Thesis Chapters by Marine VANLANDEGHEM
Conference Presentations by Marine VANLANDEGHEM
This event is an opportunity for students and job seekers of all levels to network with potential... more This event is an opportunity for students and job seekers of all levels to network with potential employers, field school or internship programs, and other opportunities in Alaska. Government agencies, academic programs, and private employers are encouraged to prepare an introductory slide or flash presentation describing the types of positions available and information about how to navigate the employment process. Employers with vacancies please send position description information and application instructions to [email protected]
This Career workshop is dedicated to helping students (members of Native and rural communities, j... more This Career workshop is dedicated to helping students (members of Native and rural communities, juniors, undergraduates and graduates, international students, etc.) prepare for their future academic or professional careers in archaeology, anthropology, humanities, science, and education in Alaska.
Poster presented as part of the GDR AREES, during the Arctic week 2019 in Paris.
47th ANNUAL MEETING OF THE Alaska Anthropological Association FAIRBANKS, ALASKA FEBRUARY 26 -29, 2020 , 2020
Our oral presentation introduces a new scientific article (under review) about 55 fire experiment... more Our oral presentation introduces a new scientific article (under review) about 55 fire experiments conducted under controlled laboratory conditions in France, and under outdoor conditions in an Arctic coastal setting in northwestern Alaska. We compared fuel combinations of driftwood, animal fat, and caribou bones over these 55 combustions and we described conditions necessary to achieve a reproducible and statistically representative experimental fire sample. We found that a minimum of thirty replicate fires was needed to obtain statistically significant results and to reduce variability. We obtained key figures and descriptive data on the impact of different animal fuels on fire temperature and duration, as well as on the firewood spectrum, with important implications for the representation of different woody fuels and the fragmentation patterns of charcoals.
47th ANNUAL MEETING OF THE Alaska Anthropological Association FAIRBANKS, ALASKA FEBRUARY 26 -29, 2020, 2020
In an effort to promote Alaska's Iñupiaq culture and heritage, a recently published YouTube video... more In an effort to promote Alaska's Iñupiaq culture and heritage, a recently published YouTube video presents ethnographic data on domestic fire management in northwestern Alaska during the historical tradition. The video is part of the animated series called "Past and Curious" that strives to share the archaeological work of both doctoral students and doctors. The idea behind the Past and Curious initiative is to give life to archaeological research in an accessible and fun way and for researchers to share their findings with a wider audience. This project takes place in the framework of my doctoral research at Paris 1 Pantheon-Sorbonne University focusing on the fuel economy of late prehistoric coastal occupations in northwestern Alaska. The video presents what local inhabitants used to build fires before Western contact. The inspiration for the animation came from the ethnographic and oral history work written by Ernest S. “Tiger” Burch, Jr. during his time as an Arctic anthropologist in the region. With this short film, my goal was to offer a visual representation that provides a glimpse of the ingenious technologies that the Iñupiat created and relied on to live, as well as share a positive representation of this Alaskan culture.
47th Annual Meeting of the Alaska Anthropological Association, Fairbanks, Alaska, 2020
"Learning to Replicate Past Practices, Replicating Past Practices to Learn: Experimental Approach... more "Learning to Replicate Past Practices, Replicating Past Practices to Learn: Experimental Approaches and New Techniques in Alaskan Archaeology"
This session seeks to bring together researchers working with experimental approaches to understand past lifeways and site formation processes. Topics can range from short to long term experiments, tests of new equipment, or application of new techniques or analyses within the field of archaeology. We encourage participation from multidisciplinary researchers focused on replication of past tool and weapon systems, food processing and butchery techniques, paleoenvironmental reconstruction, site formation, and taphonomic processes, and incorporation of traditional knowledge systems in analyses and interpretation of the archaeological record.
The goal of this session is to stimulate interest in reconstructive and experimental archaeology and to discuss key issues in the design and implementation of experiments (protocols, replication, and reconstruction, statistical analyses, etc.). Discussions will provide resources to help guide archaeologists considering new techniques and experimentation in their research in Alaska. Furthermore, we encourage inclusive conversations of research findings and needs, avenues for public outreach, and the co-production of knowledge in archaeology in Alaska.
Projet "PAST AND CURIOUS", 2019
VIDEO : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPUyafZRzgg
Scénario : Marine Vanlandeghem
Marine Vanla... more VIDEO : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPUyafZRzgg
Scénario : Marine Vanlandeghem
Marine Vanlandeghem est doctorante à l'Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, où elle consacre ses recherches à la gestion du feu dans l'habitat des populations du nord-ouest de l'Alaska. Elle étudie les vestiges de foyers et pratique des expérimentations pour reconstituer leur fonctionnement. Elle se rend régulièrement sur le terrain, tant pour participer à des fouilles que pour poursuivre ses travaux à l'Université de Fairbanks.
