Selected Research
Material currently available for download consists of our published papers, Master's theses, selected unpublished conference papers, and reports on research that we are involved with.
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The Role of Basketry in Early Holocene Small Seed Exploitation: Implications of a ca. 9,000 Year-old Basket from Cowboy Cave, Utah (2008), by Phil R. Geib and Edward A. Jolie--0KB
Despite ranking at the low end of the continuum in net caloric benefit relative to other foods, small seeds assumed great dietary importance in many parts of the world, including western North America. In a series of publications, Adovasio (1970a, 1974, 1980, 1986) argued that coiled basketry technology was invented in the eastern Great Basin during the early Holocene as a specialized food-processing technique. Coiled baskets are indeed useful for collecting and processing seeds, but it does not necessarily follow that they were originally designed for this purpose. A whole basket recently discovered at Cowboy Cave in southeastern Utah returned an AMS radiocarbon assay of 7960 ± 50 B.P., making it currently the earliest directly dated coiled basket from the Americas. This basket is not a parching tray and likely had nothing to do with harvesting seeds. We discuss the implications of this find with regard to tracking the temporal spread of coiled basketry technology in western North America and the role of coiled and twined forms in the initiation of small seed exploitation. Coiled and twined baskets for small seed processing may result from reconfiguration of existing technologies to create novel forms suited to a new food exploitation strategy.
Tooth-tool Use and Yarn Production in Norse Greenland (2008), by G. Richard Scott and Ruth Burgett Jolie--0KB
During a dental study of medieval Norse skeletons from Greenland, Iceland, and Norway, a distinct pattern of wear was observed on twenty-two anterior teeth of twelve Greenlanders. Further examination revealed that cultural notches were limited almost exclusively to settlement-period Greenlandic females interred at Thjodhild's church (AD 1000-1150). The most likely explanation for this patterned wear revolves around the manner in which females manipulated woolen thread on their maxillary incisors and canines during the production of coarse woolen cloth (frieze) that was generated in large amounts during the early medieval period for local consumption and export to Europe. [NOTE: Contains images of human remains.]
Contextual Issues in Paleoindian Repatriation: Spirit Cave Man as a Case Study (2007), by Heather J. H. Edgar, Edward A. Jolie, Joseph F. Powell, and Joe E. Watkins--293.62KB
Judge John Jelderks found that Kennewick Man cannot be defined as Native American under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act. A recent amicus brief in the legal case regarding repatriation of materials from Spirit Cave, Nevada, suggests that the Kennewick case should be used as legal precedent, and that the remains of Spirit Cave Man are also not Native American. We suggest that a precedent in cases of Paleoindian human remains is inappropriate and unnecessary. We provide bioarchaeological, human variation, archaeological, social, and cultural contexts of the Spirit Cave Man remains. These contexts indicate that this case, and likely all of the few Paleoindian cases, is unique. Determinations of repatriation of Paleoindians should be handled on a case-by-case basis.
Isotope Sourcing of Prehistoric Willow and Tule Textiles Recovered from Western Great Basin Rock Shelters and Caves -- Proof of Concept (2006), by L. V. Benson, E. M. Hattori, H. E. Taylor, S. R. Poulson, and E. A. Jolie--405.56KB
Isotope and trace-metal analyses were used to determine the origin of plants used to manufacture prehistoric textiles (basketry and matting) from archaeological sites in the western Great Basin. Research focused on strontium (87Sr/86Sr) and oxygen (18O/16O) isotope ratios of willow (Salix sp.) and tule (Schoenoplectus sp.), the dominant raw materials in Great Basin textiles. The oxygen-isotope data indicated that the willow and tule used to produce the textiles were harvested from the banks of rivers or in marshes characterized by flowing water and not from lakes or sinks. The strontium-isotope data were useful in showing which plants came from the Humboldt River and which came from rivers headed in the Sierra Nevada.
The Technomechanics of Plains Indian Coiled Gambling Baskets (2006), by Edward A. Jolie--5681.31KB
Two principal types of basketry were produced on the Plains in historic times, the twill plaited burden baskets used by horticultural tribes and coiled gambling baskets that saw a wider distribution. Coiled baskets were used in a gambling game, played primarily by women, in which dice were tossed into a basket. Little information on these baskets has been published and collection information for museum specimens is typically very poor. Building on Weltfish’s (1930a) initial study, this paper presents additional data on over 80 Plains gambling baskets presently housed in U.S. museums and private collections. Archaeological, ethnohistorical, and technical information, including data from this analysis, supports a southern origin for historic Plains coiled and perhaps plaited basketry. Diffusion of technological features of basketry construction out of areas in northern Mexico and Trans-Pecos Texas likely began as much as 3,000 years ago and progressed more rapidly during the last 400 years. It is suggested that the spread of historic Plains basketry is related to a northward spread of agriculture with Caddoan and Siouan language speakers. Eastern Shoshone gambling baskets are viewed as resulting from a separate local basketry tradition with origins in the eastern Great Basin.
