled with teeth (Figure 67) and the net (Figure 61 A) from Component 3 give their respective each components a unique character, but when the sample size of a particular weave or artifact type is large, it occurs in all components. Since most of the specimens are fragmentary, the weave form and species used are all that remain to be reported. Whether the original artifact was a mat or one of several bag forms is not discernable from most of the fragments.

The primary raw material of artifacts discussed here is grass. Calamagrostis canadensis is a pioneer species on disturbed localities, and archaeological sites usually are covered with dense stands up to 1 m high. Even while occupied, mounds such as YAR-007 had dense Calamagrostis stands in in£requently used areas.

Salt grass which infests coastal dune and storm flood - areas, is currently used for manufacturing twined bags and mats.

Salt grass probably is the material from which many of the woven articles of the trench are made. sedges and other plants with long stems and/or blades also were selected for manufacture of woven goods. Remnants of basket traps for capturing fish were made of split wood slats (Figure 40 A) and root lashing material. Basket traps were classified and described with "Artifacts of Wood'' earlier in this chapter. The main categories of artifacts discussed in this section are cordage, a single net fragment, grass insoles, and twined basketry which includes both mats and bags.

Cordage

There are 58 catalog entries for cordage specimens from

Trench 1. Of the 58 samples, 54 are currently with the

collection. One piece was discarded in the field and three are

not accounted for. All except one (sinew) are vegetal fiber.

Grass blades are the predominant material. Five types of cordage

are represented, but plaited (braided) cord made of three strips

predominates.

Forty-six samples are plaited grass or sedge cords

consisting of three strips (Figure 60 A-C). Strips (ldovasio

1977:107) consist of one to several strands of plant fiber.

Strip diameter determines the diameter of the finished cord. The

mean and extremes of strip diameter in the samples are 0.52,

1.06, and 0.14 an. The mean and extremes of the finished cord

diameter are 1.00, 2.16, and 0.28 cm. The artifacts that

establish the large and small extremes of cordage size are Figure 60. Explanatory drawing of cordage from Trench 1.

4. Three-strip plaited cord of large diameter with a bound end (3/42 -- Component 2) . 5. Three-strip plaited cord of average diameter (2/166 -- Component 2). C. Three-strip plaited cord of small diameter (4/121 -- Component 2).

D. A twisted cord of two strips illustrating a spiral that twists to the right. E. A twisted cord of two strips illustrating a spiral that twists to the left.

F. Schematic of the knot (sheet bend) used to tie the intersections of the net artifact 2/162 (Figure W2A). illustrated in Figure 60 along with an intermediate specimen that approximates the mean. Forty-one of the specimens are cordage fragments with no particular distinguishing features, but eight have a knot. Length varies up to 60 cm. Longer cords exist in the site, but width of the trench excavation limited the lengths recovered. Many cord fragments were broken before excavation, but it was not unusual to have to cut a cord at the wall to continue the excavation downward. .Fragments about 20 cm long are common.

Four cords consist of two strips rather than three.

These cords were formed by twisting the ends of the strips in opposing directions while the opposite ends were held secure.

That action caused the strips to wrap around each other in a spiral. Depending on the direction of rotation, the cords will be either twisted to the right or to the left (Figure 60 D, E).

The twist of three cords is up-to-the-left. The fourth is up-to-the-right (Figure 60 D-E). ~iameterof the cords ranges from 0.20 to 0.83 an.

There is one cord (5/148) that consists of an untwisted or unbraided sinew fragment about 25 cm long. A short length of three-strip, plaited cord is tied to one end of the sinew.

There are several blades of grass in the one strip which composes artifact 4/12 (Component 2 -- not illustrated) . The strip was constructed by twisting so that the elements within the strip spiral along its length, but do not interlock as in cords made by twisting two strips together. This cord was formed by holding the single strip firmly at both ends and twisting

(rotating) one end.

In addition to twisted and plaited cords, single blades of grass were used to tie articles together. Though not cordage 8 in a strict sense, the single blades served the same function as light cordage when minimal strength was needed. Examples of that use are illustrated by artifacts 2/236 (Figure 56 R, C) and 4/116 (Figure 59 G) .

Net

One net specimen (2/162 -- Component 3) was recovered from the upper part of House Locus 1 (Figure 16). It is in excellent condition, but is very fragile. Before being deposited in the mound, the net itself was tied into a loose bundle by passing a loop of the net through the opening of an overhand knot

(Figure 61 A). Because it is so fragile, I have not attempted to untie it and determine the overall shape. I am sure that attempting to untie the net even after rewetting would destroy the specimen and result in little if any information beyond what is observable in its current state.

I am unsure of the original form of the net, but judging from the size of the specimen, it may have been a dip net. The interval between knots usually is 6.5 cm, but on one of the broken segments an inter-knot distance of 3.5 cm exists. The unequal knot spacing and the small mass of the artifact suggest a small dip net. Net weights of the type used with seines occur in Figure 61. A net and an insole from House Locus 1.

4. Net (2/162 -- Component 3) . See also Figure 60 F.

B. Grass insole for lining boots (2/346 -- Component 2) . the site. Though unlikely, the specimen may be a small fragment of a seine.

The. knots used to form the net are modified sheet bends

(Graumont and Hensel 1977: Fig.149). That knot is diagramed in

Figure 60 F.

The cords from which the net is made consist of two strips with the twist up-to-the-left (Figure 60 E). The construction detail is like that of a willow bark dip net illustrated by Nelson (1899:187). The material probably is the inner bark of willow since, that material was in common use for nets throughout western Alaska in the historic period (Zagoskin

1967:219; Giddings 1952:34; Nelson 1899:110).

Insoles

There are four grass insoles or boot liners (Figure 61 B) which were used as a lining to insulate the bottom of skin boots.

Though not woven, the material of which insoles were made and their general appearance dictates description in this section.

Insoles consist of a bundle of grass bent double to roughly the size and shape of the foot. The bundle (as in the case of the insole illustrated in Figure 61 B) may have been

twisted a couple times during the the process of shaping. The bundle of grass comprising an insole is compressed to a thickness

of 1 to 2 cm and has d.istinctly definable edges and ends. One

specimen is a small fragment and measurments of it are not

representative of the original artifact. The other two measure

11 X 26 and 8 X 20 cm. Nelson (1899:43) mentions the use of such grass insoles historically in all types of boots. Giddings

(1964:Plate 25) illustrates an archaeological specimen recovered at Nukleet.

Twined Basketry

Adovasio (1977: 1) applies the term "basketry" to a variety of woven items including mats, baskets, and bags. He characterizes mats as essentially two dimensional, flat items; baskets as three dimensional objects generally capable of standing erect by virtue of inherent structural rigidity; and bags as intermediate in the sense of having approximately two dimensions when empty, but three dimensions when filled, Only mats and bags have been recovered from MAR-007.

Adovasio subdivides weaving for basketry into three mutually exclusive, taxomomically distinct classes called twining, coiling, and plaiting. Regardless of the shape or

function of the item, only twined basketry occurs in the Trench 1 collection. Both mats and bags were constructed by twining.

The body of twined basketry has two elements: warps and wefts (Figure 62). The edge finish is called a selvage (side selvages are perpendicular to the weft regardless of what length or width dimensions suggest as the ends or sides -- Figure 62). Weaving is accomplished by passing the weft around warp elements

with the weft aligned horizontally. The weft is said to be

active and the warps passive in the weaving process. All Trench

1 samples except one (artifact 2/241 - Figure 67) are simple,

open twined basketry. Despite technological uniformity, the Pigure 62. Basketry terminology designated on a simple, open twined mat fragment from Component 2 (2/360) (~dovasio1977: 15) .

A. Warp elements.

5. Weft element along torn edge - weft was originally continuous throughout the mat.

C. Weft interval.

D. Simple twined side selvage of a continuous wef t . E. Length, width, side and end are determined in relation to weft (regardless of the overall object dimensions) the weft is defined as horizontal in twined basketry and width is measured parallel with the we£ t .

Figure 63. Calamagrostis canadensis mats from Trench 1 (note that the figure is arranged horizontally and should be viewed so that wefts are horizontal).

A. Calamaqrostis mat 5/170 -- Component 1. R. Calamagrostis mat 4/392 -- Component 1. appearance, shape, and function of woven artifacts vary, but not in a mutually exclusive way. There are specimens which clearly are mats, specimens that clearly are bags, and specimens that might be either. Regardless of function, all are twined. ~hough clearly identifiable as twined basketry, most of the specimens are fragmentary and the original form, hence function, is impossible to determine.

-Mats Nelson (1899:202) illustrates and discussed the historical use of mats in western Alaska. Within houses, mats were used to cover benches, as hanging partitions to divide internal space, and as bedding. Outside the houses mats were used for a variety of purposes including kayak sails (1899: Plate

LXXVII) and seat cushions.

Figure 64 illustrated two mats of a type common on floors of the trench. Most mats of this type are made of Calamagrostis canadensis (a tall grass) stalks, but other species were used.

Dispite that, I will refer to this type as "Calamagrostis mats."

Warps are composed of bundles of plant stalks and blades (usually more than 15 individual plants) measuring 1 x 3 cm with the weft consisting of about half the bulk of the warp. Length (recall that length/width is defined by relation to the weft) of the most complete specimens ranges from 50 to 70 cm. Original length was determined in many instances by height of the plant. Bundles of

Calamagrostis, some with root fragments still attached, constitute the warps. There was no staggering of the plants to Figure 64. Woven fragments from Trench 1.

A. Fat 2/360 -- Component 2. See also Figure 62.

8. !!at 4/271 -- Component 1.

275 lengthen the warp and thereby increase mat length. A handful of grass seems simply to have been uprooted and used as one warp element.

4 continuous weft through the entire mat is normal. Weft

rows are spaced at 15 to 20 cm. Large mat fragments have two,

sometimes three, weft rows with no selvage binding the mat edges.

Side selvages are the simple twined form illustrated in Figure 62

(Adovasio 1977: Figure 44). Most specimens of this type give the appearance of being produced very quickly and probably were considered expendable. But the well-made nature of artifact 2/78

(Component 3) argues against that assertion being universally

true since that particular i tern is rather well-made. Artifact 2/78 is the largest specimen of this mat type

and it is complete. This specimen measures 138 (width) by 70 cm

with a continuous weft throughout. On one end, warp ends are

folded back on themselves and bound by the last weft row to form

a selvage (Adovasio 1977: Figure 36 or 38). The opposite mat

edge consists of the cut, unbound ends of the plant stalks that

constitute the warps (Adovasio 1977: Figure 32). On that margin

the warp elements project beyond the first weft row about 10 cm.

There are four weft rows (including the one used to bind the end

selvage) at 20 cm intervals. At the mat ends, the weft is

continued from one row to the next by twisting the two weft

elements together as illustrated in Figure 62. The mat is folded

in an S-curve and flattened. It is in excellent condition except along the margin with the weft bound selvage. There it is quite

deteriorated. Nelson (Plate LXXIV, 15) illustrates a mat of another type which he calls a sleeping mat. Fragments of this type mat are from Trench 1. Figure 64 illustrates two fragments of that type mat. As with the mats described above, the weave is simple, open twining, but the appearance is quite different from that of a Calamagrostis mat. 1n this mat type, both the warp and weft consist only of a few plant blades. It is much less bulky than a

Calamagrostis mat and obviously required less expenditure of time to construct. Rather than having the length restricted to height of the plant, warp length is increased by adding additional plant blades in a staggered fashion. Length for continuous wefts is produced in the same way.