Production et réalisation : Past & Curious
Illustration : Astrid Amadieu https://www.astridamadieu.com/
Animation et montage : Maxime Garnaud
Dans cette vidéo, nous avons choisi le terme généralement employé dans l'Arctique pour désigner la lampe, "qulliq". Notons qu'en Iñupiatun, précisément, cette lampe est appelée "naniq".
Bibliographie :
- ALIX C. 2016. A Critical Resource: Wood Use and Technology in the North American Arctic, in T.M. FRIESEN, O.K. MASON, The Oxford Handbook of the Prehistoric Arctic.
- ANDERSON S.L. 2017. Ethnographic and Archaeological Perspectives on the Use Life of Northwest Alaskan Pottery. Anthropology Faculty Publications and Presentations 139.
- BURCH E.S. 2006. Social life in northwest Alaska: the structure of Iñupiaq Eskimo nations. University of Alaska press, Fairbanks.
- BURCH E.S. 1998. The Iñupiaq Eskimo nations of northwest Alaska. University of Alaska Press, Fairbanks.
- PLUMET P. 1989. Le foyer dans l’arctique, in M. OLIVE, Y. TABORIN (eds.), Nature et Fonction Des Foyers Préhistoriques. Mémoires du Musée de Préhistoire d’Ile de France, Nemours, pp. 313–325.
- SAARIO D.J., KESSEL B. 1966. Human Ecological Investigation at Kivalina, in N.J. WILIMOVSKY, J.N. WOLFE (eds.), Environment of the Cape Thompson Region, Alaska. Washington DC, pp. 969–1039.
- URBAN T.M., RASIC J.T., ALIX C., ANDERSON D.D., CHISHOLM L., JACOB R.W., MANNING S.W., MASON O.K., TREMAYNE A.H., VINSON D. 2019. Magnetic detection of archaeological hearths in Alaska: A tool for investigating the full span of human presence at the gateway to North America. Quaternary Science Reviews 211, 73–92.
- VANLANDEGHEM M. 2015. Exploitation des combustibles dans le nord-ouest de l’Alaska : Contributions de l’anthracologie à la compréhension de l’économie du bois de feu chez les cultures birnirk et thuléennes au Cap Espenberg. Unpublished MA thesis. Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, Paris.
Within the Cape Espenberg sites, layers of carbonized and cemented remains are found associated w... more Within the Cape Espenberg sites, layers of carbonized and cemented remains are found associated with Birnirk and Thule semi-subterranean houses (11th-18th century AD). These burned areas raise a number of questions about re related outside activities, the use of multiple fuels, and the long-term processes that led to their formation. In this wood-poor arctic environment, ethnographic observations report that driftwood can be used as a fuel, often coupled with animal resources to meet fire energy needs.
In this paper, we present combustion areas excavated from the Rising Whale site at Cape Espenberg. We analyzed each hearth feature by sorting and identifying wood and animal fuels. We discuss the representation of firewood taxa with a statistical analysis of their frequency and fragmentation.
Animal bones and fat within hearths: Creating insight into arctic fuel management through fire ex... more Animal bones and fat within hearths: Creating insight into arctic fuel management through fire experiments
Marine VANLANDEGHEM, Claire ALIX, Lauren NORMAN, Tammy BUONASERA
In northwestern Alaska, burned activity areas with horizons of carbonized organic remains and sand layers cemented with sea mammal fat are often found outside of Birnirk and Thule semi-subterranean house features.
In this paper, we address the question of using animal products (such as terrestrial and marine mammal fat, and bones) as supplementary fuels in wood-poor environments by reporting on a series of sixty-four experimental combustions under controlled conditions. Results assess the impact of animal fuels on wood fire temperature and duration as well as identify the effect of adding bones and fat to fires on archaeological charcoal remains. These results provide a framework to discuss why, when and for what purpose Birnirk and Thule people used fires in northwestern Alaska.
Poster presented with Claire Alix, Claire, Michelle Elliott et Isabelle Théry-Parisot, at the 44... more Poster presented with Claire Alix, Claire, Michelle Elliott et Isabelle Théry-Parisot, at the 44th Alaska Anthropology Association Annual Conference, Fairbanks, Alaska, March 27.
