Abstract In 1870, as he was starting his career as a frontier army officer and anthropologist, Jo... more Abstract In 1870, as he was starting his career as a frontier army officer and anthropologist, John Bourke collected a gorget composed of iron scales and the story that it was a relic of early Spanish exploration of the Plains. This paper describes the Bourke armor and assesses its manufacture, history, and cultural context. The origins of the armor remain uncertain, but it seems unlikely that it arrived during initial Spanish explorations of the Plains. The armor probably dates from before the early nineteenth century.
Over a period of more than 50 years, Ray Wood has published a string of major works on Great Plai... more Over a period of more than 50 years, Ray Wood has published a string of major works on Great Plains culture history and other subjects. He has held important professional posts, interacted with a vast cohort, and trained a generation of midcontinent archaeologists. Beyond all that, Ray\u27s memoir, A White-Bearded Plainsman, shows him to be a fine writer and terrific storyteller. Wood presents his story in chronological order, appropriate for a culture historian, but it happens that Ray came up at a time when Plains archaeology was blooming: his story describes the growth of Plains prehistory
This study examined, by measuring the time required and oxygen consumption, the efficiency of thr... more This study examined, by measuring the time required and oxygen consumption, the efficiency of three types of hand saws cutting a standardized block of wood. An American saw which cuts on the push stroke was compared to a Japanese saw which cuts on the pull stroke and to a two handled bow saw whose teeth were clearly raked toward one handle. The bow saw was used twice, once cutting with the push stroke only and once with the pull stroke. The results showed no significant difference among saw types in the time it took to cut the wood, but did show differences in the amount of oxygen consumed. By this measure the Japanese saw was most efficient, the push bow saw and American saw second, and the bow saw cutting on the pull stroke the least efficient.
Gun part assemblages from several Euroamerican and Native American contact period sites from the ... more Gun part assemblages from several Euroamerican and Native American contact period sites from the Plains are compared as a way of examining how firearms were incorporated into Native technology of the Plains region. These data are interpreted in ...
It has become necessary to understand the advantages and disadvan tages of the alternatives repr... more It has become necessary to understand the advantages and disadvan tages of the alternatives represented by spears and arrows, their characteristic applications, and payoffs associated with them. To address such questions, this paper presents the results of behavioral ecological observations of the hunting methods of San (Basarwa, Bushmen) forager/farmers of the Kalahari Desert region of Botswana. We hope to demonstrate that decisions about the
... Douglas D. Scott, US National Park Service, Midwest Archeological Center, Lincoln, NE 68503 P... more ... Douglas D. Scott, US National Park Service, Midwest Archeological Center, Lincoln, NE 68503 Peter Bleed, Department of Anthropology, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68588-0368 Andrew E. Masich, Colorado ... His horse is shown in a full gallop with flowing mane and tail. ...
Virtual Reconstruction is a powerful tool broadly suited to a diverse array of archaeological her... more Virtual Reconstruction is a powerful tool broadly suited to a diverse array of archaeological heritage applications. In practice, however, reconstruction has largely focused on grand and monumental sites. Here we present two case studies–one from southern Oklahoma, the other from western Nebraska–to explore the use of this technology for more common heritage applications. The goal of this article is to advertise the dilemma we faced with communicating information on ephemeral sites and how we, as nonspecialists, solved the issue using affordable and accessible digital tools. Our workflow makes use of common tools (GIS) and open source software and online tutorials provide step by step instruction to support its replication. In presenting our experiences and the results of these efforts, we hope to spur similar applications in the use of Virtual Reconstruction to communicate information on archaeological heritage more broadly.
ABSTRACTTo study production risks In a prehistoric technology, this paper presents an event tree ... more ABSTRACTTo study production risks In a prehistoric technology, this paper presents an event tree analysis (ETA) of microblade technology at Paleolithic sites from north central Honshu, Japan. ETA reconstructs the sequence of steps involved in making micro-cores and determines the points and rates at which cores failed. The analysis identifies production characteristics of the two assemblages and shows that, although production risks were present, they added little to the overall cost of microblades and associated Implements.
Interdisciplinary Contributions to Archaeology, 1997
... 3. THE STUDY POPULATIONS To describe the steps or" events" considered in the analys... more ... 3. THE STUDY POPULATIONS To describe the steps or" events" considered in the analyses that follow, the next section presents an overview of the hunting ... The Botswana govern-ment decided in 1995 to allow bow hunting by safari hunters in Botswana for a trial period ...
The history and methodology of Japanese swordmaking are reviewed with particular reference to mat... more The history and methodology of Japanese swordmaking are reviewed with particular reference to materials and processes. In order to gain a better understanding of the structure/property relationships in Japanese swords, a 16th century katana was analyzed metallographically and by attaching strain gages and cutting to relieve the residual stresses in the blade. The results indicate that the curve in the blade can be attributed to the volumetric expansion of the untempered martensite on the cutting edge, which also causes the edge to be in a state of residual compression. The residual compressive stresses are one of the key elements of the Japanese sword which give it superior toughness and cutting ability.