The Spread of Coiled Basketry in the Prehistoric Great Basin (2005), by Edward A. Jolie and Eugene M. Hattori--104.94KB
Coiled basketry, as compared to twined or plaited basketry, constitutes the last major development in the basketweaving repertoire of the prehistoric inhabitants of the Great Basin. Despite its increasing abundance and functional importance through time, very little is known of the timing and manner of its spread throughout the region. Over the past thirty years, several scholars have speculated as to when and where coiling spread across the Great Basin. In this paper, we re-examine these explanations in light of new dates and discoveries, with the aim of illuminating the complexity of the technology’s spatial and temporal trajectory. We conclude by offering a new hypothesis for the spread of coiled basketry that synthesizes previous research with new interpretations and suggests avenues for future study.
Netted Structures in the Prehistoric Great Basin (2005), by Ruth Burgett Jolie--96.18KB
Within the prehistoric Great Basin, netted fabrics are well represented in perishable artifact assemblages and typically occur in the form of hunting and fishing nets. Other netted structures existed, however, including bags, hair nets, and sling pockets, among other forms. In this paper I review the chronology and primary technology of knotted and so-called “knotless” nets and consider their importance to peoples across the Great Basin. I then briefly examine what is known ethnographically about Great Basin netted structures and their use contexts in relation to the interpretation of archaeological specimens.
Coiled Basketry Designs from Charlie Brown Cave, Western Nevada (2004), by Ruth B. Burgett--19600KB
In 1966 amateurs excavated 20 coiled baskets from Charlie Brown Cave in western Nevada. The baskets are approximately 1,300 years old and are ascribed to the late Lovelock archaeological period (4000–1000 B.P.) for western Nevada. The baskets are complete and exhibit remarkable decoration, with some employing feathers in their design. This study examines hypotheses (Bates 1982a; Baumhoff and Heizer 1958; Loud and Harrington 1929) about the origin of these baskets. Early hypotheses suggested a culture-historical link between the makers of fine, decorated baskets from western Nevada and historic central California basketweavers. Excepting Bates, these scholars formulated their hypotheses before the discovery of the Charlie Brown Cave baskets. Their hypotheses are not entirely supported by these new data. A methodology combining elements from ceramic and basketry design analysis is employed to test proposed relationships using coiled basket designs. Based on findings presented here, Maiduan groups of central California exhibit the closest affinity to the Charlie Brown Cave baskets.
Coiled Basketry from Charlie Brown Cave, Western Nevada (2004), by Edward A. Jolie--26300KB
Charlie Brown Cave is located on the southeastern shore of now dry Winnemucca Lake in western Nevada. In 1966 a collection of 20 complete, decorated coiled baskets was recovered in addition to some 300 perishable objects and other remains. Radiocarbon determinations suggest that a major component of the site is ascribable to the Lovelock archaeological period (ca. 4000–1000 B.P.). In this thesis I examine variation in technical attributes in the complete coiled baskets to test the validity of Baumhoff and Heizer’s (1958) hypothesis that all prehistoric finely coiled and decorated baskets from western Nevada are imports from California. Results of this research reveal a highly standardized regional coiling tradition indicating that these complete baskets are not imports from California but part of a broader Lovelock period basketry complex. Comparisons with coiled basketry technology of historic aboriginal groups occupying territories near Charlie Brown Cave suggest affinities with Maiduan tribes of California.
Report on an Amatuer Artifact Collection from Catlow Cave, Oregon (2003), by Edward A. Jolie and Ruth B. Burgett--1200.33KB
A total of 8 perishable fiber-based artifacts and 2 durable artifacts recovered by an amateur collector from Catlow Cave, Oregon, are described by the authors. This report constitutes an analysis of these materials now in the possession of the Bureau of Land Management, Lakeview District, Oregon.
Perishable Artifacts from Bonneville Estates Rockshelter (2002), by Edward A. Jolie and Ruth B. Burgett--69.61KB
Bonneville Estates Rockshelter is a stratified, multi-component site located in eastern Nevada. Recent archaeological excavations at the site have yielded a small but informative assemblage of perishable artifacts spanning roughly 7,000 years of occupation. Situated approximately 30 km south of Danger Cave, Utah, the rockshelter affords a unique opportunity to compare differences in regional perishable technology. This paper considers the perishable assemblage thus far recovered and its implications for understanding the lifeways of the prehistoric inhabitants of the eastern Great Basin
Preliminary Report on the Archaeological Perishables from Pyramid Lake, Nevada (2002), by Ruth B. Burgett, Catherine S. Fowler, Eugene M. Hattori, Edward A. Jolie and Donald R. Tuohy--61.69KB
During the past few months, preliminary analyses have been conducted on a very large and remarkable collection of fiber-based perishables from several sites near Pyramid Lake, most initially excavated in the 1960s. Included are nets, baskets, mats, clothing, and many unidentified fiber forms. The collection covers several time periods, but is strongest for the Lovelock Phase, with large amounts of Lovelock Wickerware, but also a full range of coiling and twining characteristic of that period. This represents the richest assemblage of materials recovered since the excavations of Lovelock and Humboldt caves, and is thus exceedingly important for comparison and further refinement of those textile sequences.
Two Ethnographic Sioux Twined Gambling Baskets (2001), by Edward A. Jolie--2400KB
Prepared for the South Dakota State Historical Society, this is the final report on two ethnographic twined gambling baskets ascribed to the Sioux. The two baskets were the subject of a technological and stylistic analysis and are considered here within the context of the broader Plains Indian gambling basket complex.