Ian Brown | University of Alabama - Tuscaloosa (original) (raw)
Books by Ian Brown
Alabama Museum of Natural History Bulletin 26, 2008
In 1997 the Gulf Coast Survey (GCS) of the Alabama Museum of Natural History conducted a one–mont... more In 1997 the Gulf Coast Survey (GCS) of the Alabama Museum of Natural History conducted a one–month archaeological survey in Clarke County, Alabama. Although important work had been done in the past in Clarke County, it still was relatively unknown archaeologically. Prior to the survey, an extensive search was made of the State Site Files for all known sites. Once these were plotted on the topographic maps of the county, we then determined where gaps occurred in the database. It was clear to us that the prime areas that needed survey attention were the salt springs, upland terraces, confluences of tributaries with rivers or large streams, and mineral quarry sites. We focused on the southwestern portion of the county, because all of the above landforms existed in it. A total of 55 sites were investigated during this project, 46 of which were newly recorded. One hundred and twenty–seven collections were gathered as a result of this study. Occupational history covered by the survey stretched from Late Paleo-Indian times of over 10,000 years ago to Civil War activities of the mid-nineteenth century. The most important sites discussed in the volume are two salt production locales in the Fred T. Stimpson State Game Sanctuary, the Lower Salt Works (1Ck28) and Stimpson (1Ck29), and the Tallahatta sandstone quarry sites along Morgan Creek, including Joe Long (1Ck305) and McEntyre (1Ck306).
Jeffrey P. Brain, involved with one or another museum bearing the Peabody name for much of his ac... more Jeffrey P. Brain, involved with one or another museum bearing the Peabody name for much of his academic career, is celebrated in this volume. Having made contributions to prehistoric and historic archaeology in the southeastern United States and historic archaeology in Maine, the time seemed ripe on his 70th birthday for his many students (and a few others) to proclaim what his teaching meant to them, in the field, the lab, and the classroom. In addition to a biographical sketch and a bibliography of Brain's many publications, there are 22 vignettes, both instructive and humorous, on his unique qualities as a teacher of archaeology.
In this this dissertationBrown presents data on three years of excavations (1974-76) at the Frenc... more In this this dissertationBrown presents data on three years of excavations (1974-76) at the French Fort St. Pierre (1719-1729) and neighboring early18th-century Indian sites. He looks at the effects of French contact during two periods of time, the missionary period and the trader period, and considers what the observed material acculturation might actually mean with regard to change and continuity in native lifeways.
From what started as an investigation of a salt production site on Avery Island, Louisiana, Ian W... more From what started as an investigation of a salt production site on Avery Island, Louisiana, Ian W. Brown expands his view by considering historic and prehistoric salt production throughout the eastern United States. He then draws functional parallels with salt manufacturing sites and materials (called briquetage) in other parts of the world.
Avery Island is known far and wide for its natural beauty. Live oaks bearing festoons of Spanish ... more Avery Island is known far and wide for its natural beauty. Live oaks bearing festoons of Spanish moss, fields plush with red hot peppers, snowy egrets building nesting beside the ponds, and alligators peering slyly above the murky waters are but a few of the elements that make this island a virtual Eden. However, it was the presence of an active saline that made Avery Island attractive to both historic and prehistoric populations. Indians made good use of the Salt Mine Valley site for making salt in late prehistoric times, and even earlier Indians used the island to erect earthen edifices, such as the Banana Bayou Mound. In the Petite Anse Project Ian Brown begins with a thorough discussion of the archaeology of Avery Island and then heads out to the other salt domes and surrounding marsh in exploring the rich culture history of the coastal plain. Three parishes receive major treatment in this volume and well over a hundred sites are explored. The degradation brought about by hurricanes and industry has changed forever the west-central coast of Louisiana. Because many of the sites visited and described by the author have sadly disappeared, this work is an important time capsule for those interested in Louisiana’s past.
He sends his students out into the cemeteries “armed with very specific research questions.” To w... more He sends his students out into the cemeteries “armed with very specific research questions.” To whom are they asking these questions? The living? On many occasions I have heard Ian insist that cemeteries are indeed for the living, that those elaborate burial rituals and markings are our meager attempts to hold back the broad, merciless, and unending river of time. We erect headstones and we leave flowers—a universal yet odd desire to impart beauty and life to the cold and inert. Alongside the flowers we seem increasingly to be leaving such everyday objects as footballs and Bama memorabilia, Christmas boxes, and figurines (mostly angels). What are these mementoes saying? But perhaps Ian wants his students to direct their questions to the dead…by first looking closely at those who came before and then asking the right questions, we ourselves will be changed… By learning about them, we learn from them. We gain insight into the human condition.