Figure 65 shows a corner of mat 3/159. The end selvage along the margin marked A is formed by folding warp ends and binding the ends with the last weft row (Adovasio 1977: Figure 38b) . The weft is made continuous from one row to the next by the method illustrated by Figure 62, but a plaited (braided) cord of three elements (marked B in Figure 65) constitutes the last warp. The arrangement gives the selvage a complicated, composite appearance.

Figure 66 shows a portion of mat 4/264. Though originally there may have been an end selvage (marked A in Figure

66), the warps now are truncated in the fashion illustrated by

Adavisio in Figure 32. The side selvage is of the variety

illustrated in Figure 62. The weft interval is 5 m. Each warp consists of about five thicknesses of plant material (probably plant blades) and it is markedly thicker than artifact 3/159 Figure 65. A corner of mat 3/159 (Component 1) showing selvage fragments on two edges at 90' to each other.

A. End selvage formed by folding the warp back on itself and binding with the last weft row (Adovasio 1977: Fig. 38b).

B. Side selvage of the type illustrated in Figure 62, but given a complicated, composite appearance by using a three-strand, plaited cord as the last warp element .

Figure 66. A corner of mat 4/264 (Component 1).

A. End selvage of the ;ariety illustrated by Adovasio (1977) in Figure 32.

9. Side selvage of the variety illustrated in Figure W3. which has only one or two thicknes-ses of plant material in each warp. In both specimens the elements of a warp are laid flat.

In a few other specimens, the warp elements are twisted into a spiral by holding one end and twisting the other. sags Nelson (1899: Plate LXXIV) shows several bags of open, twined construction. Though the interval of weft rows in bags tends to be closer, and the warp thinner, there is significant overlap in the range of characteristics of bags and mats. The most distinctiye parts of bags that allow identification are the mouth and the bottom. In ethnographic specimens, the selvage at the mouth usually is composite and has a complicated appearance. Near a bag bottom the number of warps is fewer which decreases the diameter; consequently, the bag wall is curved and in some cases will not lay flat when unfolded. Unfortunately, there are few specimens which unquestionably can be identified as bags. Because the same materials are used, the basic construction is the same, and the specimens are fragmentary; conclusive assignment of many specimens to either category is impossible. This is especially true if bags resemble those illustrated as items 11 and 14 of Nelson's Plate LXXIV. Artifact 2/241 (~igure67) is a small bag measuring roughly 7 by 9 an when flat. The bag contains numerous small incisor teeth. The dominant wall construction is a close twining by which the warp elements are almost hidden because of the closeness of the weft rows. It is very different in appearance Pigure 67. A schematic sketch of a bag (2/241 -- Component 3) from House Floor 4/4a containing many tiny incisor teeth.

1. Unbound warps crossing at the bottom form the lower part of the bag. The bottom may have been plated -- structure of the bottom is uncertain. 2. First weft row.

3. Number of warps increased to produce greater bag diameter.

4. Selvage segment.

284 from the other bags at MAR-007 even though the weaving technique is the same. The difference in appearance is produced by the weft rows being placed so that the rows touch. Other bags have markedly greater space between the weft rows so that elements of the warp are clearly visible. The wall appearance is like that illustrated by the mat fragment in Figure 65.

Bag 2/241 has four warps and five wefts per centimeter.

4s illustrated in Figure 67 [interpreted with the help of Dale

Croes (1977) who analyzed the basketry from the Ozette Site] the number of warps increases about mid-way on the bag (arrow 3) to increase bag diameter. The bottom of the bag (arrow 1) consists only of the warp elements and the structure is uncertain.

The first weft (arrow 2) is located about 1 cm up on the side wall. The top selvage (arrow 4) is deteriorated and its structure is unclear, but a short segment has the appearance of being braided, The specific means of producing that appearance is unknown. Pottery

There are 369 pottery sherds from Trench 1. These are cataloged by 229 catalog numbers. Twentyone catalog numbers designate more than one sherd. In most of those instances, the sherds grouped together are thought to belong to one vessel. Por instance, the partially reconstructed vessel illustrated as

Figure 69 is cataloged as artifact 8/28 with 76 sherds. The catalog numbers that grouped more than one sherd contain only two sherds. Most of the instances where large numbers of sherds are designated occur in Component 1 where several crushed check stamp vessels were recovered.

Check Stamp Pottery

Check stamp sherds predominate in the pottery collection.

Of the total of 369 sherds, 245 are check stamped sherds grouped under 107 catalog numbers.

The overall form of check stamp vessels is the situla

(flower pot) form (Laguna 1940:69) in which the vessel mouth is

somewhat larger than the base so that vessel diameter steadily

increases with height. The reconstructed and complete vessels

shown in Figures 68 and 69 illustrate this form. These two specimens also appear respectively to be the. smallest and largest vessels with check stamp surface treatment at the site. Other vessels appear to be intermediate in size. Diameter of the mouth

and the base of pot 84/297 is 8 and 5 cm; for pot 8/28 the Figure 68. Complete check stamp pot (4/297) from Component 1.

4. Sideview.

5. Obl ique/end view.

Figure 69. partially reconstructed check stamp pot (8/28) from Component 1. diameters are 17 and 12 cm. Height of the vessels is 9 cm and 34 cm. The bases of two other crushed pots (not yet reconstructed) are sufficiently intact that the bases can be measured. Roth are

10 cm in diameter (Figure 70 I).

Size of the individual checks ranges from 2.5 mm square to 5.2 x 6.7 m. The mean is approximately 5.0 mm square. Most checks are square, but some are distinctly rectangular. The lands which bound the checks vary from 1 to 3 mm, with a mean of

2 mm (see Figure 70 J, K). Several factors affect color of pots recovered archaeologically. One is differential firing which causes areas on the pot to be different colors. Other factors include staining and coating during use. Many of the sherds are encrusted with organic residue that has been reduced to carbon during use directly in fires. The predominant color is brown

(10YR5/3) to black (10YR2/1) ; however, occasionally there are very pale brown (10YR8/4) sherds. The temper is predominantly subrounded to rounded sand in the 0.25 to 1 mm size range that is abundant and readily apparent when examined under a binocular microscope. About 5% of the check stamp sherds have readily apparent grass temper, but it is not abundant in the sherds in which it occurs. Even in sherds with grass temper, subrounded to rounded sand is the dominant

temper. t

Wall thickness of vessels vary between 0.45 and 1.4 cm with a mean of approximately 0.9 cm. Base thickness falls in the

1.1 to 1.4 cm range. Figure 70. A selection of check stamp pottery and the two plain ware sherds recovered in Locus 1, Component 1.

A. Rim sherd 2/342*.

B. Rim sherd 5/281.

C. Rim sherd 5/147.

D. Rim sherd 3/33*.

E. Rim sherd 7/44".

F. Rim sherd 4/193.

G. ~imsherd 6/140.

H. Split check stamp sherd (8/30) showing exterior surface.

HI. Katching split sherd (8/30) showing the exfoliated core of the sherd -- interior surface of the pot is on the opposite side.

I. Plan view photo of the bottom of a check stamp pot (4/339). Note striations on the bottom of the pot created by smoothing the paste with the fingers.

J. Body sherd showing smallest checks present.

R. Body sherd showing large size of checks.

L. Plain ware sherd 4/362 interior surface (Component 1). M. Plain ware sherd 4/341 exterior surface (Component 1) . L and M probably from one vessel.

* Recovered from Component 2-3 &posits but thought to be displaced materisl that originated in Component 1.

The rim form is simple and uniform in the specimens collected. The lip generally is flat and slightly inverted or beveled so that if set upside-down, the lip rests smoothly against a flat surface (Figure 70 A-G).

!Tote that the sherds illustrated as Pigure 70 D, F-G are perforated by mending holes. The life of cracked pots was extended by lashing the pot together by means of the holes.

Split Sherds

There are 29 sherds that have split longitudinally within the vessel wall so that only the interior vessel surface is present. The opposite sherd face consists of the exposed core of the sherd. Oswalt (1955: 34) , Dumond -1969:21) , Lutz (1970:35) , and Mowak (1970~23have all noted the tendency of check stamp sherds to split in this way; presumably as a result of wall laminations produced by paddling during manufacture. ~n 1970

(Shaw 1970), I conducted temper and distribution analysis on the check stamp and split sherds, and based on that analysis I concluded that the split sherds from the trench are fragments of check stamp sherds. This conclusion is reinforced by the fact

that many check stamp sherds have split in the same manner or have cracks longitudinally within their walls (Figure 70 H-Hl).

Sherds of other types generally crumble rather than split

\ longitudinally within the wall. Sherds designated as "split"

only have the undecorated interior surface present. Sherds that

were split longitudinally, but have the decorated exterior

surface present are classified as check stamp sherds. In the discussion of sherd distribution that follows in Chapter 6, split sherds are regarded as check stamp specimens.

Barrow Curvilinear Sherds

Mine Barrow Curvilinear (Griffin and Wilmeth 1964:284) sherds that fit together to form roughly one-third of the upper part pf the original vessel (5/52) were recovered in Square 5

(Figure 71 A). These sherds were recovered immediately above the paleosol and are the only specimens of that type recovered. They are assigned to Component 2.

The nature of the vessel bottom is unknown, but the overall vessel form appears to have been globular. The lip is flat and is roughly perpendicular to.both the interior and exterior walls. The lip is slightly thickened within 5 mrn of the lip -- the vessel walls are 1.05 cm thick. The temper is predominantly coarse sand, but sparse

feathers are identifiable. The undulating interior surface of the vessel suggests the pot was manufactured by a patch mottling technique and that the exterior surface finish was applied after construction of the vessel was almost complete. Diameter of the original pot was at least 24 cm midway up the vessel. Diameter

of the mouth was somewhat smaller.

This type of pot was manufactured by the paddle and anvil \ technique. The paddle had a concentric circle design which

imprinted in the wet paste when the pot was struck. With the pot

surface having been struck repeatedly, the concentric circles

overlap to form the design illustrated in Figure 71 A. Figure 71. Sherds from Component 2.

A. Barrow Curvilinear rim and body fragments 5/52 (9 sherds) fitted together.

B. Lamp rim sherd 4/69.' Note that the lip is beveled and decorated with shellow grooves.

C. Lamp fragment 2/294 (two sherds) . Note that the lip is smoothly rounded and is undecorated -- this is the usual lip form.

Yukon Pottery Series

Oswalt (1955:37) defined and/or discussed several types of pottery including Yukon ~ine-dot, Yukon Lined, Hooper Bay

Shell Striated, Hooper Bay Zigzagged, Norton Linear Stamped,

Norton Check Stamped, and Seward Striated. He viewed these as associated types. his type association would be equivalent to

the series concept as elaborated by Wheat, Gifford, and Wasley

(1958). Oswalt appears to have associated too many types in his scheme of late prehistoric cultural development. I will argue that based on the MAR-007 data, Norton Check Stamp pottery should not be considered as a culturally contemporaneous element in late prehistoric - protohistoric components. However, there are a significant number of pottery types that were associated during that period. Though a large variety of types assignable to the Yukon Pottery series do not exist at MAR-007, at least two basic types are present.

Plain and/or Wiped Sherds

A total of 59 sherds grouped under 56 catalog entries were recovered from Trench 1 which have a plain or wiped surface finish. They are predominately equivalent to the plain ware Oswalt (1952b) found associated with the Yukon Wares at Hooper

Bay. Temper of these sherds is predominantly sand and/or crushed

\ rock (mostly scoria) , but a few have fiber- temper. Hardness, sherd thickness, and cohesiveness of the sherds is variable from

hard, sturdy sherds equal in quality to the check stamp ware, to sherds which crumble into the constituent paste and temper under moderate pressure between the fingers. Figure 72 F-G and Figure

70 L-M illustrate plain ware sherds. The latter two sherds were

found in Component I directly associated with check stamp sherds.

