The Paleoethnobotanical Assemblage from the 1971–1977 Excavations at the Seip Earthworks

Abstract

This chapter summarizes the paleoethnobotanical data procured from the 1972 through 1975 excavations seasons at the Seip site. Samples from the recent flotation processing of sediment collected from two features (1974 Feature 7 and 1975 Post mold E-3) as well as specimens collected in the field during the 1972, 1973, and 1974 excavations were examined and materials identified. Although the samples were limited in number and site contexts nonetheless a variety of charred plant material, including wood charcoal, bark, nutshell, squash rind, and seeds were identified. At least six distinct taxa of wood have been identified in the samples, with hickory and oak prevalent. The carbonized seed assemblage yielded a few specimens of what may be members of the Eastern Agricultural Complex and one definite squash rind specimen was extracted from the 1974 Feature 7 contents. In addition, the chapter also summarizes the recent paleoethnobotanical research conducted on materials from a variety of Ohio Hopewell sites to form a comparative database to place the Seip plant materials within a broader chronological and regional context. Finally, and most importantly, this chapter reveals that a wealth of data about ancient populations can be recovered with new technologies and new analyses applied to archived museum collections.