Abstract In 1870, as he was starting his career as a frontier army officer and anthropologist, Jo... more Abstract In 1870, as he was starting his career as a frontier army officer and anthropologist, John Bourke collected a gorget composed of iron scales and the story that it was a relic of early Spanish exploration of the Plains. This paper describes the Bourke armor and assesses its manufacture, history, and cultural context. The origins of the armor remain uncertain, but it seems unlikely that it arrived during initial Spanish explorations of the Plains. The armor probably dates from before the early nineteenth century.
Over a period of more than 50 years, Ray Wood has published a string of major works on Great Plai... more Over a period of more than 50 years, Ray Wood has published a string of major works on Great Plains culture history and other subjects. He has held important professional posts, interacted with a vast cohort, and trained a generation of midcontinent archaeologists. Beyond all that, Ray\u27s memoir, A White-Bearded Plainsman, shows him to be a fine writer and terrific storyteller. Wood presents his story in chronological order, appropriate for a culture historian, but it happens that Ray came up at a time when Plains archaeology was blooming: his story describes the growth of Plains prehistory
This study examined, by measuring the time required and oxygen consumption, the efficiency of thr... more This study examined, by measuring the time required and oxygen consumption, the efficiency of three types of hand saws cutting a standardized block of wood. An American saw which cuts on the push stroke was compared to a Japanese saw which cuts on the pull stroke and to a two handled bow saw whose teeth were clearly raked toward one handle. The bow saw was used twice, once cutting with the push stroke only and once with the pull stroke. The results showed no significant difference among saw types in the time it took to cut the wood, but did show differences in the amount of oxygen consumed. By this measure the Japanese saw was most efficient, the push bow saw and American saw second, and the bow saw cutting on the pull stroke the least efficient.
Gun part assemblages from several Euroamerican and Native American contact period sites from the ... more Gun part assemblages from several Euroamerican and Native American contact period sites from the Plains are compared as a way of examining how firearms were incorporated into Native technology of the Plains region. These data are interpreted in ...
It has become necessary to understand the advantages and disadvan tages of the alternatives repr... more It has become necessary to understand the advantages and disadvan tages of the alternatives represented by spears and arrows, their characteristic applications, and payoffs associated with them. To address such questions, this paper presents the results of behavioral ecological observations of the hunting methods of San (Basarwa, Bushmen) forager/farmers of the Kalahari Desert region of Botswana. We hope to demonstrate that decisions about the
... Douglas D. Scott, US National Park Service, Midwest Archeological Center, Lincoln, NE 68503 P... more ... Douglas D. Scott, US National Park Service, Midwest Archeological Center, Lincoln, NE 68503 Peter Bleed, Department of Anthropology, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68588-0368 Andrew E. Masich, Colorado ... His horse is shown in a full gallop with flowing mane and tail. ...
Virtual Reconstruction is a powerful tool broadly suited to a diverse array of archaeological her... more Virtual Reconstruction is a powerful tool broadly suited to a diverse array of archaeological heritage applications. In practice, however, reconstruction has largely focused on grand and monumental sites. Here we present two case studies–one from southern Oklahoma, the other from western Nebraska–to explore the use of this technology for more common heritage applications. The goal of this article is to advertise the dilemma we faced with communicating information on ephemeral sites and how we, as nonspecialists, solved the issue using affordable and accessible digital tools. Our workflow makes use of common tools (GIS) and open source software and online tutorials provide step by step instruction to support its replication. In presenting our experiences and the results of these efforts, we hope to spur similar applications in the use of Virtual Reconstruction to communicate information on archaeological heritage more broadly.
ABSTRACTTo study production risks In a prehistoric technology, this paper presents an event tree ... more ABSTRACTTo study production risks In a prehistoric technology, this paper presents an event tree analysis (ETA) of microblade technology at Paleolithic sites from north central Honshu, Japan. ETA reconstructs the sequence of steps involved in making micro-cores and determines the points and rates at which cores failed. The analysis identifies production characteristics of the two assemblages and shows that, although production risks were present, they added little to the overall cost of microblades and associated Implements.
Interdisciplinary Contributions to Archaeology, 1997
... 3. THE STUDY POPULATIONS To describe the steps or" events" considered in the analys... more ... 3. THE STUDY POPULATIONS To describe the steps or" events" considered in the analyses that follow, the next section presents an overview of the hunting ... The Botswana govern-ment decided in 1995 to allow bow hunting by safari hunters in Botswana for a trial period ...
The history and methodology of Japanese swordmaking are reviewed with particular reference to mat... more The history and methodology of Japanese swordmaking are reviewed with particular reference to materials and processes. In order to gain a better understanding of the structure/property relationships in Japanese swords, a 16th century katana was analyzed metallographically and by attaching strain gages and cutting to relieve the residual stresses in the blade. The results indicate that the curve in the blade can be attributed to the volumetric expansion of the untempered martensite on the cutting edge, which also causes the edge to be in a state of residual compression. The residual compressive stresses are one of the key elements of the Japanese sword which give it superior toughness and cutting ability.
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Papers by Peter Bleed