As is apparent in the illustrations, the surface of plain ware sherds differ considerably in appearance. Voids due to organic temper having burned out of the sherd wall are readily apparent in Figure 70 M. The inorganic tempered sherds in Figure

72 have a very different character. The lumpy surface of sherd

2/167 (Figure 72 G) is produced as a combined effect of a fine paste and a coarse sand temper -- the temper bulges through the

paste. Sherd F has a coarser paste, but a finer sand temper

which produced a more regular surface.

Despite the widely varying surf ace appearances, plain

ware sherds are not individually diagnostic. They occur in all

three components, but their distribution is not uniform

throughout the midden. Plain ware sherds are dominant in

Component 2 (see discussion of pottery distribution in Chapter

6) Sherds classified as wiped are essentially a plain ware

that have shallow surface striations (Figure 72 B). The

striations appear to have been created by wiping the vessel with

a fibrous (probably grass or moss) material during manufacture

while the paste was wet. Such surface tre\atment is also present

on shell/cord impressed sherds near the rim. Figure 72. A selection of sherds from Component 3.

A. Rim sherd 3/4 (Component 3) . Mote the double fillets and shell impressed surface decoration.

B. Rim sherd 2/2 (Component 3) with a wiped surface.

C. ~imsherd 6/1 (Component 3) with shell impressed surf ace.

r). Pody sherd 5/3 (Component 3) with fillet and shell impressed surface. It is position with respect to sherd 3/4 to show the approximate location of this body sherd with respect to the rim (fillets likely occurred at about the same position on both pots).

E. Body sherd 3/4 (Component 3) showing shell impressed design.

F. Plain ware body sherd 7/9 (Component 3). The hole was used to lash cracked pots back together with hide and/or split root.

G. Plain ware body sherd 2/167 (Component 3) . The irregular surf ace is caused by the use of well rounded, coarse sand (occasionally small pebbles) as temper.

Shell/Cord Impressed

Twenty-one sherds from 15 catalog entries were recovered.

~llare assignable to Oswalt's (1955) Hooper Ray Shell Striated

(Figure 72 A, C-E). Oswalt attributes the surface finish to striating the wet paste with a basket cockle shell (Clinocardium nuttalli) . However, some of the surface treatment on MAR-007 specimens may have been produced by using a cord (two strands twisted together -- Figure 60 0-E) wrapped paddle. The impressions are indistinct and generally overlap on the sherds so that the specific means of finishing the surface is uncertain. The sherds are relatively hard and do not crumble easily under pressure applied with the finger, but the sherds can be broken with relative ease in the hands. Sherd thicknesses range from 0.6 to 1.2 cm. The temper is predominantly coarse sand

(occasionally crushed rock) and a significant number of the sherds have at least some organic (plant) temper intermixed.

Ten sherds have a narrow roll or fillet of clay around the rims (approximately 5 an below the lip). I am designating these as filleted sherds. Figure 72 A and D illustrate sherds of this type. Item D is not a rim sherd; it is broken along the top edge of the fillet. The vessel shape probably was flat bottomed.

From the base, the diameter expanded to about 1.5 times the base diameter then reducing to form a shoulder and. neck. The pot flared in the rim area to reach the greatest diameter at the lip. The overall height was roughly three times the diameter of the base. The form is illustrated by Oswalt (1955:Figure 17-11). As is obvious from the sherds illustrated in Figure 72, at least some, or perhaps all, the fillets are from shell/cord impressed vessels. Fillets may also occur on plain ware sherds within the site but this assertion is uncertain. At other sites, fillets and/or gouged line designs which resemble fillets are present (Dumond 1969: 32; Mowak 1973: 30) . Such decorative elements generally are late prehistoric. The ware, stylistically and technologically, relates to what I have termed the Yukon

Pottery Series in this paper.

Lamps

Eight lamp sherds cataloged under 6 numbers were

recovered from Components 2 and 3. Pottery lamps are saucer

shaped vessels of about 15 cm diameter that have interior depth of approximately 2 cm (Figure 71 C). The lip usually is smooth and rounded with the vessel thickness ranging from 1 to 2 cm.

The function of the vessel was as a reservoir for seal oil to be burned by a moss wick near the rim. The lamp provided light and heat in the house.

One lamp fragment (Figure 71 9) is unusual. Rather than

having a smoothly rounded lip, the lip is faceted on both the

internal and exterior surfaces to give the lip a V-shaped cross-section. Perpendicular to the lip, .depressions 3 rnm wide by 1 mm deep have been pressed into the flattened surfaces.

Lands between the depressions are 1 mm wide. This surface

treatment created a corrugated appearance. Figure 71 C illustrates the more common form in which the lip cross-section is a smooth curve.

Fauna

Identifications of the bulk of the bone material from the trench has been completed, but details of the faunal analysis will not be included in this report. A few general observations on the faunal material are pertinent to the interpretations which follow. Caribou (Rangifer tarandus) remains are abundant throughout the mound. In fact, antler fragments (perhaps of reindeer which was herded in the area within this century) were ' found in the surface debris. The caribou remains include an abundance of antler and skull fragments, vertebrae, shoulder and long bones of the legs. Though present in each component,

Component 1 was particularly rich in caribou bones -- most notably the metapodials and other foot bones. In addition to caribou, remains of birds (primarily geese and ducks) are abundant in Component 1. Though present in

Component I, seal remains are more abundant higher in the midden, as are the remains of canids. Salmonid remains were poorly preserved, but seem about evenly distributed in the deposits.

Other, as yet unidentified fish remains also are present. In terms of the number of bones preSent,. caribou and bird are the most abundant. Fish, seal (~hocidae), and canids are next in abundance. Remains (in single or very small numbers of elements) of several animals occur. Included are: swan (Olor- spp.), bald eagle (~aliaeetusleucocephalus) , ptarmigan (Lagopus spp. ) , puffin (Fratercula corniculata or Lunda cirrhata), mink (Yustela -vison), beaver (Castor canadensis), fox (Alopex lagopus or vulpes vulpes), several unidentified fish probably including flounders (pleuronectiformes) and cod (Gadidae) , blue mussels IElvtelus edulis) , and basket cockle (Clinocardium nuttalli) . CHAPTER 6

CTJLTURAL INVENTORY OF COMPONENTS

The artifact collection and character of the houses

revealed by excavations at YAR-007 indicate that the inhabitants during the entire period of occupation were Eskimos. They

participated in a continuing, dynamic culture perpetuated by its members and their successive descendents (probably biological as

well as cultural) into modern times. Though changed in some

respects, the culture of the last inhabitants is related to the

first inhabitants by their participation in a general cultural '

tradition (Willey and Phillips 1958:37). To emphasize this close

cultural relationship, I will present the similarities which

persisted through time before detailing the differences that

developed internally within the culture and which are identified

in this report as individual components. The presentation

proceeds from a general description of the village and the houses

which composed it, to a discussion of the artifact distribution

and relationship between the artifact complexes which make up the

components.

Similarities Between the Components

\ A Village Overview '

The Manokinak site is only 30 m in diameter and has eight

identifiable house depressions in its surface. The pattern of house locus reuse described in Chapter 4 suggests that the number of houses during each period of intensive occupation probably was approximately the same. The village size is relatively small.

~istoricvillages on the Delta with a population of 25 to 100 people were observed by Petroff (1884:16). During periods when a fully functioning village was present, population of the

~anokinaksite probably was about 30 people. Of the three to four sod structures required to accommodate that size group, one probably was a men's house (Porter 1983). The number of community members present at the village undoubtedly varied substantially with the season as residents engaged in a seasonal round to harvest the varied necessities of life at localities with high seasonal resource concentrations. The majority of residents probably were present only during winter when opportunities for subsistence activities were fewer and they were able to live off their harvests from the spring through fall.

Houses

Given the limitations of the trench excavations, the only identifiable features were those associated with houses; most notably sod block walls and multiple living floors. Complete floor plans and the overall structural details of the several construction episodes in each house locus were not determined by

\ excavation within the trench. The area exposed was too small.

However, the overall form of the structural remains in excavation

Area B (see Figure ll), coupled with remains in the trench clearly indicates that the house forms throughout the period of the mound occupation resemble sod houses in use on the Delta as late as the 1940s.

Superstructure

Figure 73 schematically depicts the phases of construction and the structural elements that compose such a house. Houses generally were set within a 3 m square pit approximately 40 cm deep. An entrance passage, somewhat deeper than the house floor, extended 2 to 4 m from one wall. Four vertical logs formed the corner-posts of the house. Four smaller uprights served the same function for the entrance passage

(Figure 73 A). Horizontal logs laid from one post to another

(Figure 73 B) formed side and end plates for roof and side wall support. Rough planking and/or split logs were laid horizontally to form the sub-roof of the house and the entrance passage.

Similar planking was placed in a sloping fashion (Figure 73 C9) to form the walls and enclose a bench adjacent to the pit at ground surface level. The entire wooden framework was covered with sod blocks.

Variations on the placement of the four corner-posts within the pit played a major part in the final internal appearance of the house. If placed in the floor away from the corner of the pit, width of the bench could be decreased. eight of the corner-posts also affected width of .bhe bench. The same general form was used for kashims. The scale simply was larger and the construction more elaborate. Larsen and ~ainey(1948:44) illustrated a large structure of this general type that has a - w 3uu3u a u rnaua a -4 Q) UOE &I LnC urn -4a 3u -a

OCO PQ)a >tE h . sag plank floor. Collins (1937: 258) al~soillustrated such a structure.

Floors

One area of uncertainty with regard to the house structure that is particularly bothersome is that I was unable to directly correlate a house floor area with a bench area. There are horizontal artifact alignments and occasionally even woven mats within the wall blocks designated W3/5 through w3/7 (see

Figure 17) that probably do represent benches, but I was unable to conclusively correlate the material with specific floor deposits. This may be a shortcoming of the stratigraphy or some. of the houses of Locus 1-3 may not have had benches. In discussions with Jack Panayak, a Chevak resident employed by the

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, regarding rebuilding of sod houses, I learned that benches were sometimes eliminated by placing wall planks (Figure 73 C) vertically at the pit margin instead of having them slope to enclose a bench area. 3y doing so the size of the house was substantially reduced, but the length of time required for rebuilding was also less. This practice may account, in part, for the absence of identifiable bench areas.

The character of the walls and the floors as they appeared in plan-view is described in Chapter. 4. During analysis of the materials, I concerned myself less with the horizontal distribution of artifacts on the floor and more with the appearance of floors as identifiable entities in the profile. ~ostfloors were subtle features when viewed in profile, but distinctiveness varied. Some of the thin floors would have been unidentifiable if they had not been tagged at the wall when encountered in plan-view. Others, like Floor 1/3 in Locus 1 were clearly and easily identifiable in profile. As a laboratory check on the stratigraphy, I decided to identify floors by a cross-section plot of the artifacts.

