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(From Man In The Northeast, No. 21: pp. 75 –85; 1981) CARBONIZED SEED REMAINS FROM
PREHISTORIC SITES IN CONNECTICUT Bernard W. Powell Abstract Carbonized plant seeds, recovered in part by flotation techniques at three sites in southern Connecticut, have been identified by expert botanical analysis, and shed light on prehistoric gathering behavior. FIFTEEN SPECIES of wild plants have been identified among carbonized plant remains recovered during archeological work in Connecticut. That such remains have been preserved at all in the damp, acidic soils of the Northeast, is to be attributed to their charring -- whether deliberate or accidental being as yet unknown. Seeds, of course, have been frequently reported for sites of the American West and Southwest, where preservation conditions are much more favorable. For the most part, the Connecticut seeds come from or are associated with probable "firespots" in ancient cultural horizons. Proveniences of the Finds Firespots are identified as irregular, sheet- or lens-like charcoal stains or smears, usually less than two feet in diameter, often surrounded by bright orange- or yellow-ocherous soils, presumably the alteration product of intense heat. On the same levels as some of the firespots have been recovered artifacts diagnostic of Late Archaic (ulu); Transitional (Orient Fishtail projectile points); and Late Woodland (Owascoid pottery) times. The chronological range would approximate 4000 to 700 radiocarbon years B.P. Pea-size chunks of burned wood (species unknown) have been recorded in or near some of the firespots, and in the case of the two coastal sites, Spruce Swamp and Sasqua Hill, marine shell fragments are also reported. Chipping debitage, largely quartz, and bone fragments are also present in some instances. None of the firespots was rock-lined, symmetrical, or evidenced by traces of deliberately dug pits, though such fireplaces or "hearths" are regularly described for sites in the Northeast on all time levels. We believe our firespots to have been places where transient fires were kindled -- and suggest their presence may be more common than reported in the literature, due to their greater difficulty of discrimination by excavators. Some of the seeds come from cultural horizons only, not associated with primary firespots. Flotation The seeds in all but a few cases were recovered by flotation of soil samples retained earlier in the field. A standard water technique (no chemical additives) was used, in a large drum, and material which floated, was removed by skimming with a fine, 1/16" metallic mesh. This recovered material was air-dried, then lightly manipulated to break up clumps, and the seeds picked out of the matrix by hand and by tweezers, with and without aid of a hand lens. The seeds were then identified by F.J. Lipp, a professional botanist (pers. com. 7/22/75). Figure 1 illustrates fourteen of the fifteen species, many reported for the first time at Connecticut sites, recovered during our work. The illustrations are from Martin and Barkley (1961), as the specimens there are identical to those we recovered, and we saw little need to duplicate such excellent macro-photographs. An added advantage of the Martin and Barkley plates is the inset in the lower left corner of each plate (showing the seeds life-size). Table 1 details our findings and may profitably be studied for relationships, uses, and proveniences of these plants by the remote native Americans of this region.
Flora Found in
Archeological Contexts of Southern New England
Fifteen native plant species have been
identified from charred seeds recovered at three aboriginal sites in
Connecticut (S. hispida, not illustrated).
