Native Californians at the Presidio of San Francisco: Analysis of Lithic Specimens from El Polín Spring

Relatively few archaeological studies have examined the experiences of native people at Spanish colonial military installations. A small flaked lithic assemblage at the Presidio of San Francisco provides insight into the lives and labor of Native Californians there. Technically proficient knappers, making do with poor-quality, locally available material, engaged in freehand core reduction and produced non-symmetrical, bifacially flaked tools through percussion production. These tools were most likely used for cutting during specific tasks. The analysis reveals how Native Californians in colonial institutions maintained flintknapping traditions in social spaces that were likely shared by native people and colonists.     

Matter Out of Time: The Paradox of the “Contemporary Past”

Contemporary archaeology, with its focus on the present and the very recent past, challenges the conventional definitions of archaeology that emphasize the temporal distance between the archaeologist and the subject matter being investigated. Contemporary archaeology requires different methods, forges novel interdisciplinary collaborations, and inspires new questions. In particular, contemporary archaeology reminds us that all social actors, both in the present and in the past, were uncertain of the future and could not know the outcomes of their actions.     

Massenschädlingsplagen in Afrika

Gro?e Areale der Erdoberfl?che subkontinentaler Ausma?e, speziell in den Subtropen, werden immer wieder von Massensch?dlingsplagen heimgesucht. Zu diesen migrant pests z?hlen vor allem das Auftreten von Heuschrecken, von Schadvogelschw?rmen und von schweren Vegetationssch?den, die durch den Afrikanischen Heerwurm verursacht werden. Die daran gebundenen Auswirkungen wurden in den jüngsten Jahrzehnten immer gravierender, weil durch die au?ergew?hnliche Bev?lkerungszunahme in den betroffenen Staaten die durch diese Plagen entstandenen Erntesch?den zu unerme?lichen Folgen für die Ern?hrungssicherung führen.     

Towards a Transpacific Archaeology of the Modern World

The historical archaeology of overseas Chinese communities is a rapidly growing subfield. Although historical archaeology is not widely practiced in China, there are well-developed interdiscipinary research centers that investigate the history and culture of migrants’ qiaoxiang (hometown) societies. Scholars in American Studies programs throughout Asia are also bringing new perspectives to the study of Chinese migration past and present. By collaborating with these scholars, archaeologists on the Chinese Railroad Workers in North America Project are developing new chronological, geographic, spatial, and material frameworks for the interpretation of overseas Chinese archaeological sites and landscapes.