Since the width of the trench was only 1 m, I plotted all artifacts on the stratigraphic drawing based on elevation and horizontal location without correction from the field notes as to

the stratum from which the artifact was recovered. Every catalog

entry was simply plotted as a point regardless of the nature of '

the item(s) identified by the catalog number. For example, grass mats and wooden objects with severai centimeters horizontal

extent, or a wood chip sample with 15 fragments in it are equally

represented by only one dot as are individual items such as a

harpoon point, a single pottery sherd, a radiocarbon sample, or

an anthropomorphic carving. Because the frost cracked surface of

the mound and the basalt rubble parent material upon which it is

located were both very irregular, a few artifacts project above

or below the excavation limits shown by the profile drawing. No

attempt was made to fit those artifacts into their "correct"

stratum by changing the elevation value to agree with the limits of the profile drawing. I felt it was preferable. to let the idiosyncrasies show rather than "doctor" the data. ~igure74 is the result of those projections.

Even though the upper and lower mound surfaces are

irregular, the floors buried within the midden are generally less so. The floors show as banded concentrations of artifacts. Most

floors appear somewhat thicker than they really are because

floors are not perfect planes across the 1 m width of the trench.

The "fit" of the projections to the identified floors, however,

is surprisingly good. Simple elevation projection is a good

post-excavation means of verifying floor position (compare Figure

74 with Figure 18).

The paleosol area is also noteworthy due to the high density of artifacts recovered there. Though no evidence of a

floor was found within the paleosol during excavation, the

artifact density showing in the cross-section plot approximates

that which occurs on some floors. This suggests to me that it

probably was a stable exterior ground surface for a considerable

period of time.

Walls

Variations in artifact density on Figure 74 also shows

the general horizontal limits of the house loci. Though not

sterile, the sod block wall areas have relatively few artifacts.

Artifacts

Overla~sin Combonent Inventories

By dividing the site deposits and their associated

artifacts into three components, a false impression of

distinctiveness is produced. The artifact complexes from the three components are more alike than they are different. The three artifact groupings reflect a continuity of cultural processes that is demonstrated by the overlapping character of the artifact inventories.

Tables 8 is a summary list of the artifact types which I consider to be part of the cultural inventory of all three components and the ethnographic collections. There are artifacts present in the Component 1 artifact inventory (mostly items described in Chapter 5 as being of unknown function) that are unique to Component I, and those will be discussed briefly in describing the differences between the components; however, the emphasis here is on similarities between the components.

Table 9 lists artifact classes (not recovered from

Component 1) that were physically present in Component 2 and which are considered to also be part of the Component 3. Table

10, in turn, lists the artifact classes not represented in the

Component 1 and 2 inventories, that were physically present in

Component 3. Note that the artifact classes of the three tables

combine to form a subset of the artifact classes represented in

the ethnographic collections; i.e., all artifact classes listed

in each table occur in the ethnographic collections.

These tables are intended to show overlap in the

inventory of components through time. The categories are not of the same level of abstraction. Several of . the categories are very broad and subsume artifacts that can be typologically

subdivided. For example, broad categories such as pottery,

flaked stone tools, and ground stone tools subsume substantial TABLE 8. Artifact classes present in all YAR-007 components.

Artifact Class Compo~lerlt Ethnographic Figure 123 Collection vumber

~ottsryCooking vesselsV XXX 70,71,72 Ground slateV XXX 43-51 Harpoon End Blades XXX 50 B-D ~rlives~ XXX 44-48 Chisel X I I rlorle Flaked stoneV XXX 4 3 Atlatl ~arts" XIX 23D, 40G Story Knives X I I 34 Antler Hoop XIX 59D Wood Engraving Tool XXI 34 "re Drills XX X 215; 40; 41F Bone Spear pointsV X I I 57 Ocher Rock XX X. 52G Ocher Painted Wood scrapsV XXX rlorle Elaborate Ocher ~aintirlq~X I I 30B,D;32,33 Zoomorphic ~igurines' XXI 30-32; 58A Anthromorphic E'igurinesV XIX 30;58B Projectile ~lunts~ XXI 23, 40 Sent Wood Vessels X I I 27 Wooden Bucket 9ottomsV XXX 28 Abraders XXX 52 Antler Wedges XXX 54 3 Strip Plated Cord XXX 60 Twined Grass Plats XX X 62-66 Grass Soot Insoles XXI 61B Hunting Helmet Decoration X I I 58B Flint Flaking Tool X I I 35 S~lowshoe X I I 24 Kayak Paddles XXI 25

XPhysically present \ I Presence inferred . v Type variants exist within the class 317

TABLE 9. Artifact classes present in Components 2 and 3.

Artifact Class Component Ethnographic Figure 1 2 3 Collection Number

Pottery Lamps 0XX 71 Basket Trap for Fish 0XX 40A&D Fishing Rod 0x1 23A Cord Handle (Wood) 0x1 40C Cord Handle (Bone) 0x1 58A gone Harpoon/Arrow Blade 0 X I 56B Arrows 0XX 40I,J,H Bows 0 X X 238 Ad ze 0XX 53 C Metapodial Scrapers 0x1 59B Birch Bark Containers 0x1 none Wooden Bowl 0x1 26 Wooden Spoon FIX1 29B Bucket Handle 0x1 58 Buzz Toy 0x1 29A Mattock 0x1 55 Hammerstone 0x1 none Metapod ial Scraper 0x1 59B

TASLE 10. Artifact classes unique to Component 3.

Artifact Class Component Ethnographic Figure 1 2 3 Collection Number

Fish Club 22A Wooden Fishhook 22B Harpoon Sheath 22C Slate Lance Blade 43C Bone Arrowhead 57A Antler Net Weight none Boulder Spall Scraper 53D Maul 53B Twined Bag 67 Industrial Goods none Puffin Beak Rattle 58E Net 61A XPhysically Present I Presence Inferred 0 Not Part of Component Inventory typological variation in the from and/or decoration of individual

artifacts. Artifact classes that subsume substantial typological

variability on the basis of the MAR-007 collections themselves

are marked in the tables with a v superscript. Several of the

artifact classes that at first glance appear to be broad

caterories are not because in this specific site only one artifact of that class was recovered from the trench. Examples of this latter instance are the hunting helmet decoration, the snowshoe fragment, and the puffin beak rattle. Only one artifact

from the trench occurs in each of these artifact classes.

Artifact classes for which large numbers of items were

recovered from the trench usually show considerable internal

typological variation and are the means, along with stratigraphic

position, for differentiating the three conponents. As a general

class, pottery cooking vessels are physically present in all

components, but typological variation in the surface decoration

of vessels is a primary discriminator for the individual

components. On the general level of artifact class, pottery

demonstrates cultural continuity through the site, but within the tradition manifest at the site, it reveals change -- stylistic variation through time rather than adaptive change.

Typologically Identical Artifacts

Cultural continuity is demonstratedtby the overlapping

character of the artifact inventories in the three components as

illustrated in Table 8-10. However, all those artifact classes

were not physically recovered from each component. Many are entered in the cultural inventory of a component by inference. There are only three instances (slate harpoon end blades, antler wedges, and twined grass mats) in which typologically identical specimens of an artifact class occur in each of the three components and in the ethnographic collection. There are several general classes of artifacts that occur in all three components plus the ethnographic collections, but the specimens are not typologically identical. They are analogus forms or types within one class. ~houghthere were few instances in which typologically identical specimens were physically present in all three components, there are several instances in which typologically identical specimens occur in Component 1 and in the ethnographic collection (or in Component 2 and the ethnographic collection), but not in the intervening component(s). When this occurs, I conclude that the artifact type is part of the cultural inventory of the intervening component (s) only if the MAR-007 artifact is typologically identical to an ethnographic specimen. That an example of a particular artifact class (especially those that were not needed in large numbers or did not break up into a large number of diagnostic pieces) was not recovered in each component is not particularly susprising given the small excavation size.

The absence of the artifact is interpreted as being a result of sampling error.

When a single specimen of an artifact class or type was recovered from the trench, it gave the component in which it was

recovered the appearance of having a unique character. With several artifact classes that are represented by only one item, the inventory of a component will appear to be different from its neighbor. In most instances, the appearance of uniqueness is not warranted because these artifacts are distinctive only because they were recovered from the trench as single examples of a particular artifact class; not because their occurrence is culturally restricted to the component they were recovered in. For instance, the composite flint flaking tool (Figure 35), and the hunting helmet decoration (Figure 58 B) in Component 1 are the only artifacts of their kind recovered from the trench.

Their presence makes Component 1 seem very different from

Components 2 and 3, but based on the presence of typologically identical artifacts in ethnographic collections (Nelson 1899:91, 169) it can be assumed that such artifacts were part of the cultural inventory of Components 2 and 3. Many one of a kind artifacts from the trench are shown by this means to be an element of the artifact inventory of all MAR-007 components.

Classes attributed to a component on this basis are identified by

I in Tables 8-10. With an artifact class or type occurring in both Component 1 and the ethnographic collections, absence of the artifact in the other two components is logically accounted for by inadequacy of the site sample. If more of the site were excavated, artifacts representative of the class would likely be found in the intervening components. . \ There are instances in which single examples of an artifact class do legitimately convey a unique character to a given component that is representative of differences that exist between the component the artifact was recovered in and the other components. Such is the case with the single example of Barrow curvilinear pottery which was recovered in Component 2. Without typologically identical specimens in the adjacent components or the ethnographic collections, I concluded that Barrow Curvilinear pottery is unique to Component 2 at MAR-007 (see discussion of pottery near end of this chapter).

Analogous Artif acts

In addition to typologically identical artifact forms, there are items in Component 1 that, on a general level, can be considered analogous to ethnographic specimens. In many

instances, the items being compared have a combination of attributes that contribute to the overall degree of similarity.

For instance, the elaborately painted ocher objects (Figure 30,

32, 33) resemble ethnographic specimens in material (wood and red ocher), overall form and style of the motifs, and the probable ceremonial use in which they functioned, all suggest

relationships to similar (but not typologically identical) forms

in the ethnographic collections. Though identical specimens are not present in the ethnographic collections (I do not expect

identity in such highly stylized items over the 1,200 years

intervening between Component 1 and the ethnographic period) , items do exist that generally resemble these. artifacts. Note the bucket bottom in Figure 33. Nelson (Plate XXX) illustrates analogous painted designs on vessel bottoms in an identical

position on artifacts of the same artifact class to which the item in Figure 33 is assigned. Ocher painted designs on zoomorphic and geometric shaped items (Figure 30 D, 32) of

Component 1 also resemble the attachments used ethnographically for masks and other ceremonial dance paraphernalia (Nelson

1899:Plate XCVII, XCIX, C; r-lurdoch 1892: 367, 371) . The designs of the carved animal figurines are also stylistically similar.

Differences in Components

The components were defined primarly on stratigraphic position, but the separations are reenforced by distribution of the pottery and, to a lesser degree, by ground slate knives.

Pottery and slate knives as general artifact classes occur throughout the midden, but there are significant typological variations within both classes. The differences between components are reflected in distribution of the types. Pollowing the discussion of the pottery and knives, I will discuss the distribution of additional artifact classes that distinguish the components.

Pottery Distribution

Pottery is the only artifact class with sufficient specimens to reveal the association of types and cultural components stratigraphically. Figure 75 sbdws the pottery projected against the stratigraphic drawing in the same manner as

Figure 74 was produced. The legend shows seven pottery types but, as indicated in the discussion of pottery in Chapter 5, some

AK-MAR-007 TRENCH 1 SQ. 3 sa. * A

CHECK STAMP

W PLAIN OR WlPEO 4 8PLIT OHERO * LAW + WELLICORO UlPREBSEO FYLETED f BARAOW CURVYWEAR of the types can be combined. In the discussions of distribution that follow, split sherds were included in the check stamp type, and filleted pottery with shell/cord impressed. Barrow

Curvilinear, and plain ware remain as individual types. Lamps, since they are categorically distinct from cooking vessels, are considered a distinct ceramic type.

