Washington University in St. Louis Washington University Open Scholarship Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations Arts & Sciences Spring 5-15-2020 Testing Assumptions on the Relationship between Humans and their Environment: Case Studies from Cahokia Mounds, Illinois Caitlin Gail Rankin Washington University in St. Louis Follow this and additional works at: https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/art_sci_etds Part of the Environmental Sciences Commons, and the History of Art, Architecture, and Archaeology Commons Recommended Citation Rankin, Caitlin Gail, "Testing Assumptions on the Relationship between Humans and their Environment: Case Studies from Cahokia Mounds, Illinois" (2020). Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 2235. https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/art_sci_etds/2235 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Arts & Sciences at Washington University Open Scholarship. It has been accepted for inclusion in Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Washington University Open Scholarship. For more information, please contact [email protected]. WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY IN ST. LOUIS Department of Anthropology Dissertation Examination Committee: Tristram R. Kidder, Chair David A. Freidel Gayle J. Fritz John E. Kelly Natalie G. Mueller Jennifer R. Smith Testing Assumptions on the Relationship between Humans and their Environment: Case Studies from Cahokia Mounds, Illinois by Caitlin G. Rankin A dissertation presented to The Graduate School of Washington University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy May 2020 St. Louis, Missouri © 2020, Caitlin Rankin Table of Contents List of Figures ................................................................................................................................ vi List of Tables .................................................................................................................................. x Acknowledgments.......................................................................................................................... xi Abstract ....................................................................................................................................... xvii Chapter 1: Acceptable Assumptions in the Relationship between Humans and the Environment 1 1.1 Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Cahokia Mounds as a Case Study .................................................................................... 4 1.3 Geoarchaeology as a Method ......................................................................................... 18 1.4 Structure of the Dissertation ........................................................................................... 20 1.5 References Cited ............................................................................................................ 22 Chapter 2: Evaluating Narratives of Ecocide with the Stratigraphic Record at Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site, Illinois, USA .................................................................................................. 29 2.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 29 2.2 Site Setting .......................................................................................................................... 32 2.3 Methods ............................................................................................................................... 36 2.3.1 Field Methods ............................................................................................................................ 36 2.3.2 Laboratory Methods ................................................................................................................... 39 2.4 Results ................................................................................................................................. 44 2.4.1 Mound 5 Excavations................................................................................................................. 44 ii 2.4.2 Mound 16 Excavations............................................................................................................... 48 2.4.3 Canteen Creek Excavations ....................................................................................................... 51 2.4.4 Sediment Coring ........................................................................................................................ 56 2.5 Discussion ........................................................................................................................... 59 2.6 Final Thoughts: Why Old Theories of Collapse Persist through Time ............................... 65 2.7 References Cited ................................................................................................................. 66 Chapter 3. Correlating Climate Change and Population Dynamics at Cahokia Mounds ............. 72 3.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 72 3.2 Materials and Methods ........................................................................................................ 76 3.2.1 Archaeological and Modern Soil Samples ................................................................................. 76 3.2.2 Stable Carbon Isotope Analysis ................................................................................................. 81 3.3 Results ................................................................................................................................. 82 3.3.1 Stable Carbon Isotopes............................................................................................................... 82 3.4 Discussion ........................................................................................................................... 86 3.5 References Cited ................................................................................................................. 93 Chapter 4. The Exceptional Setting of the North Plaza, Cahokia Mounds, Illinois ..................... 98 4.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 98 4.2 Environmental Setting ....................................................................................................... 103 4.3 Methods ............................................................................................................................. 105 4.3.1 Field Methods .......................................................................................................................... 105 iii 4.3.2 Laboratory Methods ................................................................................................................. 108 4.4 Results ............................................................................................................................... 110 4.4.1 Excavation and Sediment Core Stratigraphy ........................................................................... 110 4.4.2 Ceramic Rim Assemblage and Chronology ............................................................................. 117 4.4.3 Stable Carbon Isotopes............................................................................................................. 122 4.5 Discussion ......................................................................................................................... 124 4.6 References Cited ............................................................................................................... 133 Chapter 5: Conclusions ............................................................................................................... 139 5.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................................... 139 5.2 Chapter Summaries ........................................................................................................... 139 5.3 Final Thoughts on Acceptable Assumptions ..................................................................... 142 5.4 Future Direction ................................................................................................................ 144 5.6 References Cited ............................................................................................................... 147 Appendix A: Cahokia Grid Coordinates (x,y,z) of 2017 Sediment Cores .................................. 150 Appendix B: Cahokia Grid Coordinates (x,y,z) of 2017 and 2018 Archaeological Excavations ..................................................................................................................................................... 151 Appendix C: Raw Data Table of Ceramic Rim Assemblage from Mound 5 ............................. 152 Appendix D: OxCal Codes for Bayesian Chronological Model of Mound 5 ............................. 153 Appendix E: Raw Data Table of Ceramic Rim Assemblage from Mound 16 ............................ 154 Appendix F: Probability Distributions for Mound 16 Radiometric Age Estimate ..................... 155 iv Appendix G: Context of all current radiometric age estimates from the North Plaza