Using typological, mineral and chemical approaches to understand ceramic provenance from the archaeological site of Caleta Vitor, Chile (original) (raw)

Abstract

This paper will discuss a section of the PhD research currently being undertaken to understand the development and extent of external cultural influences on the Caleta Vitor population via a mineralogical, chemical and typological analysis of the ceramic record. The site is located along the coast of northern Chile, South America and spans through the Formative (4000 BP) to Late (476 BP) Periods. This paper will briefly outline the cultural periods and phases associated with the site and will explore the three different approaches used to determine ceramic provenance. The three different approaches are typological, mineral and chemical. There is debate about which approach is best to use and some studies suggest that mineral and chemical results can produce contradicting evidence about ceramic provenance. This research will use all three approaches on the same ceramic samples and therefore will be able to produce comparable results. It is aimed that this section of the research will produce results that will increase our understanding about these approaches and determine the limitations of each approach.

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