[from the Preface by G. Ward Hubbs]
This book is a voyage of discovery into the past. Its author charts the waters of Alabama's Mobil... more This book is a voyage of discovery into the past. Its author charts the waters of Alabama's Mobile-Tensaw Delta as he explores the Bottle Creek site, the principal late prehistoric mound center of the Pensacola Culture. This site, now a National Historic Landmark, was the scene of three seasons of archaeological fieldwork in the early 1990s. Ian Brown and his team of investigators not only provide a vivid picture of what swamp archaeology is like at the "trowel's edge," as seen from the day-to-day perspective of doing archaeology, but they offer the swamp itself in all its majesty, glory, and danger. This is a book about life in the swamp, both now and then. Any who follow in the wake of the Bottle Creek boat must do so with ample caution and due reflection.
Time Travelers in England is a personal narrative of an archaeologist who studies salt. In the fi... more Time Travelers in England is a personal narrative of an archaeologist who studies salt. In the first half of the book Ian W. Brown and his nephew Trevor Hughes explore the various "wiches" of Cheshire County (Middlewich, Nantwich, and Northwich) via canal boat, the way that salt would have been transported in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Along the way they have many "Pickwickian" adventures. The second half of the volume deals with Droitwich, the Worcestershire countryside, the Cotswolds, and many other locales where numerous features on the British landscape quite simply were in need of exploration. It is a rich tale of B&Bs, pubs, museums, and numerous archaeological and historical sites wherein two American come to terms with the land of their ancestors. Interested readers might also turn to The Red Hills of Essex: Studying Salt in England, also by Brown, for an earlier tromp on the British countryside in search of salt and the fascinating impact that it had on society and culture.
The foremost scholar of salt archaeology in North America, Ian W. Brown has turned his expertise ... more The foremost scholar of salt archaeology in North America, Ian W. Brown has turned his expertise and enthusiasm to Iron Age and Roman salt production in Essex. The resulting illustrated and engaging account is both highly personal and exhaustive, providing a thorough review of the existing literature as well as his own travels, and resulting in an original model for the ancient salt manufacture in the area. A must read for scholars interested in salt archaeology anywhere in the world, Brown has once again proven why his work is indispensable.
An American archaeologist travels through Ireland recording life’s experiences. A fascination wit... more An American archaeologist travels through Ireland recording life’s experiences. A fascination with cemeteries leads him to explore the many ways in which death is memorialized in the Emerald Isle, both now and in antiquity. The author’s detailed journal entries enable readers to learn of megalithic monuments, monasteries, battlefields, castles, the backstreets of Dublin, and many more venues of this wonderful enchanted land.
Papers by Ian Brown
Journal of Alabama Archaeology, 1993
Alabama Museum of Natural History Bulletin 26, 2008
In 1997 the Gulf Coast Survey (GCS) of the Alabama Museum of Natural History conducted a one–mont... more In 1997 the Gulf Coast Survey (GCS) of the Alabama Museum of Natural History conducted a one–month archaeological survey in Clarke County, Alabama. Although important work had been done in the past in Clarke County, it still was relatively unknown archaeologically. Prior to the survey, an extensive search was made of the State Site Files for all known sites. Once these were plotted on the topographic maps of the county, we then determined where gaps occurred in the database. It was clear to us that the prime areas that needed survey attention were the salt springs, upland terraces, confluences of tributaries with rivers or large streams, and mineral quarry sites. We focused on the southwestern portion of the county, because all of the above landforms existed in it. A total of 55 sites were investigated during this project, 46 of which were newly recorded. One hundred and twenty–seven collections were gathered as a result of this study. Occupational history covered by the survey stretched from Late Paleo-Indian times of over 10,000 years ago to Civil War activities of the mid-nineteenth century. The most important sites discussed in the volume are two salt production locales in the Fred T. Stimpson State Game Sanctuary, the Lower Salt Works (1Ck28) and Stimpson (1Ck29), and the Tallahatta sandstone quarry sites along Morgan Creek, including Joe Long (1Ck305) and McEntyre (1Ck306).
