Fjord fishing in Mesolithic Western Norway

Recent excavations at two rockshelters (Olsteinhelleren and Sævarhelleren) on the Hardanger fjord in Western Norway have provided an unparalleled opportunity to examine the Mesolithic subsistence economy of this region. Thousands of fish remains (as well as numerous mammal and bird bones) have been analysed from these assemblages. Results show that the fishery was dominated by gadids, but labrids and salmonids were also important. Many other fish were present in small quantities, including the first specimen of sturgeon from the Stone Age of Norway. The transition to a more specialised fishery at the younger site, Olsteinhelleren, may be a reflection of a switch to the use of this locality as a logistic camp for the targeting of gadid fish.     

Specialized Salt Production During the Ancient Maya Classic Period at Two Paynes Creek Salt Works,Belize: Chan b’i and Atz’aam Na

Underwater excavations at the Classic period (a.d. 300–900) ancient Maya salt works of Chan b’i and Atz’aam Na in Paynes Creek National Park, Belize, reveal activity areas associated with a substantial salt industry for distribution to nearby southern Maya inland sites where this biological requirement was scarce. Wooden architecture and salt making artifacts are abundantly preserved in a peat bog composed of red mangrove. Excavations, screening, and analysis of recovered material at the submerged underwater sites reveal that the artifacts are overwhelmingly briquetage: pottery vessels used to evaporate salty water by heating over fires to make salt. The spatial distribution of briquetage in relation to the interior and exterior of buildings reveals that salt production was occurring indoors. The plethora of briquetage and the scarcity of domestic artifacts indicate that the sites were specialized salt works and not physically attached to households.     

Reaping ‘rewards’ in sickle use-wear analysis

Recently in their research Goodale et al. (2010) as well as that of Vardi et al. (2010) independently tackled issues of effectively measuring attrition/gloss rates on sickle blade tools from Southwest Asia. Interestingly, while applying new methodology to analyzing sickle tools from different cultural and temporal contexts, these two papers arrived at a similar conclusion: sickle tools were likely very expensive to make, and thus, considerations were made during their production to ensure long use-lives to benefit the people who made and used them in prehistory. Stemp et al. (in this issue) provide a methodological critique of both studies. In addressing their critique we make several points. First it is important to note that Stemp et al. provide no new experimental analysis to justify their assertions, and their critique is ultimately, at best, guesswork. Second, the minimal reanalysis of the data Stemp et al. do conduct arguably lead to the same preliminary conclusion at which we originally arrived: the prehistoric sickle blades we examined were used longer than those we replicated. As stated in our original paper, lithic use-wear studies often do not address issue of reliable and reproducible methods. We believe that our original study helps fill this missing component, and that measuring edge thickness is much less subjective than conventional features on stone tools traditionally identified microscopically. From our perspective, Stemp et al. present largely unsupported critical commentary, lacking substantial reanalysis or experiments to complement or justify their commentary. In the end Stemp et al. provide little more than interesting ideas and conjecture.