Tundra, Ice and a Pleistocene Cape on the Gulf of Maine: A Case of Paleo Indian Transhumance

• Main Authors: Pelletier, Bertrand G., Robinson, Brian S.
• Format: Dataset
• Language: unknown
• Published: the Digital Archaeological Record
• Subjects: PaleoIndian; Archaeological Overview; Data Recovery / Excavation; Geophysical Survey; Bull Brook Paleo indian site; Domestic Structure or Architectural Complex; Resource Extraction / Production / Transportation Structure or Features; Quarry; Archaeological Feature; Munsungum Chert; Indian; Ice Sheet; Tundra
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.6067:XCV8NV9MFV_meta$v=1495494157046

The prominence of Munsungun Chert at the Bull Brook Paleoindian site provides a case study for long-distance lithic transport between northern Maine and northeastern Massachusetts, a distance of over 400 kilometers. Paleoenvironmental factors suggest seasonal concentrations of caribou may have occurred at different times of the year, providing the incentive for long-distance seasonal transhumance. Specifically, we look at complementary attractions of an ice-edge environment in proximity to the northern chert quarries, and what may have been a grassy cape directly east of the Bull Brook site.