At Cape Espenberg, large burned areas are found associated with Birnirk/Thule features (AD XIth-XVth c.), raising questions about the functions of burnt areas - domestic (cooking, boiling, heating, lighting) or specialized hearth (ceramic baking). To test hypotheses on fire activities and fuel economy, we are conducting fire experiments under different conditions (outdoors or in laboratory) and with different fuel sources (wood and/or fat). These hearths provide information on the impact of fat on heat, duration of fire, formation of soil crusts, and agglomerated organic residues which may be crucial for the interpretation of archaeological charcoal remains from the sites.
Poster presented with Claire Alix, Michelle Elliott, Isabelle Théry-Parisot,
at the Ethnoarchaeo... more Poster presented with Claire Alix, Michelle Elliott, Isabelle Théry-Parisot,
at the Ethnoarchaeology of Fire Symposim, February 2017, Tenerife, Espagne.
Session : Archaeology of fire
Abstract :
We present a study regarding fuel availability at the sites of Cape Espenberg in northwestern Alaska, based on data from post-AD1000 archaeological sites. Our long-term goal is to explore fuel management patterns in a wood-poor arctic environment. Birnirk and Thule inhabitants at Cape Espenberg (AD XIth-XVth centuries) used driftwood as fuel, but often mixed it with nonwood fuel (bones, fat, etc.). Large burned areas are found associated with most house features, raising questions regarding the uses of fire, as well as the functions of these hearth and burnt areas for different time periods. We developed a multidisciplinary approach to explore fuel practices in this region using soil micromorphology, anthracology and experimental combustions. The complementarity of these approaches is key to providing information about the functions of combustion features.
Under controlled laboratory conditions and outdoors with local conditions, we conducted experimental fires, using either wood fuel or mixed wood-fat fuel (either terrestrial or marine mammal fat). These experimental combustions provide information about the impact of fat on the temperature and duration of fire, the formation of soil crusts, and agglomerated organic residues. Analysis and identification of charcoal remains suggest strong contrasts in the representation of wood taxa and the preservation of charcoal between wood-only and fat-added experimental fires. The implication of these results are discussed in relation to the analysis of burnt areas at Cape Espenberg.
Poster presented with Julia Wattez, Claire Alix, Michelle Elliott, Théry-Parisot Isabelle et Chri... more Poster presented with Julia Wattez, Claire Alix, Michelle Elliott, Théry-Parisot Isabelle et Christophe Petit, at the 22nd Annual Meeting of the EAA, August 31st – September 4th 2016, Vilnius, Lithuania
In Northwest Alaska, human societies have adapted their subsistence strategies to extreme conditions. At the coastal Cape Espenberg site, excellent conservation conditions have allowed the preservation of many cultural features (architecture, hearths, middens) within a series of aggrading beach ridges. Remains of semisubterranean houses and associated material culture indicate the sites relate to the Birnirk and the Thule cultures. The houses associated with the Birnirk culture are in ridge E6 and reveal a multiroom architecture and two to three occupation levels dated to the 11th13th century. Thule and later Kotzebue period houses are found on ridge E5 and E4. They show a long entrance tunnel leading to a rectangular room that contains a sleeping platform elevated above the occupation level. Unusual concentrations of archaeological charcoal and burned organic matter have been uncovered inside and outside of Birnirk houses, revealing the presence of small domestic hearths inside and firepits outside. However, Thule culture houses only have external burned areas and firepits. Ceramic lamps appear to be the sole source of light and heat inside these houses. The variability in the form, fill, and spatial organization of combustion structures raises questions regarding their usage, status and maintenance by people who occupied these houses. To further understand fire management in the arctic tundra, and the function and status of combustion structures, soil samples were collected from combustion structures (hearths, firepits, charcoal's concentration and soil occupation, ...) for anthracological and micromorphological analysis. This sampling protocole provides the opportunity for a multivariate, comparative and diachronic analysis of combustion structures between one Birnirk house and three Thule houses at Cape Espenberg. Our goal is to identify the diversity of firerelated activities in the excavated Birnirk and Thule houses, whether domestic (cooking, boiling water, heating, lighting, etc.) or specialized (ceramic firing, smoking and / or drying of foods, etc.). In this poster we present results of the soil micromorphology analysis and compare the areas sampled in terms of function and spatial organization in light of prior results of charcoal analyses.
Poster presented with Claire Alix, Michelle Elliott and Isabelle Théry-Parisot at the 6th Intern... more Poster presented with Claire Alix, Michelle Elliott and Isabelle Théry-Parisot at the 6th International Anthracology Meeting. Local to Global Significance of Charcoal Science, August 30th - September 6th, 2015, University of Freiburg, Germany.
