Year: 1987
Type: book
Abstract: This study presents a synopsis of a typology for Olivella shell beads, with metric descriptions and refined dating of types found in California and Great Basin archaeological sites.These base-line typological data provide the foundation for a sub- sequent comparative analysis of over 5400 beads and ornaments from 81 Great Basin sites, which revealed fluctuations through time in the frequen- cies of shell artifacts likely obtained through four Pacific Coast source networks.This analysis in- dicates that the apex of marine shell exchange be- tween California and the western Great Basin oc- curred between ca.2000 and 200 B.C., with a significant reduction in the numbers of beads and ornaments in the succeeding time period (ca.200 B.C.-A.D. 700).Between ca.A.D. 700 and 1500, shell bead and ornament frequencies suggest an increase in exchange over the preceding period, but by Protohistoric/Historic times (ca.A.D. 1500- 1880), exchange of shell from California into the Great Basin declined dramatically.
Authors: James A. Bennyhoff, Richard Hughes
Language: English
Subfield: Archeology
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2039808770