Animacy, Symbolism, and Feathers from Mantle's Cave, Colorado By
Animacy, Symbolism, and Feathers from Mantle's Cave, Colorado By Caitlin Ariel Sommer B.A., Connecticut College 2006 A thesis submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of the University of Colorado in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Arts Department of Anthropology 2013 This thesis entitled: Animacy, Symbolism, and Feathers from Mantle’s Cave, Colorado Written by Caitlin Ariel Sommer Has been approved for the Department of Anthropology Dr. Stephen H. Lekson Dr. Catherine M. Cameron Sheila Rae Goff, NAGPRA Liaison, History Colorado Date__________ The final copy of this thesis has been examined by the signatories, and we Find that both the content and the form meet acceptable presentation standards Of scholarly work in the above mentioned discipline. Abstract Sommer, Caitlin Ariel, M.A. (Anthropology Department) Title: Animacy, Symbolism, and Feathers from Mantle’s Cave, Colorado Thesis directed by Dr. Stephen H. Lekson Rediscovered in the 1930s by the Mantle family, Mantle’s Cave contained excellently preserved feather bundles, a feather headdress, moccasins, a deer-scalp headdress, baskets, stone tools, and other perishable goods. From the start of excavations, Mantle’s Cave appeared to display influences from both Fremont and Ancestral Puebloan peoples, leading Burgh and Scoggin to determine that the cave was used by Fremont people displaying traits heavily influenced by Basketmaker peoples. Researchers have analyzed the baskets, cordage, and feather headdress in the hopes of obtaining both radiocarbon dates and clues as to which culture group used Mantle’s Cave. This thesis attempts to derive the cultural influence of the artifacts from Mantle’s Cave by analyzing the feathers.
[Show full text]