This anthracological study addresses the issue of the availability of wood fuel to the inhabitants of the archaeological sites of Cape Espenberg in north-western Alaska during the second millennium AD. We focus specifically on the mechanisms for firewood collection and management in a tundra environment that is poor in wood resources. In this region, driftwood deposited on the shorelines served as the main source of wood for past Thule populations (Alix, forthcoming). Archaeological and ethnographic data indicate that driftwood and other non-timber products (such as animal products) were sometimes mixed to improve the calorific conditions of fires (Burch, 2006). In this study, we first establish an experimental protocol to evaluate 1) the over / under-representation of driftwood species in charcoal assemblages after burning, and 2) how the addition of a non-timber product (animal fat) to the wood fuel may affect the preservation of different species. The results of this experiment highlight the influence of animal fat on driftwood fires and their resulting charcoal assemblages. Next, we present the results of the analysis of excavated anthracological charcoal in Thule houses at Cape Espenberg. Finally, we apply the results of our experimental fires to the interpretation of the archaeological charcoal to determine whether animal fat was combined with wood fuel by Thule people.
Papers by Marine VANLANDEGHEM
Within the Cape Espenberg sites, layers of carbonized and cemented remains are found associated w... more Within the Cape Espenberg sites, layers of carbonized and cemented remains are found associated with Birnirk and Thule semi-subterranean houses (11th-18th century AD). These burned areas raise a number of questions about re related outside activities, the use of multiple fuels, and the long-term processes that led to their formation. In this wood-poor arctic environment, ethnographic observations report that driftwood can be used as a fuel, often coupled with animal resources to meet re energy needs. In this paper, we present combustion areas excavated from the Rising Whale site at Cape Espenberg. We analyzed each hearth feature by sorting and identifying wood and animal fuels. We discuss the representation of rewood taxa with a statistical analysis of their frequency and fragmentation.
Remnant lipids from the combustion and heat-related processing of animal products preserve except... more Remnant lipids from the combustion and heat-related processing of animal products preserve exceptionally well in many Arctic sites. Various terrestrial and aquatic lipid sources can be identified through combined molecular and isotopic analyses, but studies are still in an early phase. Here, we present results from recent field and laboratory experiments that provide clarification on pyrogenic biomarker formation in combustion related sediments. Our analyses of sedimentary layers from experimental fires, laboratory heating experiments, and archaeological hearths have identified a range of biomarkers formed through pyrolysis of animal fats, which are otherwise rare in the environment.
In northwestern Alaska, burned activity areas with horizons of carbonized organic remains and san... more In northwestern Alaska, burned activity areas with horizons of carbonized organic remains and sand layers cemented with sea mammal fat are often found outside of Birnirk and Thule semi-subterranean house features. In this paper, we address the question of using animal products (such as terrestrial and marine mammal fat, and bones) as supplementary fuels in wood-poor environments by reporting on a series of sixty-four experimental combustions under controlled conditions. Results assess the impact of animal fuels on wood fire temperature and duration as well as identify the effect of adding bones and fat to fires on archaeological charcoal remains. These results provide a framework to discuss why, when and for what purpose Birnirk and Thule people used fires in northwestern Alaska.
This anthracological study addresses the issue of the availability of wood fuel to the inhabitant... more This anthracological study addresses the issue of the availability of wood fuel to the inhabitants of the archaeological sites of Cape Espenberg in north-western Alaska during the second millennium AD. We focus specifically on the mechanisms for firewood collection and management in a tundra environment that is poor in wood resources. In this region, driftwood deposited on the shorelines served as the main source of wood for past Thule populations (Alix, forthcoming). Archaeological and ethnographic data indicate that driftwood and other non-timber products (such as animal products) were sometimes mixed to improve the calorific conditions of fires (Burch, 2006). In this study, we first establish an experimental protocol to evaluate 1) the over / under-representation of driftwood species in charcoal assemblages after burning, and 2) how the addition of a non-timber product (animal fat) to the wood fuel may affect the preservation of different species. The results of this experiment h...
This article showcases the cultural outreach clip “Fire among the Inupiat” from my archaeological... more This article showcases the cultural outreach clip “Fire among the Inupiat” from my archaeological research in northwestern Alaska and highlights new questions that are arising as I study fuel use and hearth function in the late prehistory of the region.
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Thesis Chapters by Marine VANLANDEGHEM
Conference Presentations by Marine VANLANDEGHEM
This session seeks to bring together researchers working with experimental approaches to understand past lifeways and site formation processes. Topics can range from short to long term experiments, tests of new equipment, or application of new techniques or analyses within the field of archaeology. We encourage participation from multidisciplinary researchers focused on replication of past tool and weapon systems, food processing and butchery techniques, paleoenvironmental reconstruction, site formation, and taphonomic processes, and incorporation of traditional knowledge systems in analyses and interpretation of the archaeological record.
