What We Work On

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Current Research

 

Late Prehistoric Kansas and Nebraska Ceramics

These vessels were used between A.D. 1200 - A.D. 1400 and exhibit the most diverse morphology of any ceramics in native Kansas and Nebraska history or prehistory. While it is probable that these artifacts were crafted by ancestors to some documented indigenous occupants, the ceramics crafted by historically documented tribes do not provide an adequate analog for these vessels. We propose that the diversity of these vessel forms reflects a substantially more diverse diet than that practiced by historically documented groups.


As our analyses proceed, results will be posted to this page.

Residue Analysis

Vessels that contain charred residues either on the inside of the vessel or trapped within design elements on the rim and outer surface, such as punctuates or incised lines, often contain visible evidence of foods cooked in them.  Residues on the outside of the vessels often are the result of cooking carbohydrate-rich foods in water, which frequently produces a frothy top layer, and results in boiling over.  The modern analog is boiling spaghetti.  Evidence of boiling maize was recovered from a Lower Loup Phase pottery sherd recovered at a Great Bend Aspect site in central Kansas.  Charred residue removed from the rim punctuates included wavy top phytoliths and starch, both diagnostic of cooking maize, and diatoms, which suggest cooking the maize in water (Cummings et al. 2008). 


Other examples of recovering identifiable phytoliths and/or starch include recovery of  diagnostic phytoliths from a member of the Marantaceae (maranta family) from groundstone from New Mexico (Cummings et al. 2009 (PRI 09-29)).  In addition, these samples exhibited a positive match with roots of a member of the Marantaceae.  Combined dated from phytlith and FTIR analysis of a small cylindrical  ceramic object from Texas again provided evidence of the use of a member of the Marantaceae (Cummings et al. 2009 (PRI 09-73).  Marantaceae is present in this region through trade, and is considered an exotic.  These techniques have the ability to not only identify foods typical of known agricultural complexes, but also the presence of trade of exotics.

Examples

Fig 1.  Ceramic With Bison Signature

ftirbison

 

Fig 2.  Ceramic With Zea mays Signature

ftir maize

 

Student Resources

Recommended Reading:

  • Banwell, C.N.; McCash, E.M. (1994). Fundamentals of Molecular Spectroscopy (4th ed.). McGraw-Hill. ISBN 0077079760.
  • Griffiths, P.; de Hasseth, J.A. (18 May 2007). Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometry (2nd ed.). Wiley-Blackwell. ISBN 0471194042.
  • Nishikida, K.; Nishio, E.; Hannah, R.W. (1995). Selected applications of FT-IR techniques. Gordon and Breach. p. 240. ISBN 2884490736.
  • Smith, Brian C. (1996). Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy. CRC Press. ISBN 0849324610.

Web Resources:

  • http//www.chemistry.oregonstate.edu/courses/ch361-464/Integrated_Lab_Curriculum.htm
  • http://www.nuance.northwestern.edu/keckii/ftir1.asp

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Updated: September 2010