Disturbance is common in village mounds because successive inhabitants dig into the deposits laid down by their predecessors. 4rti facts from the oldest components are inevitably mixed into the younger deposits. Though downward artifact displacement occurs, the number of artifacts moved downward generally is less than the number of artifacts moved upward. Giddings (1964) faced the problem when he defined Norton culture at Iyatayet, and Dumond (1981:102) noted a similar problem in Alaska Peninsula sites. Disturbance is plainly evident in the distribution of the check stamp sherds at

YAR-007.

Check st am^

Check stamp sherds are present in all three components, but the check stamp sherds in Components 2 and 3 are the result of a cultural transformation in the location of materials which originated in Component 1. Several factors led to this conclusion. . t With the exception of three plain ware sherds (see Figure

75, Squares 3-4 and Figure 70 L-PI), only check stamp pottery is present in Component 1. Plain ware varieties are not individually diagnostic and occur in most pottery collections of western Alaska regardless of age; however, the proportion of plain sherds to other types Varies considerably. The sherds

illustrated in 'Figure 70 L-M appear to be from a single, undecorated pinch pot. These sherds might be considered

intrusive from above, but the context makes it almost certain that the three plain ware sherds are truly part of the Component

1 inventory.

Within Component I, upward dispersion of check stamp pottery is evident. Towards the bottom of the component, there were at least five whole vessels that were collapsed in place by the weight of the overlying deposit. They remained relatively undisturbed until recovered during the excavation. Sherds of

these vessels were cataloged predominantly as groups of sherds and are represented as only one or a few symbols for check stamp pottery in the cross-section plot (Figure 75). Even with the

reduced density produced by subsuming large numbers of check

stamp sherds from the bottom of Component 1 under single catalog

numbers, the density of check stamp sherds low in Locus 1 is high. The density of sherds is less toward the paleosol. Also

note the relative abundance of split sherds in the upper

one-third of Component 1. The increase in split sherds suggests

greater physical manipulation of the sherds with an attendant opportunity for sherds to split and become. disassociated. Disregarding the sherds of Squares 7-9 at the periphery

of the mound where the stratigraphic relationships are more

tenuous, there are markedly fewer check stamp sherds in Components 2-3 than in Component 1. No complete vessels were present in Components 2 or 3. Of the 24 check stamp and split sherds plotted in Components 2 and 3, 14 are in Component 2 -- lg in Component 3. AS the mound was built up there was less access to sherds in the lower levels of the site. Additionally, eight of the 24 sherds from Component 2 and 3 are split sherds which suggests that the sherds were moved sufficiently to produce this type of breakage. The physical appearance of the check stamp sherds is also consistant in all components. There is no significant variation in the size of the check stamp pattern or in the tempering material. I have concluded that the check stamp sherds found within the mound are from a group of vessels originating in

Component 1.

Plain Ware Plain or wiped sherds occur in markedly greater numbers in Component 2 and 3 than in Component 1 -- only three sherds are present in the latter. NO crushed plain ware pots were recovered to suggest their stratum of origin. Based on the relative abundance in both upper components and the presence of plain ware in most pottery collections in Alaska, I conclude that plain wares are intergal parts of the Component 2 and 3 inventories.

Lamps Lamp sherds occur in small numbers, but their distribution is significant. None are present in Component 1. Norton cultural complexes elsewhere have stone lamps as part of their inventory. Pottery lamps probably were not part of the

Component 1 cultural complex. Oswalt (1953:19) has pointed out that pottery lamps are absent from Point Hope Ipiutak and Near

~piutak(Larsen and Rainey 1948) collections, materials classified as Ipiutak near platinum Village (Larsen 1950:184), and Norton culture at Iyatayet (Giddings 1964). Stone lamps were

in use in those cultural components which are now acknowledged to be Norton or closely related. Additionally, Ross (1971:Figure

6A) recovered a stone lamp from House 37 at Chagvan Bay along with Nunivak check stamped pottery.

Pottery lamps clearly are part of the cultural inventory of Components 2 and 3. Such lamps were in common use on the

Delta during the ethnographic period and two complete specimens were recovered in the historic/protohistoric deposits of

Excavation Area R (Figure 11 R). There were only a few lamp

sherds in Component 2, but they were sufficiently dispersed that

it seems unlikely that they could be intrusive from above.

Pottery lamps are regarded as part of the Component 2 and 3

inventory, but not of Component 1.

Barrow Curvilinear

The nine Barrow Curvilinear sherds recovered at the

surface of the paleosol (which marks the upfier boundary of

Component 1) have been fitted together. They are a portion of a

single vessel. No other sherds of this type were recovered. It

is unlikely that the stratigraphic position of the specimen is fortuitous. The Barrow Curvilinear pottery is associated with

Component 2.

~hell/Cord Impressed

AS noted in the discussion of pottery within Chapter 5, the shell/cord impressed, the filleted, and at least some of the sherds with a wiped surface probably belong to a single ware.

Sherds of each variety can be produced from different locations on some individual vessels. An individual pot can have a wiped rim surface, fillets on the shoulder, and a shell or cord impressed body surface. Given this amount of surface variablity, shell/cord impressed and filleted sherds were treated as a single

When viewed against the stratigraphic profile, the shell/cord impressed sherds are predominantly present within

Component 3. None are present in Component 1 or low in Component

2. The shell impressed ware undoubtedly belongs to the cultural inventory of Component 3.

Knife Distribution

Though not as abundant as pottery, there are enough knife specimens from MAR-007 to comment on their distribution and variation through time. The largest number of hafted knives is from Component 1, but there are a few kniveS in Components 2 and

3 (see the description of knives in Chapter 5). AS a prelude to the discussion of the stratigraphic distribution of knives in the trench, it is necessary to briefly consider the different types of Eskimo knives present in ethnographic collections.

The ulu or woman's knife is viewed by our culture as archtypically Eskimo. The semilunar blade is backed with a handle that is parallel to, but does not extend laterally beyond the cutting edge (P4urdoch 1892:162). The ulu was widespread throughout western Alaska during the ethnographic period. It appears to have existed since the earliest occupation of PIAR-087, although the form differed significantly in blade shape and method of hafting.

Component 1 Knives

The XAR-007 knives most closely resembling modern ulus are the small knives from Component 1 (Figures 46 A-B and 49

E-F). Larger slate blades were hafted in wooden handles as side blades. Such side hafted tools resemble a cleaver (Figure 47

A-C). Though similar specimens occur low in Component 2, the cleaver-like appearance is lost through time. Neither Oswalt

(1952a) nor Kowta (1963) report such specimens from the late prehistoric collections they excavated.

Several of the slate blades are sub-rectangular, but some of the specimens are notched at the corner (see Chapter 5 descriptions -- Figure 47 C-D and 48 A). These corner-notched

slate blades occur in both the end/side hafied knives and side hafted knives of the cleaver type. The notch apparently served

as a means of lashing the blade into place. Based on available evidence, the lashing seems to have been quite thin (Figures 47 C and 48 A). This corner-notched form is reminiscent of earlier

flaked stone forms (predating the XAR-007 deposits) that have been recovered from Norton culture sites in the Platinum/~hagvan

Bay area (Larsen 1950:Figure 56A 11-12; Ross 1971:Figure 40 L-Y).

~houghonly tentatively, the form suggests cultural continuity

from the older flaked stone industries of the region.

Continuation of function and cultural tradition probably dictated

the use of analogous forms despite the shift in materials and

technology from flaked stone to ground stone. This similarity

forms a cultural link by analogy with the more distant past of

the region.

The end/side hafted knives from MAR-007 (Figures 46 D, 48

4, 49 A and D) are stylistically similar to the metal bladed

crooked knives (Nelson 1899: Plate XXXVIII) that remain in the wood working tool kit of the Delta peoples today. Though the

function likely was somewhat different, the form is similar.

Component 2 and 3 Knives

There are fewer knives in Components 2-3 than in

Component 1; consequently, the comparative potential is limited.

From Component 2, only the specimens illustrated in Figure 45 F,

K can be meaningfully compared. The unhafted blade is similar to

the ethnographic ulu blades that were hafted in the modern fashion with the handle not projecting beyond. the lateral margins of the blade. The small, end/side hafted knife resembles specimens present in Component 1 in a general way although the

Component 1 knives are larger and more elaborately decorated. The means of lashing with the inset blade being partly held in place by a bone strip along its lower edge is also different.

The knives of Component 3 are markedly different. The specimen shown in Figure 44 appears to have been modeled after

European hunting knives. Several such stone knives are present in ethnographic collections (Nelson 1899: Plate XLVII; 'lurdoch

1892:151-3). The socketed antler handle (Figure 45 A) probably held a slate blade similar to the lance blade illustrated as

~igure50 A. The blade was likely held in place by a combination of mastic and root wrapping.

Other Artifact Class ~istributions

Component 1

There are several objects of distinctive form in

Component 1 that I have been unable to identify by comparison with the ethnographic collections. These tools are described in

Chapter 5 as objects of unknown function within each major materials section. Some of these artifacts are illustrated in

Figures 34 A, 36, 37, 38, 39, 42 3 and D, 58 D and F, and 59 E-F.

Some undoubtedly remain unidentified simply because I do not recognize the item. Others are not identified because the form has changed over time, or use of the tool has been discontinued since the time of manufacture and collection of the ethnographic \ specimens. A third possibility is that th'e ethnographers simply did not collect those items. With that being the case, I conclude that there is a gradual, progressive breakdown in the use of ethnographic analogy. Unlike some other single item artifact classes discussed with regard to Tables 8-10 there are no analogous ethnographic artifacts on which to infer that these unique tool classes occur in Components 2 or 3. In this instance, the distinctive character that these tools lend to

Component 1 indicates an actual difference in the artifact inventory of Component 1 from that of Components 2 and 3. There are only a few flaked stone implements. Given the site disturbance indicated by the distribution of check stamp sherds, there is a good possibility that the flaked stone tools found scattered throughout the trench may have originated in

Component 1. However, there is no way to be certain since small numbers of flaked stone tools continued to be manufactured during the ethnographic period. The general form of the end blades

(Figure 43 H-I) is similar in Norton Culture collections, as is the form of the flake-knife illustrated as Figure 43 G (Giddings 1964:Plate 47) .

Several artifact classes are represented by artifacts recovered from Component 2 that were not recovered from Component

1. Figure 9 lists those major artifact classes. The presence of pottery lamps, basket trap parts, and a fishing rod are especially noteworthy. The first occurrence of implements. for hook and line fishing are from Component 2. There is one artifact (Figure 53

A) that may have been a net weight. Ross' Chagvan Bay (1971: 35) excavations suggest that net technology was known in the area by the time Component 1 at MAR-007 existed. Ross recovered abundant net sinkers from House 37 (c. 900-1,400 years ago) along with check stamp pottery closely resembling the YAR-007 pottery. The basket trap fragments from Component 2 additionally suggest an emphasis on fishing (probably for small, fresh water fish) even though no comparable archaeological remains are present elsewhere in the region.

Component 2 also contained a fragment of a ground burin

(Figure 51). This type of tool is not part of the ethnographic period tool kit, metal tools replaced it. However, the tool does occur in Norton components at other sites (Giddings 1964:Plate 41

B) . Though not physically present in Component 1, it is by inference part of the Component 1 inventory since the tool class occurs both before and after. The specimen may have been displaced from Component 1 into Component 2. It appears to have been cracked in a fire because it has irregular hair line fractures.