The goal of this session is to stimulate interest in reconstructive and experimental archaeology and to discuss key issues in the design and implementation of experiments (protocols, replication, and reconstruction, statistical analyses, etc.). Discussions will provide resources to help guide archaeologists considering new techniques and experimentation in their research in Alaska. Furthermore, we encourage inclusive conversations of research findings and needs, avenues for public outreach, and the co-production of knowledge in archaeology in Alaska.
Scénario : Marine Vanlandeghem
Marine Vanlandeghem est doctorante à l'Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, où elle consacre ses recherches à la gestion du feu dans l'habitat des populations du nord-ouest de l'Alaska. Elle étudie les vestiges de foyers et pratique des expérimentations pour reconstituer leur fonctionnement. Elle se rend régulièrement sur le terrain, tant pour participer à des fouilles que pour poursuivre ses travaux à l'Université de Fairbanks.
Production et réalisation : Past & Curious
Illustration : Astrid Amadieu https://www.astridamadieu.com/
Animation et montage : Maxime Garnaud
Dans cette vidéo, nous avons choisi le terme généralement employé dans l'Arctique pour désigner la lampe, "qulliq". Notons qu'en Iñupiatun, précisément, cette lampe est appelée "naniq".
Bibliographie :
- ALIX C. 2016. A Critical Resource: Wood Use and Technology in the North American Arctic, in T.M. FRIESEN, O.K. MASON, The Oxford Handbook of the Prehistoric Arctic.
- ANDERSON S.L. 2017. Ethnographic and Archaeological Perspectives on the Use Life of Northwest Alaskan Pottery. Anthropology Faculty Publications and Presentations 139.
- BURCH E.S. 2006. Social life in northwest Alaska: the structure of Iñupiaq Eskimo nations. University of Alaska press, Fairbanks.
- BURCH E.S. 1998. The Iñupiaq Eskimo nations of northwest Alaska. University of Alaska Press, Fairbanks.
- PLUMET P. 1989. Le foyer dans l’arctique, in M. OLIVE, Y. TABORIN (eds.), Nature et Fonction Des Foyers Préhistoriques. Mémoires du Musée de Préhistoire d’Ile de France, Nemours, pp. 313–325.
- SAARIO D.J., KESSEL B. 1966. Human Ecological Investigation at Kivalina, in N.J. WILIMOVSKY, J.N. WOLFE (eds.), Environment of the Cape Thompson Region, Alaska. Washington DC, pp. 969–1039.
- URBAN T.M., RASIC J.T., ALIX C., ANDERSON D.D., CHISHOLM L., JACOB R.W., MANNING S.W., MASON O.K., TREMAYNE A.H., VINSON D. 2019. Magnetic detection of archaeological hearths in Alaska: A tool for investigating the full span of human presence at the gateway to North America. Quaternary Science Reviews 211, 73–92.
- VANLANDEGHEM M. 2015. Exploitation des combustibles dans le nord-ouest de l’Alaska : Contributions de l’anthracologie à la compréhension de l’économie du bois de feu chez les cultures birnirk et thuléennes au Cap Espenberg. Unpublished MA thesis. Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, Paris.
In this paper, we present combustion areas excavated from the Rising Whale site at Cape Espenberg. We analyzed each hearth feature by sorting and identifying wood and animal fuels. We discuss the representation of firewood taxa with a statistical analysis of their frequency and fragmentation.
Marine VANLANDEGHEM, Claire ALIX, Lauren NORMAN, Tammy BUONASERA
In northwestern Alaska, burned activity areas with horizons of carbonized organic remains and sand layers cemented with sea mammal fat are often found outside of Birnirk and Thule semi-subterranean house features.
In this paper, we address the question of using animal products (such as terrestrial and marine mammal fat, and bones) as supplementary fuels in wood-poor environments by reporting on a series of sixty-four experimental combustions under controlled conditions. Results assess the impact of animal fuels on wood fire temperature and duration as well as identify the effect of adding bones and fat to fires on archaeological charcoal remains. These results provide a framework to discuss why, when and for what purpose Birnirk and Thule people used fires in northwestern Alaska.
At Cape Espenberg, large burned areas are found associated with Birnirk/Thule features (AD XIth-XVth c.), raising questions about the functions of burnt areas - domestic (cooking, boiling, heating, lighting) or specialized hearth (ceramic baking). To test hypotheses on fire activities and fuel economy, we are conducting fire experiments under different conditions (outdoors or in laboratory) and with different fuel sources (wood and/or fat). These hearths provide information on the impact of fat on heat, duration of fire, formation of soil crusts, and agglomerated organic residues which may be crucial for the interpretation of archaeological charcoal remains from the sites.
at the Ethnoarchaeology of Fire Symposim, February 2017, Tenerife, Espagne.
