Conference Presentations by J. Anne Melton
A reinterpretation of the previously excavated Phil Stratton Site (Kentucky) at which has been fo... more A reinterpretation of the previously excavated Phil Stratton Site (Kentucky) at which has been found the enigmatic Cumberland fluted point. Site integrity was evaluated while also conducting spatial analyses from the available lithic material.
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Lithic refitting is an excellent means to explore site formation and test the geoarchaeological i... more Lithic refitting is an excellent means to explore site formation and test the geoarchaeological integrity of well-excavated multicomponent sites. The Owl Ridge site, located in the Teklanika valley, provides a plethora of well-provenienced lithic materials that shed light on late Pleistocene human occupation in central Alaska. I conducted a lithic refit analysis of artifacts from the 2007-2010 Owl Ridge excavations to verify presence of three separate occupation layers. My results indicate there were indeed three stratigraphically and technologically separated occupations of Owl Ridge, dating to about 13,000 cal BP, 12,000 cal BP, and 11,200 cal BP.
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Thesis Chapters by J. Anne Melton
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Papers by J. Anne Melton
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The contact goniometer is a commonly used tool in archaeological analysis, despite suffering from... more The contact goniometer is a commonly used tool in archaeological analysis, despite suffering from a number of shortcomings due to the physical interaction between the measuring implement, the object being measured, and the individual taking the measurements. However, lacking a simple and efficient alternative, researchers in a variety of fields continue to use the contact goniometer to this day. In this paper, we present a new goniometric method that we call the virtual goniometer, which takes angle measurements on a 3D model of an object. The virtual goniometer allows for rapid data collection, and for the measurement of many angles that cannot be physically accessed by a manual goniometer. Using fracture angle measurements on bone fragments, we compare the intra-observer variability of the manual and virtual goniometers, and find that the virtual goniometer is far more consistent and reliable. Furthermore, the virtual goniometer allows for precise replication of angle measurements...
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Geoarchaeology, 2019
The early archaeological record of Beringia is complicated by the occurrence of several lithic in... more The early archaeological record of Beringia is complicated by the occurrence of several lithic industries. Site assemblages, dating from 14,000 to 12,800 years ago and located from the Yana-Indigirka Lowlands of Siberia to the upper Tanana River basin, contain artifacts characteristic of the Nenana technological complex. After 12,800 years ago, site assemblages contain artifacts diagnostic of the Denali technocomplex. To explain the variation in lithic industries, we first and foremost need well-stratified and well-dated sites with multiple components so we securely know their ages and depositional relationships. We present excavation results of one such site located in interior Alaska, Owl Ridge, with the goal of assessing site stratigraphy, radiocarbon chronology, and natural site formation processes. Owl Ridge was visited three times during the Pleistocene-Holocene transition with a Nenana-complex occupation at 13,380-12,800 years ago followed by two Denali-complex occupations at 12,540-11,430 years ago and 11,270-11,200 years ago. Assemblage change at Owl Ridge was diachronically patterned, as at the nearby Dry Creek archaeological site, and separated by two climatic events, a brief extremely windy Younger Dryas (lasting 300-250 years) and a very brief wetter period (lasting ~160 years). Our results indicate these climate and environmental conditions played a role in settlement of eastern Beringia.
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Conference Presentations by J. Anne Melton
Thesis Chapters by J. Anne Melton
Papers by J. Anne Melton