Component 3

The artifact classes (Table 10) that first occur in

Component 3 reflect a cultural phase equivalent to the adaptation of the ethnographic period. Except for the one glass sherd recovered near the bottom of the component and the Yukon pottery wares, there are no items which are particdlarly noteworthy as

first occurrences in the trench. It is reasonable to assert when comparing the items to earlier materials in the trench, and to collections from older archaeological sites, that several of the artifact classes were not recovered from Component 1 and 2 simply because of sampling error. For example, the harpoon sheath

(Figure 22 C) from Component 3 is the only specimen of that class from the trench, but the ground slate end blades of the type with which the sheath was used occur in all components. Sheath parts clearly are missing from the lower components because of inadequate sampling. The same is likely true of bone arrowheads, and twined bags (identification of bag remains from fragmentary specimens also is a problem).

The Cultural Environment of Individual Components

The inventories of the three components at MAR-007 reflect a large overlap of artifact classes and indicate that a broad cultural continuity exists over the entire period of site use. Yet, each of the components is distinctive. There are

items peculiar to each. In archaeological terms this indicates temporal shifts in the local cultural assemblage. The artifact

inventory makes up the cultural fabric and the changes, in both artifact content and form, are the basis for component separation. Seen as isolated segments of time, each of the components presents a statement of the way of life of the site

inhabitants. A tentative portrayal of those past cultural

settings follows. \

Component .I.

Component 1 is dominated by the materials found within

House Locus 1, The deposits in Locus 1 consist of three distinct living floors with intervening pit- fill consisting of remnants of sod blocks and trash accumulated in the period between collapse of the structure and rebuilding of the next house over that spot.

Because the trench was only 1 m wide, the shape of the house and details of construction are unknown. Extensive slumping along the western margin even masks the overall width of the structure.

The floor zone indicates that the structure is more than 3 m wide. !lo bench area could irrefutably be correlated with any of the three floors within Locus 1 and no specific data were recovered on the means of supporting the roof of sod blocks.

The best preserved structural remains in Component 1 are floors. Not only is the artifact density high on these floors, but the preservation is excellent. Aside from the presence of the more spectacular artifacts, these three floors also have an abundance of cut wood debris ranging in size from split log fragments 19 crn in diameter to wood chips from manufacturing wooden artifacts. That debris increased the thickness and stability of the floor and contributed to the unique preservation of the artifacts. Numerous grass mats were recovered in the floor zone indicating that they were significant elements for furnishing a house. Plaited grass cord also is present.

Subsistence

Caribou bones, especially lower leg' elements, were present in large numbers directly on the floors, especially F1/1 and F1/2. Bones of geese and ducks were also abundant. Though present, fish and sea mammals appear to have been less important to the subsistence of the people of Component 1. Though not clearly demonstrable on the analysis completed to date, it is my impression that salmon were more important as a food resource than were blackfish, cod, stickleback and other resident winter fish. These latter fish appear to take on greater importance in the upper components. It is noteworthy that no fishing equipment such as net weights, nets, basket traps, or hook and line apparatus was recovered in Component 1.

The presence of large numbers of caribou bones suggest those animals may have been present in the immediate vicinity of the site. There are no tools which can be positively correlated with caribou hunting. However, the ground slate end blades

(Figure 50 0-0) found throughout the site are a possibility.

Nelson illustrates the mounting of these blades in two different ways. Neither nounting device was recovered from Trench 1. They were mounted as end blade inserts in toggling harpoon heads of bone and ivory (1899:Plate LVa8-9) , but also were used as inserts in detachable lance foreshafts (1899:Plate LVb5-6 and

LVIIa23-24). Used in the latter tool form, the blades were permanently mounted on 2 cm diameter foreshafts of 28 to 36 cm length. Each hunter carried several of these foreshafts which fitted into the socketed end of the lance. When an animal was struck, the foreshaft pulled out of the lance socket and remained in the animal. The hunter simply placed anbther foreshaft in the end socket of the lance and was ready to strike again. Lances of this type were primarily used in hunting sea mammals, but it is quite possible that the lances were also used on caribou. Though highly speculative, I suggest that on the Delta where water is so abundant, the early residents may have driven the animals into

rivers at intercept points and killed them with lances from kayaks. The detachable lance foreshafts are admirably suited for

successively striking animals in that circumstance. The bone

spearpoint illustrated in Figure 59 C also is a potential caribou hunting device.

The bones of a variety of geese and ducks are present

though no tools besides the blunt atlatl foreshaft (Figure 23 D) was found in Component 1 that relate to taking birds. However,

judging from the faunal remains, birds undoubtedly were an

important element in the diet of the people who produced the

Component 1 deposits.

The people clearly had the apparatus for open water seal hunting. Ground and flaked end blades suitable for harpoon heads

indicate hunting from kayaks (Nelson 1899:LVIII). Additionally,

the use of kayaks is indicated by the presence of single bladed

kayak paddles (Figure 25), and the presence of the hunting helmet decoration (Figure 58 9). The kayak probably was the major mode

of transportation.

The only item indicating land transportation is a

snowshoe fragment (Figure 24). No items identifiable as sled

parts were recovered from Component 1.

Domestic Goods

Component 1 contained several check stamp pottery vessels

(Figure 68 and 69) which were complete but crushed in situ. One vessel was within a wooden fixture which appears to be a pot stand (~igure42 C) . The top one-third of most pots is encrusted with carbonized organic matter which failed to burn off because of the distance of that area from the cooking flame. Bottoms of pots are usually not as thickly encrusted. Small hearths may have been used for cooking, but it is more likely that stone seal oil lamps were used. Yo direct evidence of stone lamps was present, but they were in common use in earlier Norton tradition sites in the region (Ross 1971:44). Fire drills were used to start fires.

Containers of bent wood were also present. Figures 27,

28 D-G, 42 A and 33 depict the best preserved fragments. These , containers served various functions, including storage of small items and use as eating dishes.

An assortment of knives were recovered. All have slate blades, but there are three basic types present in the Component

1 collection. One has the blade mounted on the end/side of the haft (Figure 46 D and 48 A), another is side hafted like a cleaver (Figure 47 A-C), and the third type closely resembles the modern women's knife of classic ulu form (Figure 46 A-B) -- both specimens of this latter form have elaborately carved and engraved handles. Several of the end/side and side blades have a ground notch (Figure 47 C-D) at one corner which constitutes a type not present among knives of the ethnographic period, but which is analogous to forms found in the Chagvan Bay area made of flaked stone. The end/side blade forms probably are men's knives. The form is analagous to modern crooked knives with metal blades. The cleaver knives-probably are utilitartian, multipurpose knives used by both men and women for a variety of purposes. The small knives with decorated bone handles closely resemble small ulus used during the ethnographic period as part of women's sewing/hide working kit.

Even though few in number, there are flaked stone implements in Component 1. Both unifacially flaked knives and bifacial flaked end blades are present (Figure 43).

~dditionally,there is a composite flaking tool with a bone bit lashed into a slotted wooden handle with a grass wrapping (Figure

35).

There was a great deal of split wood and wood chips in

Component 1. In addition to the knives, additional woodworking tools included abraders (some of which were used for grinding stone tools), a slate chisel, and antler wedges. Although not recovered from component 1, the wood working inventory probably also included adzes of ground slate. The function of unifacial flake knives (Figure 43 G) is uncertain, but they probably were occasionally employed on wood along with a variety of other materials. The same is true of engraving tools (Figure 34 9).

The blades in these tools may have been metal (though no proof of that assertion exists at :TAR-007) or rodent teeth. Most of the tools mentioned above probably played a role in processing the caribou antler at the site. \ 8 There were several fragments from leather boots present along with a grass insole for lining the boot bottom. Two thick

leather soles were the most complete boot parts. As mentioned previously there are several one of a kind items in Component 1 for which the function is unknown. Those items were described as individual items in Chapter 5 and their effect in giving Component 1 a unique character was discussed previously in this chapter.

Social life In addition to the interaction necessitated by village life, there apparently was a rich and varied social and ritual life among the first inhabitants of the ~anokinaksite. Though extremely sketchy, this aspect of life is an important result of the Manokinak site excavations. Again many aspects of this discussion are highly speculative and based on ethnographic

analogy which has already been shown to be unworkable for some classes of artifacts (notably those of unknown function), but

some aspects of culture are more conservative than others.

Perhaps the specifics of the ritual and family life have varied

through time, but the broad form apparently has remained similar

through the past 1,200 years.

Many of the utilitarian items present at the site have artistic aspects. Take for example the bent wood dish (Figure 27 and 42 A). In addition to being artfully crafted for a tight

fit, tufts of hair have been inserted around the margin as decoration. Another case is the small ulus'(Figure 46 A-B and 49

E-F) mentioned above as women's knives. The handles are

intricately carved and decorated with incised lines. The pattern

of incised lines is of very similar design on both sides (note also the incised design on Figure 48 B). It is conceivable that this is a family or totemic representation such as described by tJelson (1899:322). It might even represent personal ownership marks. There is one very distinct case of an ownership mark.

The ground slate end blade illustrated as Figure 50 5 has an X cut deeply into one face. It undoubtedly was used as a weapon

identifier during communal hunts.

However, in the case of the ulu knives it is much more likely that the incised design is totemic. Numerous other very artistically formed totemic i tems were recovered from Component

1. 411 the zoomorphic figurines (Figure 30, 31, 32 A) are notable examples of totemism, but the strongest case for totemism

in the sense of acquiring power through the use of animal

representations exists with the item illustrated as Figure 58 B.

This item is a hunting helmet decoration that likely endowed the

owner with a portion of the magical power of the animal

represented. Anthropomorphic carvings (Figures 32 A and 58 B) may have had similar or symbolic significance.

Nelson (1899: 167) also noted that the ocher painted designs used to illustrate numerous utilitarian and ceremonial

objects had religious significance. There are numerous

elaborately painted designs on wooden objects in Component 1

(Figures 28 D-E, 30 D, 32, and 33) . Aside from religious activities a$' interaction within

the community on an abstract ceremonial level, there were more

personal levels of interaction as well. ~houghnot of an

elaborate variety, I have identified two items (Figures 34 E and 41 A) as story knives. Historically these implements were used by children to illustrate stories in a cleared patch of soil as the narrator spoke. ~houghit may be a utilitarian part of an arrow, I have also interpreted the item illustrated as Figure 56

A as a miniature socketpiece carved as a toy for a child.

Component 2

Component 2 consists of house remains within both LOCUS 2 and Locus 3 along with the contemporaneous midden outside the houses. Consequently, there are more wall block materials in the deposits than were present in Component 1. The size and shape of

the houses of Component 2 was not determined by the trench excavation. As was the case with Locus 1, I was not able to

correlate a bench area with a floor. Grass matting and matted grass were common constituents of the floors, as were fragments

of two strand twisted cord (Figure 60 D-E) and three-strip plated

cord (Figure 60 A-C). The house floors were not as thick with

the accumulated debris of manufacturing nor was the artifact density as great as on the floors of Component 1. You will also

note that there were fewer socio-religious items. Given the differences in the artifacts and the character of the floor, I

suggest that we may be dealing with two different types of

houses. Locus 1 may be an early kashim (men's house) and the \ other structures in Locus 2 and 3 probably'are remnants of family

dwellings. The differences in artifacts show up not so much in

the artifact classes which are present or absent (though there are some differences) , but in the number and elaboration of the artifacts.

