Robert Park
I am an archaeological anthropologist with an interest in the cultures of the Far North (Nunavut, the Canadian Northwest Territories, Greenland and Alaska) and Northeastern North America.
Phone: (519) 888-4567 x35016
Address: Department of Anthropology
University of Waterloo
Waterloo, Ontario Canada N2L 3G1
Phone: (519) 888-4567 x35016
Address: Department of Anthropology
University of Waterloo
Waterloo, Ontario Canada N2L 3G1
less
InterestsView All (17)
Uploads
Books by Robert Park
Papers by Robert Park
a shift in toolstone selection strategies from
Pre-Dorset (4500–2800 B.P.) to Dorset (2500–
1000 B.P.) has been interpreted as one line of
evidence indicating culture change within
the Palaeo-Eskimo continuum. Pre-Dorset
toolmakers appear to have relied on readily
available local cherts while Dorset toolmakers
were more discriminating, frequently
using scarce or non-local toolstones such as
chalcedony from northern Labrador, crystal
quartz, and nephrite, among others. Our
recent analysis of a debitage assemblage from
LeDx-42, a multi-component Palaeo-Eskimo
site located in the interior of southern Baffin
Island, aimed to see if similar raw material
signatures could be isolated using a newly
developed methodological approach for
sourcing chert toolstone. One of our objectives
in this preliminary study was to evaluate
if diversity in chert selection strategies could
be used as a proxy to assess possible links
between cultural affiliation and activity areas
within the site. This paper describes the sourcing
protocol and discusses our results as they
relate to the Palaeo-Eskimo exploitation of
chert toolstone at LeDx-42.
of identified inland archaeological sites that can be confidently linked to coastal occupations, makes
modeling ancient seasonal mobility across the region through traditional cost-surface least-cost pathway
approaches impractical. We present a method that combines weighted multi-criteria cost surface analysis
with a watershed function to create a “mobility-shed” of non-winter travel pathways covering the study
area. We evaluate the predictive utility of the resulting pathways for future archaeological survey by
assessing their spatial relationships to known archaeological sites. The results of this comparison suggest that elevation and land cover criteria should be augmented with ethnographic and resource availability
data to model mobility in this region.
from one secondary (LeDx-42) and two primary (LbDt-1 and LdDx-2) sources on southern Baffin Island,
Nunavut, Canada. Raw chert trace element data are compared to ICP-MS trace element data for chert artifacts
from a nearby Palaeo-Eskimo archaeological site (LeDx-). Geochemical consistencies identified among the analyzed
samples support the inference that Palaeo-Eskimo toolmakers at LeDx-42 exploited LdDx-2 and LbDt-1 as
chert source locations.
demonstrates the value of geophysical investigation in a complex Arctic archaeological environment and its role in providing information on subsurface archaeological features.
on southern Baffin Island, Canada, was divided
and crushed using five different methods: i)
agate mortar and pestle, ii) stainless steel
shatterbox, iii) tungsten carbide shatterbox,
iv) alumina ceramic shatterbox, and v) zirconia
ceramic shatterbox. Powders produced by
each method were submitted for acid digestion
and analysis by inductively coupled plasma
mass spectrometry. The trace element results
indicate that different crushing media can
contribute significant trace element contamination
to chert during the grinding process.
These results demonstrate the need for an
informed approach to the selection of sample
preparation methods when submitting archaeological
samples for solution or pellet based
geochemical analysis.
a shift in toolstone selection strategies from
Pre-Dorset (4500–2800 B.P.) to Dorset (2500–
1000 B.P.) has been interpreted as one line of
evidence indicating culture change within
the Palaeo-Eskimo continuum. Pre-Dorset
toolmakers appear to have relied on readily
available local cherts while Dorset toolmakers
were more discriminating, frequently
using scarce or non-local toolstones such as
chalcedony from northern Labrador, crystal
quartz, and nephrite, among others. Our
recent analysis of a debitage assemblage from
LeDx-42, a multi-component Palaeo-Eskimo
site located in the interior of southern Baffin
Island, aimed to see if similar raw material
signatures could be isolated using a newly
developed methodological approach for
sourcing chert toolstone. One of our objectives
in this preliminary study was to evaluate
if diversity in chert selection strategies could
be used as a proxy to assess possible links
between cultural affiliation and activity areas
within the site. This paper describes the sourcing
protocol and discusses our results as they
relate to the Palaeo-Eskimo exploitation of
chert toolstone at LeDx-42.
of identified inland archaeological sites that can be confidently linked to coastal occupations, makes
modeling ancient seasonal mobility across the region through traditional cost-surface least-cost pathway
approaches impractical. We present a method that combines weighted multi-criteria cost surface analysis
with a watershed function to create a “mobility-shed” of non-winter travel pathways covering the study
area. We evaluate the predictive utility of the resulting pathways for future archaeological survey by
assessing their spatial relationships to known archaeological sites. The results of this comparison suggest that elevation and land cover criteria should be augmented with ethnographic and resource availability
data to model mobility in this region.
from one secondary (LeDx-42) and two primary (LbDt-1 and LdDx-2) sources on southern Baffin Island,
Nunavut, Canada. Raw chert trace element data are compared to ICP-MS trace element data for chert artifacts
from a nearby Palaeo-Eskimo archaeological site (LeDx-). Geochemical consistencies identified among the analyzed
samples support the inference that Palaeo-Eskimo toolmakers at LeDx-42 exploited LdDx-2 and LbDt-1 as
chert source locations.
demonstrates the value of geophysical investigation in a complex Arctic archaeological environment and its role in providing information on subsurface archaeological features.
on southern Baffin Island, Canada, was divided
and crushed using five different methods: i)
agate mortar and pestle, ii) stainless steel
shatterbox, iii) tungsten carbide shatterbox,
iv) alumina ceramic shatterbox, and v) zirconia
ceramic shatterbox. Powders produced by
each method were submitted for acid digestion
and analysis by inductively coupled plasma
mass spectrometry. The trace element results
indicate that different crushing media can
contribute significant trace element contamination
to chert during the grinding process.
These results demonstrate the need for an
informed approach to the selection of sample
preparation methods when submitting archaeological
samples for solution or pellet based
geochemical analysis.