Jeffrey P. Brain, involved with one or another museum bearing the Peabody name for much of his ac... more Jeffrey P. Brain, involved with one or another museum bearing the Peabody name for much of his academic career, is celebrated in this volume. Having made contributions to prehistoric and historic archaeology in the southeastern United States and historic archaeology in Maine, the time seemed ripe on his 70th birthday for his many students (and a few others) to proclaim what his teaching meant to them, in the field, the lab, and the classroom. In addition to a biographical sketch and a bibliography of Brain's many publications, there are 22 vignettes, both instructive and humorous, on his unique qualities as a teacher of archaeology.
In this this dissertationBrown presents data on three years of excavations (1974-76) at the Frenc... more In this this dissertationBrown presents data on three years of excavations (1974-76) at the French Fort St. Pierre (1719-1729) and neighboring early18th-century Indian sites. He looks at the effects of French contact during two periods of time, the missionary period and the trader period, and considers what the observed material acculturation might actually mean with regard to change and continuity in native lifeways.
From what started as an investigation of a salt production site on Avery Island, Louisiana, Ian W... more From what started as an investigation of a salt production site on Avery Island, Louisiana, Ian W. Brown expands his view by considering historic and prehistoric salt production throughout the eastern United States. He then draws functional parallels with salt manufacturing sites and materials (called briquetage) in other parts of the world.
Avery Island is known far and wide for its natural beauty. Live oaks bearing festoons of Spanish ... more Avery Island is known far and wide for its natural beauty. Live oaks bearing festoons of Spanish moss, fields plush with red hot peppers, snowy egrets building nesting beside the ponds, and alligators peering slyly above the murky waters are but a few of the elements that make this island a virtual Eden. However, it was the presence of an active saline that made Avery Island attractive to both historic and prehistoric populations. Indians made good use of the Salt Mine Valley site for making salt in late prehistoric times, and even earlier Indians used the island to erect earthen edifices, such as the Banana Bayou Mound. In the Petite Anse Project Ian Brown begins with a thorough discussion of the archaeology of Avery Island and then heads out to the other salt domes and surrounding marsh in exploring the rich culture history of the coastal plain. Three parishes receive major treatment in this volume and well over a hundred sites are explored. The degradation brought about by hurricanes and industry has changed forever the west-central coast of Louisiana. Because many of the sites visited and described by the author have sadly disappeared, this work is an important time capsule for those interested in Louisiana’s past.
He sends his students out into the cemeteries “armed with very specific research questions.” To w... more He sends his students out into the cemeteries “armed with very specific research questions.” To whom are they asking these questions? The living? On many occasions I have heard Ian insist that cemeteries are indeed for the living, that those elaborate burial rituals and markings are our meager attempts to hold back the broad, merciless, and unending river of time. We erect headstones and we leave flowers—a universal yet odd desire to impart beauty and life to the cold and inert. Alongside the flowers we seem increasingly to be leaving such everyday objects as footballs and Bama memorabilia, Christmas boxes, and figurines (mostly angels). What are these mementoes saying? But perhaps Ian wants his students to direct their questions to the dead…by first looking closely at those who came before and then asking the right questions, we ourselves will be changed… By learning about them, we learn from them. We gain insight into the human condition.
[from the Preface by G. Ward Hubbs]
This book is a voyage of discovery into the past. Its author charts the waters of Alabama's Mobil... more This book is a voyage of discovery into the past. Its author charts the waters of Alabama's Mobile-Tensaw Delta as he explores the Bottle Creek site, the principal late prehistoric mound center of the Pensacola Culture. This site, now a National Historic Landmark, was the scene of three seasons of archaeological fieldwork in the early 1990s. Ian Brown and his team of investigators not only provide a vivid picture of what swamp archaeology is like at the "trowel's edge," as seen from the day-to-day perspective of doing archaeology, but they offer the swamp itself in all its majesty, glory, and danger. This is a book about life in the swamp, both now and then. Any who follow in the wake of the Bottle Creek boat must do so with ample caution and due reflection.
Time Travelers in England is a personal narrative of an archaeologist who studies salt. In the fi... more Time Travelers in England is a personal narrative of an archaeologist who studies salt. In the first half of the book Ian W. Brown and his nephew Trevor Hughes explore the various "wiches" of Cheshire County (Middlewich, Nantwich, and Northwich) via canal boat, the way that salt would have been transported in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Along the way they have many "Pickwickian" adventures. The second half of the volume deals with Droitwich, the Worcestershire countryside, the Cotswolds, and many other locales where numerous features on the British landscape quite simply were in need of exploration. It is a rich tale of B&Bs, pubs, museums, and numerous archaeological and historical sites wherein two American come to terms with the land of their ancestors. Interested readers might also turn to The Red Hills of Essex: Studying Salt in England, also by Brown, for an earlier tromp on the British countryside in search of salt and the fascinating impact that it had on society and culture.