Subsistence Caribou, bird, and salmon bones are present in Component

2, but the proportions appear to change and there seems to be greater species variety in the faunal inventory. There is also greater variety in the tools for subsistence harvest. Basket traps ("gure 40 A) for resident freshwater fish, bows and arrows

(including a blunt bird arrow -- Figure 40 H), apparatus for hook and line ice fishing ("qure 23 A), a basalt net weight (Figure

53 A), non-toggling barbed harpoon points (Figure 56), ground stone end blades for harpoons or lances (Figure 50 C), and hifacially flaked end blades (Figure 43 I).

As discussed in considering Component 1, ground slate end blades could have been used either in toggling harpoons for killing seal from kayaks (paddles fragments are present in

Component 2 -- Figure 25) or in lances for killing caribou in the wetlands surrounding the Ingaks lugwat Hills near WAR-007.

Faunal remains indicate birds were an important subsistence element, but the tools by which they were taken in large numbers are uncertain. Blunt arrows used with the bow are present and were without doubt used on birds. I would also suggest that nets may have been used for communal. herding of flightless molting birds in which large flocks were captured en masse. A heavy reliance on birds is an integral part of the diversified subsistence pattern whi-ch was mandatory for the permanent occupation of the ~elta(Shaw 1982).

The presence of hook and line fishing equipment and basket trap parts, indicates that during the Component 2 occupation the residents were harvesting local freshwater fish

(notably blackfish) and salt water species such as cod, sculpin, and burbot that move into the rivers for the winter. The faunal remains indicate an increased diversity in the species of fish used in Components 2 and 3.

Dog remains are more abundant in Component 2. ~houghno sled parts were identified, the apparent increase in dog may indicate the use of dog traction for winter transportation.

Domestic Goods

Check stamp pottery is present in Component 2 as displaced sherds from Component 1. The predominant pottery in use during the formation of the Component 2 deposits was a plainware (Figure 75). However, one group of sherds is clearly assignable to the Barrow Curvilinear type (pigure 71 A). Its presence reflects long distance cultural exchange of ideas or perhaps trade with remote groups to the north where this pottery type is more common.

Pottery lamp (Figure 71 B-C) fragments were recovered in Component 2 and probably are a new introduction. at the site. It likely replaced stone lamps which are thought to have been used in Component I. These pottery lamps not only provided light, but probably were also used for cooking. Seal oil is the traditional fuel for these lamps. As in Component 1, fire drills were used to produce fire (Figure 40 R) . The wooden bucket bottoms from Component 2 are notably larger than the bucket bottoms from Component 1 (See Figure 28).

~lthoughno sides were recovered, sides probably were bent wood strips joined to the bottom by pegs. The means of attaching the vessel bottoms to the sides appears to be different in the two components. The edges of the bucket bottoms from Component 2 are thicker and are slightly concave in cross-section. Pegs were used to attach the sides. The bottoms from Component 1 have thinned edges and appear to have been slipped into a slot cut into the inner side of the bucket rather than being held together by pegs. No sides for the buckets were recovered from Component

2. One bucket handle (Figure 58 C and 59 A) made of bone came from the house floors. Some of the smaller vessels may have been birch bark. A sewn fragment was found along with several bark fragments.

4 small bowl hollowed from one piece of wood (Figure 26) is present, as is a wooden spoon (Figure 29 B). These items probably do not represent a departure from the inventory of

Component 1, but their absence in Component 1 probably reflects a sampling bias.

Ground slate knives were found in Component 2, but not in the large number or variety as in ~ornponeng'1. A cleaver form haft was recovered, as well as one small hafted end/side blade

(Figure 45 D-E). The hafting arrangement of the unmounted blades such as the one shown in Figure 45 8, was not determined. However, the knives of Component 2 -appear to resemble the knives

of Component 1 more than the knives of Component 3. Secause both

predate the introduction of European supplies of metal, they had

similar functions during both Components and their similarity is

expectable.

Additional tools for working wood, bone, and antler are

present. These are wooden engraving tool hafts (Figure 34 C-D),

abraders (Figure 52), a ground slate adze fragment, a slate hand drill (Figure 43 F) , wedges (Figure 54 A), and a ground slate

burin (Figure 51 B). The latter item is an unusual artifact that

is typologically related to older ground burins from Iyatayet (Giddings 1964:Plate 41b) . It was used for grooving bone and antler and was eventually replaced by metal tools -- notably

saws.

There also are two bone scrapers that are made from metapodials of caribou (Figure 59 13). These probably were hide

working tools.

Two digging implements were recovered very low in

Component 2; so low in fact that there is some question as to

whether or not they should be assigned to Component 1. One is a mattock (Figure 55) for cutting and digging sod blocks. The

other is the distal tip of a walrus tusk on which the wear and

pattern of breakage indicate use as a root pick (Nelson

1899:Plate XXXV) . . \ There also are two hammerstones present in Component 2.

Both are made from rounded beach stones. A grass insole (Figure 61 B) was found. This item served

as insulation and a cushion in the bottom of boots. They simply

are a twisted cushion of grass and required little effort to construct. They were probably replaced often.

~ocial/~eligiousLife

The house floors in all parts of Component 2 were much thinner and the artifacts less dense than was the case for the

floors of Component 1. The difference is best explained by concluding that there is a major difference in the activities being conducted in the structures. The houses sampled in

Component 2 were domestic dwellings while the Locus 1 house probably was a men's house. It should not be construed that the village level of Component 2 did not. have a men's house. I simply did not happen to encounter it in the trench excavation. Such a

structure is likely present in the Component 2 deposits elsewhere

in the mound.

Because I sampled domestic units rather than a community ceremonial center in Component 2, it is not surprising that the

totemic and religious items are not as abundant as in Component

1. Though present, such items are rare. The "drag handle"

carved in the shape of a seal (Figure 58 A) is part of a hunting

tool kit. A magical relationship between a portrayal of form and

success in capture may have been involved, or a degree of respect % may have been conveyed for the dead animal by use of the tool.

Though not demonstrable in the artifact collection, it is

likely that the social and religious life of Component 2 was as rich and varied as in Component 1 or the ethnographic period when the vitality of the religious life was observed by ethnographers.

Though elaborate figurines and ocher painted wooden objects were not recovered, there were ocher stained wood fragments and fragments of the mineral pigment recovered from Component 2.

~usicand dancing is indicated by a fragment of a wooden drum rim (Figure 40 E). The tamborine type drum provided the rythmical accompaniment for the dance and associated singing. vuch of the basic character of the communal ceremonies is attributable to the music provided by drums.

A "buzz toy" (Figure 29 A) was also recovered. It probably was a child's toy.

A dog mandible from Component 2 has a strand of grass tied around it (Figure 59 G). It may have had ritual significance, or it may simply have been done as an activity with no significance beyond keeping the hands of one person busy during an idle moment. Little interpretation can be made of such an unusual item.

Component 3

Component 3 is classified as protohistoric which simply means that direct contacts with inhabitants of the growing

industrial complexes in Asia and more notably Europe had not yet

\ occurred, but industrial goods in small amounts were being traded

into the area by native middle men. Though the Russians colonized the Aleutians and the Pacific drainage area of southern

Alaska in the mid-1700s, continuous contact with the natives in the vicinity of the Delta did not b-egin until 1818 when ~ort ~leksandrovskaiawas founded in Bristol Bay. The next stage of intensification (and real shift into what can really be considered the beginning of the historic period for the Delta) did not occur until 1833 when ??ikhailovskii Redoubt was established at the current location of St. Yichaels. Component 3 is designated protohistoric on the basis of a single glass splinter recovered near the bottom of Component 3. ~t is the only industrial artifact found in the trench. Otherwise, the artifact inventory is wholely aboriginal and can be equated with the late prehistoric occupation material Oswalt recovered at HoOpeK Bay (1952a and 1952b). The few industrial , goods present in the region had not significantly impacted the way of life of the site inhabitants. ~uringthe ethnographic period metal was present in quantity in the area and was being incorporated into the artifact inventory. A fourth component (not represented in the trench excavations) exists at the site which corresponds with the ethnographic period. The surface house pits which are illustrated on Figure 6 and 7 are of that period. The fifth component is modern (c. 1930) . The temporary camps within the abandoned surface pits are associated with hunting and trapping as part of the native participation in the American cash economy during this century.

As is apparent from the artifact class listings in Tables 8-10, there are few additions to the artifact inventory of the trench from Component 3. ~llof the artifact classes listed on Table 9 as belonging to Component 2 are thought to be a part of the cultural inventory of Component 3. Rather than repeat the description of the cultural inventory of Component 2, I will simply point out that Table 10 lists the artifact classes that were found in Component 3 which were not physically present in

Component 2 and discuss the noteworthy changes that occurred in the artifact types within the classes.

The Yukon wares (Oswalt 1955) occur predominantly in

Component 3 (Figure 72 A-E) and the greatest density of sherds is present near the top of the mound. Pottery lamps are also present. The knife forms recovered are very different from those . lower in the trench. The slate knife illustrated in Figure 44 appears to be a replica of a metal Xnife; the blade is even hollow-ground to form the cutting edge. Though less obviously so, the the design of the knife handle illustrated as Figure 45 A was likely influenced strongly by metal knives. It likely had a slate blade similar to the stemmed lance blade (Figure 43 C and

50 A) recovered in Component 3. It would have been inserted in the handle and held in place with mastic. Ground slate harpoon end blades (Figure 50 A-C) are also present in Component 3.

Similarities between those slate knives and metal knives reenforces designation of the component as being of protohistoric to historic age.

The faunal inventory of Component 3 is the most diverse in the trench. Caribou, seal, salmon, winter season fish, and migratory birds are all present, This indicates that the diversified subsistence economy initiated in Component 1, and expanded in Component 2 had reached full function by the beginning of Component 3. CHAPTER 7

PREHISTORIC CULTURAL DEVELOPMENTS ON THE YUKON-KUSKOKWIM DELTA

The Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta Phase of the Morton Curtural Tradition

For the purposes of classification, I propose that the

~ukon-Ruskokwim Delta phase of the Norton cultural tradition be established with the cultural inventory of Component 1 at the

MAR-007 site as the defining type assemblage (see Table 8 and the supplementary discussions of Chapter 6 for a summary of the artifact content by class and type). Even though the range of the artifact inventory is restricted because of the small sample size, the Component P inventory will serve for this initial formulation of the phase. Future excavations in the area will undoubtedly supplement the assemblage with additional artifact classes and types.

4rchaeological survey has been limited in scope and generally was conducted at the reconnaissance level on the Delta,

There are many sites in similar physiographic settings and with similar physical appearance that probably are related culturally to the Manokinak site. Few sites have been tested as part of the survey activity, but even with the meager testing conducted to

\ date, five sites (Figure 76) have been found that have components assignable to the the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta phase based on the presence of check stamp pottery. The majority of physically Figure 76. Locations of sites on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta that contain check stamp pottery.

LEGEND:

1. MAR-007

2. XHB-039

3. XHB-030

4. XNI-010

5. XBI-085 0 50 100 Km 0 50 150 Miles similar sites have not been tested -and many undoubtedly contain components representive of the Yukon-Ruskokwim Delta phase.

The Manokinak site excavations and tests at two other sites (see Figure 76) indicate that the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta phase is represented by their earliest components. The temporal span is approximately A.D. 40CJ to 1,000. 4s I have stated elsewhere (Shaw 1982), I believe that the cultural complex represented by Component 1 probably is the earliest permanent occupation on the Delta away from the major coastal embayments.