Session : Archaeology of fire
Abstract :
We present a study regarding fuel availability at the sites of Cape Espenberg in northwestern Alaska, based on data from post-AD1000 archaeological sites. Our long-term goal is to explore fuel management patterns in a wood-poor arctic environment. Birnirk and Thule inhabitants at Cape Espenberg (AD XIth-XVth centuries) used driftwood as fuel, but often mixed it with nonwood fuel (bones, fat, etc.). Large burned areas are found associated with most house features, raising questions regarding the uses of fire, as well as the functions of these hearth and burnt areas for different time periods. We developed a multidisciplinary approach to explore fuel practices in this region using soil micromorphology, anthracology and experimental combustions. The complementarity of these approaches is key to providing information about the functions of combustion features.
Under controlled laboratory conditions and outdoors with local conditions, we conducted experimental fires, using either wood fuel or mixed wood-fat fuel (either terrestrial or marine mammal fat). These experimental combustions provide information about the impact of fat on the temperature and duration of fire, the formation of soil crusts, and agglomerated organic residues. Analysis and identification of charcoal remains suggest strong contrasts in the representation of wood taxa and the preservation of charcoal between wood-only and fat-added experimental fires. The implication of these results are discussed in relation to the analysis of burnt areas at Cape Espenberg.
In Northwest Alaska, human societies have adapted their subsistence strategies to extreme conditions. At the coastal Cape Espenberg site, excellent conservation conditions have allowed the preservation of many cultural features (architecture, hearths, middens) within a series of aggrading beach ridges. Remains of semisubterranean houses and associated material culture indicate the sites relate to the Birnirk and the Thule cultures. The houses associated with the Birnirk culture are in ridge E6 and reveal a multiroom architecture and two to three occupation levels dated to the 11th13th century. Thule and later Kotzebue period houses are found on ridge E5 and E4. They show a long entrance tunnel leading to a rectangular room that contains a sleeping platform elevated above the occupation level. Unusual concentrations of archaeological charcoal and burned organic matter have been uncovered inside and outside of Birnirk houses, revealing the presence of small domestic hearths inside and firepits outside. However, Thule culture houses only have external burned areas and firepits. Ceramic lamps appear to be the sole source of light and heat inside these houses. The variability in the form, fill, and spatial organization of combustion structures raises questions regarding their usage, status and maintenance by people who occupied these houses. To further understand fire management in the arctic tundra, and the function and status of combustion structures, soil samples were collected from combustion structures (hearths, firepits, charcoal's concentration and soil occupation, ...) for anthracological and micromorphological analysis. This sampling protocole provides the opportunity for a multivariate, comparative and diachronic analysis of combustion structures between one Birnirk house and three Thule houses at Cape Espenberg. Our goal is to identify the diversity of firerelated activities in the excavated Birnirk and Thule houses, whether domestic (cooking, boiling water, heating, lighting, etc.) or specialized (ceramic firing, smoking and / or drying of foods, etc.). In this poster we present results of the soil micromorphology analysis and compare the areas sampled in terms of function and spatial organization in light of prior results of charcoal analyses.
This anthracological study addresses the issue of the availability of wood fuel to the inhabitants of the archaeological sites of Cape Espenberg in north-western Alaska during the second millennium AD. We focus specifically on the mechanisms for firewood collection and management in a tundra environment that is poor in wood resources. In this region, driftwood deposited on the shorelines served as the main source of wood for past Thule populations (Alix, forthcoming). Archaeological and ethnographic data indicate that driftwood and other non-timber products (such as animal products) were sometimes mixed to improve the calorific conditions of fires (Burch, 2006). In this study, we first establish an experimental protocol to evaluate 1) the over / under-representation of driftwood species in charcoal assemblages after burning, and 2) how the addition of a non-timber product (animal fat) to the wood fuel may affect the preservation of different species. The results of this experiment highlight the influence of animal fat on driftwood fires and their resulting charcoal assemblages. Next, we present the results of the analysis of excavated anthracological charcoal in Thule houses at Cape Espenberg. Finally, we apply the results of our experimental fires to the interpretation of the archaeological charcoal to determine whether animal fat was combined with wood fuel by Thule people.