The foremost scholar of salt archaeology in North America, Ian W. Brown has turned his expertise ... more The foremost scholar of salt archaeology in North America, Ian W. Brown has turned his expertise and enthusiasm to Iron Age and Roman salt production in Essex. The resulting illustrated and engaging account is both highly personal and exhaustive, providing a thorough review of the existing literature as well as his own travels, and resulting in an original model for the ancient salt manufacture in the area. A must read for scholars interested in salt archaeology anywhere in the world, Brown has once again proven why his work is indispensable.
An American archaeologist travels through Ireland recording life’s experiences. A fascination wit... more An American archaeologist travels through Ireland recording life’s experiences. A fascination with cemeteries leads him to explore the many ways in which death is memorialized in the Emerald Isle, both now and in antiquity. The author’s detailed journal entries enable readers to learn of megalithic monuments, monasteries, battlefields, castles, the backstreets of Dublin, and many more venues of this wonderful enchanted land.
Journal of Alabama Archaeology, 1993
American Antiquity, 1995
Part I presents two papers addressing another toooften slighted, yet crucial, aspect of the fur t... more Part I presents two papers addressing another toooften slighted, yet crucial, aspect of the fur trade: its European foundation. Far too many have looked at the trade only where the exchanges of peltry and exotic goods took place, without heeding the influences of market forces, economic policies, and political alliances in Europe that were the engines driving the trade. Nor would many perceive that the trade ultimately depended on a few men of vision who assumed great financial risk to buy and ship exotic goods to foreign shores. Indeed, their hopes that furs so procured would fetch prices at a profit, months or even years later, often went unrewarded.
American Antiquity, 1989
An extremely important institution among the Indians of the Southeast in the historic period, the... more An extremely important institution among the Indians of the Southeast in the historic period, the calumet ceremony was first recognized by French adventurers in the Upper Mississippi Valley and Great Lakes region in the mid-seventeenth century. By the end of the century the ceremony was universal among Lower Mississippi Valley groups. A major focus of calumet literature in recent years has been on the timing of and the mechanism for the introduction of this ceremony in the Eastern Woodlands. Some have argued for prehistoric roots, while others have supported a historic development. A study of the spatiotemporal distribution of catlinite pipes is one way to address these issues, because such pipes are the principal archaeological expression of the ceremony. This paper focuses on the two most common catlinite pipe forms: disk pipes and elbow pipes. Overall, both forms are rare in the Southeast, but relatively they are widespread. The disk type has the greatest range and is also the ea...
Journal of Archaeological Research, 1994
The archaeological literature pertaining to the southeastern United States is examined for the 5-... more The archaeological literature pertaining to the southeastern United States is examined for the 5-year period between 1988 and 1992 inclusive. Research traditions identified in an earlier article by Patty Jo Watson (Southeastern Archaeology 9: 43-54, 1990) as characteristic of the Southeast in the previous half-century are considered in light of recent contributions. Topics examined include Mesoamerican connections, trade, pottery typology, historical archaeology, subsistence studies, bioarchaeology, and lithic artifact research.
American Anthropologist, 1991
With thejrst issue of 1991 we open this section for critical review of museum exhibitions, exhibi... more With thejrst issue of 1991 we open this section for critical review of museum exhibitions, exhibit catalogs, exhibit jlm, and photographic books. We recognize that photographic essays and museum exhibits and their accompanying materials are signtJicant media for the communication of anthropological ideas. While such contributions are by no means new to anthropologv, they are increasingly frequent and important, warranting scholarly attention comparable to that for more traditional anthropological publications. This new section will provide an opportunity for assessment of these productions with respect to general issues in anthropology. The Hall of the North American Indian: Change and Continuity.
Current Anthropology, 1978
Page 1. CURRENT ANTHROPOLOGY Vol. 19, No. 4, December 1978 ( 1978 by The Wenner-Gren Foundation f... more Page 1. CURRENT ANTHROPOLOGY Vol. 19, No. 4, December 1978 ( 1978 by The Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research 011-3204/78/1904-0001$03.95 Temporal Models in Prehistory: An Example from Eastern North America by James B. Stoltman ...