The coastal headlands and embayments apparently were preferred site localities during the florescence of the early Morton cultural tradition approximately 2,000 years ago.

The terminal date for Component 1 (c. A.D. 1,000) probably reflects the end of the Norton cultural tradition on the

Delta and the adjacent coastal regions. About A.D. 1,000 there were significant influences from outside the Delta which are

reflected in the artifact inventory and justify a separate cultural designation. Those changes are evident in Components 2 and 3 at the flAR-007 site and in the collections Oswalt (1952a and 1952b) gathered at Hooper aay. In a broad scheme of classification, these cultural inventories belong to the Western

Thule tradition (Dumond 1978:72). The Western Thule tradition is a very loose designation applied to late prehistoric components scattered over the entire Alaskan Coast of .bhe Bering Sea. The term is a poorly defined unit, but it is often used because there simply are, as yet, no better broad cultural units for the region. At this time, Western Thule tradition conveys little meaning beyond simply saying "late prehistoricn. I could name new regional phases based on Components 2 and 3, but I prefer not to do so. There is a large existing body of archaeological data outside the region that bears directly on the questions of late prehistoric culture change and chronology in which the inhabitants of the Flanokinak site were participants. A comprehensive review of the prehistory of the western Alaskan coast following A. D. 1,000 is needed. Additionally, the data from the upper components of the Manokinak site are basically insufficient to characterize the phase separations.

The Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta phase is included in the Norton tradition even though it is equally related to the late prehistoric complexes of the region that gave rise to the modern

Eskimo residents of the Delta. The primary justification for assignment to the Norton tradition is the presence of check stamp pottery. Common professional usage equates check stamp pottery with the Morton tradition, despite the fact that the presence of pottery is not a prequisite to the assignment of a collection to the Norton tradition (Dumond 1982) .

A second reason for the hlorton designation is that I wish to emphasize that I view the Yukon-Puskokwim Delta phase as a transitional phase between the Norton tradition and the Eskimo cultural manifestations that followed. Norton has always been considered to be an Eskimo culture, but cu1:ural continuity between this archaeological construct and the historic ~skimohas not previously been demonstrated. id dings (1954: 83) initially refered to the Iyatayet collections eventually used to define Norton Culture (1964) as 'lpaleo-Eskimoll . That cultural assessment has been implicitly accepted by the archaeological community as fact, but the rlanokinak site presents an unusual opportunity to demonstrate the connection via overlap in the

artifact assemablages of ort ton tradition and the tradition(s)

from about A.D. 1,000 which form a clearly demonstrable cultural continuum to the modern Eskimo. Demonstration of that cultural continuum is an important contribution to archaeology from the

research at the Manokinak site and is the primary undertaking of

Chapter 6.

Regional Expansion

It is my view that the people of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta phase expanded into an unpopulated area -- the Delta. This expansion developed out of Morton culture sites which were in

place earlier at preferred coastal localities in Norton Sound,

Kuskokwim Bay, and Bristol Bay at protected embayment mouths

and/or sheltered areas within zones of eroding bedrock headlands.

Such localities throughout west-central Alaska give easy access

to sea mammal habitat and anadromous fish runs. Additionally,

caribou may have been present on the Delta during the early

Norton phases. A broad subsistence economy founded on a

"tripartite resource base" of sea mammals, salmon, and caribou, \ as suggested by Bockstoce (1973:796) for ~ipeNome, is indicated

for early Norton tradition peoples in the southern area as well.

However, rather than the marginal fisheries which compromised

survival of Norton culture as suggested for Cape Nome, the more southern zone had strong, dependable salmon runs. Additionally, small seals were abundant in open waters of Kuskokwim and Rristol

Says. In the southern area, caribou likely were the weak element in the early tripartite resource base.

The Early Phase of the Norton Cultural Tradtion: ~echnologicalLimiting Factors

Subsistence productivity is a function of resource availability and existing technology. In the early Morton tradition, the available technology allowed dependable, but not highly productive and efficient, individual harvest of each element of the subsistence triumvirate. The early Norton tradition peoples appear to have had sufficient technological diversity to insure against biological failure of any one of the triumvirate in any given year, but, even with relatively high seasonal availability of the preferred subsistence resources, the level of technology probably limited the harvest. Intensive effort was required during the limited harvest season to store-up the necessary materials and food to survive until the return of migratory amimals the next season. Because of the technological limits and the limited man-hours available, large surpluses could not always be accumulated. However, the adaptation was well enough developed that Norton tradition peoples occupied the preferred site localities along the entire. soast from Cape Nome to the Alaska peninsula (Dumond 1978:68) during the early phase. The more marginal areas probably were not occupied at that time

(c. 2,500 years ago). Seals were taken with toqqLinq harpoons in open water (perhaps without the aid of bladder floats -- Bockstoce

1973:797), salmon probably were taken with spears and traps in

the streams, and caribou were taken in the uplands. predation

probably was directed to taking single individuals or a small

number of animals at one time rather than mass kills. The take

was dependable due to the seasonal abundance of game, but was

relatively low and labor intensive to harvest.

The cultural inventories of the small village groups during this early phase of the Norton cultural tradition were

rather variable. In part, this may have been due to isolation

and minor differences in the resource base. Those similarities

that existed would have been the result of limited cultural

exchange and a common subsistence pattern.

The Later Phase of the Yorton Cultural Tradition: Technological Innovations

bout 2,000 years ago a rapid and dramatic population

increase seems to have occurred in west-central Alaska. The

number and size of the sites on the coast increased markedly.

This population increase probably was a direct result of the advent of a highly efficient fishing technology along the coast.

The shift was from a dependence on methods of stream fishing that captured only a few fish at a time, to the. use of nets which would allow harvest of massive numbers of fish over short

intervals. Nets radically increased the number of potential

fishing sites and, consequently, provided a larger resource base. Nets would have allowed fishing along the shores in the open bays and large rivers that had not been possible on such a grand scale pteviously. Nets would also have allowed efficient fishing in the broad muddy rivers of the alluvial and estuarine zone of the

Delta. Localities that previously were considered marginal could be exploited. With the intensified dependence on anadramous fish, sea mammal and caribou hunting would have become less important for subsistence needs.

The growth of the available food resource base would have prompted the development of an expanded exchange network.

Formerly isolated coastal or lower river villages given the new net technology increased their resource base and population.

With increasing population, the number of villages increased and

the distance between villages decreased. Commodity exchange and

social contact apparently increased substantially. The widespread acceptance of net fishing in the subsistence strategy had ancillary effects that can be interpreted as a relatively rapid and widespread phenomenon, i.e. a cultural horizon. In the archaeological record, a cultural uniformity is evident. Dumond

(1977:106) designated this stage of development as a cultural

horizon, the Norton stage of the Norton tradition.

Expansion Onto the Delta

\ The next development was expansion-of the coastal

populations into the hinterlands of sloughs, tundra ponds, and

muddy rivers of the Delta. Caribou probably were at least

seasonally present in the moist tundra vegetation zone that blankets the higher elevation volcanic and eolian areas in the central part of the Delta. Those animals apparently were an important resource to the earliest inhabitants of the Delta who lived away from the rocky headlands on the coast. Caribou bones are abundant in Component 1 at MAR-007. It is not clear what would have been the percentage of caribou in the diet, but even in the early phases of colonization of the Delta, the herds probably were insufficient to sustain the human population.

Caribou decreased in number through time until none were present on the Delta by the late 1800s, but a gradual subsistence shift had negated the need for caribou even before their disappearance.

The historic people of the Delta have a very diversified subsistence base which supported the largest Eskimo population of any region in the state (Vanstone 1970:52). Movement onto the

Delta marked the beginning of that diversification out of the

Norton subsistence base.

The diversification that is evident in the diet of the modern Delta Eskimo began with the movement away from the coastal headlands. The early Norton tradition subsistence triumvirate

(salmon, seal, and caribou) are markedly less abundant in the coastal lowlands of the Delta, and (except for caribou during the

early period) availability drops to zero over the short distance

inland to the volcanic uplift area. Unlike the bedrock headlands

where sea mammals are abundant, the shalloy'pro-delta and

estuarine zone (see Figure 2) are not good seal-habitat.

Relatively few seal are found in the shallow off-shore waters of

the Delta, and winter sea hunting would be dangerous because of the ice conditions. Also, fewer salmon are available in the rivers that drain the Delta internally. The runs that do exist in these rivers are small and of short duration. Salmon undoubtedly were an important element in the early diet, and they have continued to be important, but locating villages on the

Delta where runs are smaller had the effect of making salmon less readily available to the people. As a result of the decreased resource availability in the traditional resource triumvirate of the earlier Norton culture, a more diverse survival strategy was formed when people moved onto the Delta.

The Norton subsistence triumvirate continued to be important, and harvest of seal, salmon, and caribou remained part of the subsistence round, but the rich resources of the Delta itself gained in importance. Migratory birds probably were critical to colonization of the Delta. The bird populations are very large during the breeding season. Additionally, the birds begin to arrive in April when the stored food reserves of the previous season are very low or nonexistant. Later in the season, molting birds are flightless and would be an ideal quarry for hunters with nets. I postulate that the net technology that was developed for salmon on the coast found ready application in the migratory bird breeding grounds of the Delta. Nelson

(1899:135) reports such ethnographic use of nets, and an illustration in Menagerts book (1962:180) .suggests a similar procedure for securing tundra hare. While the number of hare on the Delta is small, migratory waterfowl are seasonally present in huge numbers. With large numbers of birds being gathered, there would have been less need for harvest of sea mammals, salmon, and caribou. The presence of large numbers of bird bones in

Component I. of MAR-007 reflects this- However, migratory birds probably were only a partial substitute for sea mammal, salmon, and caribou. Heavy use of waterfowl was a critical element in the diversified diet necessary to maintain permanent villages on the Delta , but additional diversification occurred in exploitation of the indigenous fish species. There are numerous local fish that would partly make up for the reduced availability of salmon, and their seasonality does not conflict with the harvest season for salmon. Whitefish and cod are present in the fresh water to spawn during the early winter. Additionally, the thaw lakes and sloughs of the alluvial zone have abundant blackfish and stickleback all year. The prolonged availability and the different seasonality would make up for fewer salmon in the immediate vicinity. The presence of line fishing equipment, basket traps, and nets in Components 2 and 3 reflect the trend of increasing diversification in the subsistence harvest. As a cultural designation, the Yukon -Ruskokwim Delta phase should be considered to have strong subsistence implications. This is reflected by the cultural inventory.

Concludina Remarks \

The Manokinak site is notable because it is the first site on the Delta to be excavated in a controlled manner that yielded materials older than 300 years -- the approximate age of the oldest materials recovered by Oswalt (1952a) at Hooper Ray.

It has provided us with an initial look at the archaeological complex that probably is representative of a vast area of western

Alaska during a considerable span of prehistory about 1,200 years ago. ~n a broader sense, the Planokinak site is a cultural link between the archaeological construct known as the Norton tradition and the historic Eskimo. The latter generally are considered to be of a different cultural tradition.

The Manokinak site is near the inland limit of the settlement pattern for this cultural phase. Sites closer to the coast likely will not have the excellent preservation of organic materials which exists at the Manokinak site because permafrost , becomes less common coastward. Coupled with the fact that little archaeological excavation is contemplated in the region, the

Manokinak site probably will remain one of the few sites with exceptionally well preserved organic remains to be excavated on the Delta for the next several years. As other sites of the same phase with poorer preservation are excavated, the Yanokinak site will serve as a reference collection of the organic aspect to the

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