Papers by Marine VANLANDEGHEM
This session seeks to bring together researchers working with experimental approaches to understand past lifeways and site formation processes. Topics can range from short to long term experiments, tests of new equipment, or application of new techniques or analyses within the field of archaeology. We encourage participation from multidisciplinary researchers focused on replication of past tool and weapon systems, food processing and butchery techniques, paleoenvironmental reconstruction, site formation, and taphonomic processes, and incorporation of traditional knowledge systems in analyses and interpretation of the archaeological record.
The goal of this session is to stimulate interest in reconstructive and experimental archaeology and to discuss key issues in the design and implementation of experiments (protocols, replication, and reconstruction, statistical analyses, etc.). Discussions will provide resources to help guide archaeologists considering new techniques and experimentation in their research in Alaska. Furthermore, we encourage inclusive conversations of research findings and needs, avenues for public outreach, and the co-production of knowledge in archaeology in Alaska.
Scénario : Marine Vanlandeghem
Marine Vanlandeghem est doctorante à l'Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, où elle consacre ses recherches à la gestion du feu dans l'habitat des populations du nord-ouest de l'Alaska. Elle étudie les vestiges de foyers et pratique des expérimentations pour reconstituer leur fonctionnement. Elle se rend régulièrement sur le terrain, tant pour participer à des fouilles que pour poursuivre ses travaux à l'Université de Fairbanks.
Production et réalisation : Past & Curious
Illustration : Astrid Amadieu https://www.astridamadieu.com/
Animation et montage : Maxime Garnaud
Dans cette vidéo, nous avons choisi le terme généralement employé dans l'Arctique pour désigner la lampe, "qulliq". Notons qu'en Iñupiatun, précisément, cette lampe est appelée "naniq".
Bibliographie :
- ALIX C. 2016. A Critical Resource: Wood Use and Technology in the North American Arctic, in T.M. FRIESEN, O.K. MASON, The Oxford Handbook of the Prehistoric Arctic.
- ANDERSON S.L. 2017. Ethnographic and Archaeological Perspectives on the Use Life of Northwest Alaskan Pottery. Anthropology Faculty Publications and Presentations 139.
- BURCH E.S. 2006. Social life in northwest Alaska: the structure of Iñupiaq Eskimo nations. University of Alaska press, Fairbanks.
- BURCH E.S. 1998. The Iñupiaq Eskimo nations of northwest Alaska. University of Alaska Press, Fairbanks.
- PLUMET P. 1989. Le foyer dans l’arctique, in M. OLIVE, Y. TABORIN (eds.), Nature et Fonction Des Foyers Préhistoriques. Mémoires du Musée de Préhistoire d’Ile de France, Nemours, pp. 313–325.
- SAARIO D.J., KESSEL B. 1966. Human Ecological Investigation at Kivalina, in N.J. WILIMOVSKY, J.N. WOLFE (eds.), Environment of the Cape Thompson Region, Alaska. Washington DC, pp. 969–1039.
- URBAN T.M., RASIC J.T., ALIX C., ANDERSON D.D., CHISHOLM L., JACOB R.W., MANNING S.W., MASON O.K., TREMAYNE A.H., VINSON D. 2019. Magnetic detection of archaeological hearths in Alaska: A tool for investigating the full span of human presence at the gateway to North America. Quaternary Science Reviews 211, 73–92.
- VANLANDEGHEM M. 2015. Exploitation des combustibles dans le nord-ouest de l’Alaska : Contributions de l’anthracologie à la compréhension de l’économie du bois de feu chez les cultures birnirk et thuléennes au Cap Espenberg. Unpublished MA thesis. Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, Paris.
In this paper, we present combustion areas excavated from the Rising Whale site at Cape Espenberg. We analyzed each hearth feature by sorting and identifying wood and animal fuels. We discuss the representation of firewood taxa with a statistical analysis of their frequency and fragmentation.
Marine VANLANDEGHEM, Claire ALIX, Lauren NORMAN, Tammy BUONASERA
In northwestern Alaska, burned activity areas with horizons of carbonized organic remains and sand layers cemented with sea mammal fat are often found outside of Birnirk and Thule semi-subterranean house features.
In this paper, we address the question of using animal products (such as terrestrial and marine mammal fat, and bones) as supplementary fuels in wood-poor environments by reporting on a series of sixty-four experimental combustions under controlled conditions. Results assess the impact of animal fuels on wood fire temperature and duration as well as identify the effect of adding bones and fat to fires on archaeological charcoal remains. These results provide a framework to discuss why, when and for what purpose Birnirk and Thule people used fires in northwestern Alaska.