Chronological range most probably Late Archaic through Middle
Woodland. Uses include foods, dyes, and medicine. Sites Two of the sites, Eckart and Spruce Swamp, have been partially published (Jostrand 1970), (Powell 1965a); however, more extensive reports are anticipated for both sites in the future. The third site, Sasqua Hill, has not been published, save for a note in Powell (1971), but a final report is planned by its chief excavator, Powell, in the future. Eckart This is an inland site or series of ill-defined sites of the southern Connecticut uplands, near Southbury on Lake Lillononah. Primary activity seems to have been quartz quarrying, guess-dated to the Late Archaic, and perhaps even much earlier. The seed remains come from two locations, so-called "Quarry 7" - a massive, open-pit quarry dug into quartz veins of the country rock, with contiguous undisturbed aboriginal horizons overlain by later levels created when white men worked the quarry, and from the so-called "Lower Field", an area about 200 yards east of "Quarry 7", and containing numerous evidences of aboriginal occupation. The "Lower Field" adjoins the area described by Jostrand (op. cit.). Spruce Swamp This is a coastal site at East Norwalk. Investigations here in 1973-74, under direction of the author, revealed presence of Mid- to Late Woodland remains and artifacts. His paper on the drowned coastal midden (Powell 1965a), discovered by him to extend sheet-wise beneath the area investigated in 1973-74, reported probable Late Archaic and Transitional Period phenomena where the midden lay exposed in a tidal bank of a nearby boat basin. Sasqua Hill This, too, is a coastal site at East Norwalk, two to three miles northeast of Spruce Swamp. Modern development has much obliterated the original dispositions of these two sites; they may have indeed, been near-continuous at one time, and to have had important outliers over a rather extensive area. Field excavations before urban development recovered an inventory of Mid- to Late-Woodland ceramics, plus human burials (Powell 1965b), and other phenomena yet-to-be-described. That a Late Archaic or perhaps earlier occupation seems certain, is evidenced by recovery in situ of a broken, polished, red, siltstone ulu. Discussion of Botanicals Fifteen species of wild plants are now established for archeological contexts in southern New England. All are native New World plants; two, the Goosefoot and the Smartweed, have European and Asian counterparts. Chenopodium album is listed by two authors (Palmer 1949, p. 175; and Angier 1974, p. 126) as "naturalized" from Europe and Asia. Present at the Connecticut sites is C. hybridum, presumably in these contexts, a native species. Lipp (pers. comm. 7/22/75) states specifically it was used by "Woodland Indians." Angier (op. cit.) is confusing -- or confused -- as he says Goosefoot was "... widely used as a green, both raw and cooked, by the North American Indians..." while simultaneously holding it is "... native of Asia and Europe...." The Polygonaceae or Smartweeds grow over the entire globe, according to this same author, who adds that "... well over five dozen species of Knotweed grow in (U.S.) ....” However, Palmer (op. cit., p. 173) says P. persecaria, the species identified by Lipp at the Connecticut sites, is "Naturalized from Europe...." Perhaps significantly, this is one of only two of the species identified by him from the Connecticut material (Maianthemun canadense or Beadruby, and Polygonum persicaria or Smartweed, Knotweed) that Lipp did not specifically indicate in his words was used by "Woodland Indians." Again, in their context of discovery, these latter two species can represent only, in our opinion, plants collected and used by Precontact Amerindians. That Beadruby has not heretofore been so reported, may make it a "first." That P. aff. persicaria is said to be "Naturalized from Europe..." may reflect more accurately some level of botanical confusion over species identification, and/or ranges, than an actual challenge to its Precolumbian position here. It is not, however, our desire to take issue with, or to express too strong an opinion in areas beyond our competence. Further to inferences that may be drawn from the data of the seeds it is interesting that three of the species (Oak, Hackberry and Hawthorne) are trees, one (Greenbriar) is a climbing briar, and one (Grape) is a vine. The remainder are low, woody and/or herbaceous plants. Five species (Beadruby, Dogwood or Bunchberry, False Solomon-Seal, Greenbriar and Hackberry) prefer "moist woodlands"; three (Deerberry, Jersey Tea, and Oak) prefer "dry, sandy woods"; four (Goosefoot, Pigweed, Pokeberry and Smartweed) prefer "open clearings"; seven (Beadruby, Deerberry, Dogwood, False Solomon-Seal, Grape, Hackberry and Pokeberry) are producers of berries or berry-like fruits; three (Goosefoot, Pigweed and Smartweed) produce quantities of grain-like seeds; two (Dogwood and Hackberry) are masticatories (increase saliva flow); two species (Greenbriar and False Solomon-Seal) are also eaten as rootstocks; two (Oak, Hawthorne) produce nuts or nutlets; six (False Solomon-Seal, Goosefoot, Greenbriar, Jersey Tea, Pokeberry and Knotweed) are harvested for their young shoots and/or leaves. The bulk of the plants produces foods or direct edibles. Two (Pokeberry, Jersey Tea) yield dyes. Three (Grape, Greenbriar, Jersey Tea) are used in drinks. Three (Beadruby, False Solomon-Seal and Pokeberry) have vague medicinal properties. Four of the recovered plants (False Solomon-Seal, Goosefoot, Greenbriar and Pokeberry) are cited as being harvested for their young shoots, so presumably this would be in the spring and early summer. Twelve (Beadruby, Deerberry, Dogwood, False Solomon-Seal, Goosefoot, Grape, Hackberry, Hawthorne, Oak, Pigweed, Pokeberry and Smartweed) yield a fruit, seed, nut or berry harvested mainly in summer and early fall. One (Beadruby) might be gathered in dead of winter, but this seems tenuous. Perhaps a comment might be made about the Goosefoot and the Amaranths. According to one authority, (Angier, op. cit., p. 88), these plants are often confused, even by modern wild food collectors. Presumably, the native peoples may have confused them too, or not, as the case might be. The point is, that it would make little practical difference: the seeds of both are edible and could be collected and processed indiscriminately. Lipp (pers. comm. 7/22/75) also found two species of Greenbriar in the Connecticut material. Thus, Smilax glauca was reported only at the coastal site, Sasqua Hill, and S. hispida (not illustrated) was reported only at the upland site, Eckart. Whether this is significant, we don't know. Palmer (1949, p. 139) states there are approximately a dozen species of Smilax in the northeastern U.S. A final caution: the "Dogwood" herein referred to (C. canadensis) is not the familiar flowering tree of the Eastern Woodlands, but a low-growing plant, also widely known as Bunchberry or Dwarf Cornel. Thus, it seems that analysis of the data from these three Connecticut sites establishes use of, and collection of, seed-bearing fruits and/or other organs of fifteen native American plants by Amerinds of the Northeast at least as far back as Middle Woodland times, and quite probably into the terminal Archaic, as well. The range of habitat for the plants suggests a wide variety of soil types and topography, and says something about meteorological and climatological conditions, too. That such plants were being collected perhaps three or four millennia ago, bears mute testimony to the time some of these species may have been growing in these parts. Varied habitats and seasonality of ripening times likewise testify to behavioral and adaptive strategies of the native Americans who collected them on each time level. That they were discriminating a wide variety of plant resources is to be guessed at; just how extensive this actually was must remain hypothetical save for hard data, such as these seeds, from archeological contexts. That the seeds are preserved as consequence of carbonizing or charring in or near fires is noteworthy. Whether this charring was deliberate or accidental cannot be decided on the basis of information at hand, and again, one should probably not be overly quick to assume “cooking" for immediate consumption as the probable cause. Roasting and drying as pre-storage preparations, might also be involved. Acknowledgment I thank Dr. Frank J. Lipp, The New York Botanical Garden, for the species identifications of the recovered material. In compliance with the wishes of The University of California Press, the following copy pertains to the illustrated specimens herewith: "Copyright 1961 by The Regents of the University of California; reprinted by permission of the University of California Press." References Cited Angier, Bradford. 1974. Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants. Harrisburg: Stackpole Books. Archbald, D.,
R.V. Fleming and V.M. Kline. 1968. Quick-Key Guide to
Wildflowers. New York:
Fernald, Merritt
L. and Alfred C. Kinsey. 1943. (Revised 1958). Edible Wild Plants
of Eastern
Jostrand,
Theodore H. 1970. The Eckart Site, Southbury, Connecticut.
Bulletin of the
Martin,
Alexander C. and William D. Barkley. 1961. Seed
Identification Manual. Berkeley: The
Palmer, E.
Laurence. 1949. Fieldbook of Natural History. New
York: McGraw-Hill Book
Powell, B.W.
1965a. Spruce Swamp: A Partially Drowned Coastal Midden in
Connecticut.
____
1965b. On the Recovery of Burial Number Two at the Sasqua Hill Site,
East Norwalk,
____ 1971. First Site Synthesis and Proposed Chronology for
the Aborigines of Southwestern
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