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(Reference retrieved automatically from Web of Science through information on FAPESP grant and its corresponding number as mentioned in the publication by the authors.)

Experimental micromorphology in Tierra del Fuego (Argentina): building a reference collection for the study of shell middens in cold climates

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Author(s):
Villagran, Ximena S. [1] ; Balbo, Andrea L. ; Madella, Marco [2] ; Vila, Assumpcio ; Estevez, Jordi [3]
Total Authors: 5
Affiliation:
[1] Univ Sao Paulo IGc, Inst Geosci, BR-05508080 Sao Paulo - Brazil
[2] Spanish Natl Res Council, Dept Archaeol & Anthropol, IMF, CSIC, ICREA, Barcelona 08001 - Spain
[3] UAB, Dept Prehist, Fac Filosofia & Letras, Bellaterra 08193 - Spain
Total Affiliations: 3
Document type: Journal article
Source: JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL SCIENCE; v. 38, n. 3, p. 588-604, MAR 2011.
Web of Science Citations: 24
Abstract

Commonly used in archaeological contexts, micromorphology did not see a parallel advance in the field of experimental archaeology. Drawing from early work conducted in the 1990's on ethnohistoric sites in the Beagle Channel, we analyze a set of 25 thin sections taken from control features and experimental tests. The control features include animal pathways and environmental contexts (beach samples, forest litter, soils from the proximities of archaeological sites), while the experimental samples comprise anthropic structures, such as hearths, and valves of Mytilus edulis (the most important component of shell middens in the region) heated from 200 degrees C to 800 degrees C. Their micromorphological study constitutes a modern analogue to assist archaeologists studying site formation and ethnographical settings in cold climates, with particular emphasis on shell midden contexts. (c) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. (AU)