At Cape Espenberg, large burned areas are found associated with Birnirk/Thule features (AD XIth-XVth c.), raising questions about the functions of burnt areas - domestic (cooking, boiling, heating, lighting) or specialized hearth (ceramic baking). To test hypotheses on fire activities and fuel economy, we are conducting fire experiments under different conditions (outdoors or in laboratory) and with different fuel sources (wood and/or fat). These hearths provide information on the impact of fat on heat, duration of fire, formation of soil crusts, and agglomerated organic residues which may be crucial for the interpretation of archaeological charcoal remains from the sites.
at the Ethnoarchaeology of Fire Symposim, February 2017, Tenerife, Espagne.
Session : Archaeology of fire
Abstract :
We present a study regarding fuel availability at the sites of Cape Espenberg in northwestern Alaska, based on data from post-AD1000 archaeological sites. Our long-term goal is to explore fuel management patterns in a wood-poor arctic environment. Birnirk and Thule inhabitants at Cape Espenberg (AD XIth-XVth centuries) used driftwood as fuel, but often mixed it with nonwood fuel (bones, fat, etc.). Large burned areas are found associated with most house features, raising questions regarding the uses of fire, as well as the functions of these hearth and burnt areas for different time periods. We developed a multidisciplinary approach to explore fuel practices in this region using soil micromorphology, anthracology and experimental combustions. The complementarity of these approaches is key to providing information about the functions of combustion features.
Under controlled laboratory conditions and outdoors with local conditions, we conducted experimental fires, using either wood fuel or mixed wood-fat fuel (either terrestrial or marine mammal fat). These experimental combustions provide information about the impact of fat on the temperature and duration of fire, the formation of soil crusts, and agglomerated organic residues. Analysis and identification of charcoal remains suggest strong contrasts in the representation of wood taxa and the preservation of charcoal between wood-only and fat-added experimental fires. The implication of these results are discussed in relation to the analysis of burnt areas at Cape Espenberg.
In Northwest Alaska, human societies have adapted their subsistence strategies to extreme conditions. At the coastal Cape Espenberg site, excellent conservation conditions have allowed the preservation of many cultural features (architecture, hearths, middens) within a series of aggrading beach ridges. Remains of semisubterranean houses and associated material culture indicate the sites relate to the Birnirk and the Thule cultures. The houses associated with the Birnirk culture are in ridge E6 and reveal a multiroom architecture and two to three occupation levels dated to the 11th13th century. Thule and later Kotzebue period houses are found on ridge E5 and E4. They show a long entrance tunnel leading to a rectangular room that contains a sleeping platform elevated above the occupation level. Unusual concentrations of archaeological charcoal and burned organic matter have been uncovered inside and outside of Birnirk houses, revealing the presence of small domestic hearths inside and firepits outside. However, Thule culture houses only have external burned areas and firepits. Ceramic lamps appear to be the sole source of light and heat inside these houses. The variability in the form, fill, and spatial organization of combustion structures raises questions regarding their usage, status and maintenance by people who occupied these houses. To further understand fire management in the arctic tundra, and the function and status of combustion structures, soil samples were collected from combustion structures (hearths, firepits, charcoal's concentration and soil occupation, ...) for anthracological and micromorphological analysis. This sampling protocole provides the opportunity for a multivariate, comparative and diachronic analysis of combustion structures between one Birnirk house and three Thule houses at Cape Espenberg. Our goal is to identify the diversity of firerelated activities in the excavated Birnirk and Thule houses, whether domestic (cooking, boiling water, heating, lighting, etc.) or specialized (ceramic firing, smoking and / or drying of foods, etc.). In this poster we present results of the soil micromorphology analysis and compare the areas sampled in terms of function and spatial organization in light of prior results of charcoal analyses.
This anthracological study addresses the issue of the availability of wood fuel to the inhabitants of the archaeological sites of Cape Espenberg in north-western Alaska during the second millennium AD. We focus specifically on the mechanisms for firewood collection and management in a tundra environment that is poor in wood resources. In this region, driftwood deposited on the shorelines served as the main source of wood for past Thule populations (Alix, forthcoming). Archaeological and ethnographic data indicate that driftwood and other non-timber products (such as animal products) were sometimes mixed to improve the calorific conditions of fires (Burch, 2006). In this study, we first establish an experimental protocol to evaluate 1) the over / under-representation of driftwood species in charcoal assemblages after burning, and 2) how the addition of a non-timber product (animal fat) to the wood fuel may affect the preservation of different species. The results of this experiment highlight the influence of animal fat on driftwood fires and their resulting charcoal assemblages. Next, we present the results of the analysis of excavated anthracological charcoal in Thule houses at Cape Espenberg. Finally, we apply the results of our experimental fires to the interpretation of the archaeological charcoal to determine whether animal fat was combined with wood fuel by Thule people.