Decades of jungle survey and testing have led to a synthesis of 14,000 years of human occupation in this region of northwest Florida, southeast Alabama, southwest Georgia. Paleo-Indian evidence is densest in the tributary Chipola River but also extends to the coast. Sea-level rise pushed the big river eastward after the Ice Age. Archaic peoples then adapted to climate change, made the earliest pottery 4500 years ago, and deposited shell middens. By Middle Woodland times (AD 350-700) mound ceremonialism included a fascination with light and exotics but not yet economic stratification. All this waned as people began growing maize; Fort Walton-period agricultural chiefdoms emerged by A.D. 1000. By the 1500s, Old-World invaders and colonists caused depopulation and disappearance of indigenous cultures. Creek groups moved south into Spanish Florida, becoming Seminoles here. The largest Maroon community in the U.S. was destroyed by the emerging America. Newer historical archaeology includes the antebellum boomtown of old St. Joseph (1836-1844); lost Civil War forts; recent historic sites; and destroyed landscapes after 2018’s Hurricane Michael.
How are borders and boundaries identified in the ancient world? We recognize the importance of these phenomena today, but in the absence of residual features such as the Great Wall of China or Hadrian’s Wall, the “edges” of sociopolitical entities are difficult to find archaeologically. In this illustrated talk, Dr. John Kantner shares recent research he has conducted to identify the borders of the Chaco World, a mysterious tradition that was centered on Chaco Canyon 2,000 years ago in what is now northwestern New Mexico. Using data from pottery, obsidian, and architecture, Dr. Kantner presents the history of a Chaco World borderlands area and what it suggests about how this sociocultural tradition evolved over time.
Dr. Zachery Dunseth,
The lecture presents a history of the archaeology of South Florida enriched through the records of the Florida Museum of Natural History (FLMNH) at the University of Florida in Gainesville. The South Florida collections at the FLMNH are expansive and represent over 300 discrete archaeological sites across the thirteen southernmost counties. Using curation-based stories, Green will discuss the breadth of the collections housed at the museum from Lake Okeechobee to the Keys and Gulf to the Atlantic coasts. Dozens of archaeologists and their teams have contributed to the rich history of the collections over the last 130 years, and their fascinating contributions have shaped our understanding of the field. 
Dr. Obert presents a new narrative for Cretan warriorhood, focusing in particular on the archaeological evidence for violence on Crete between 700 and 300 BCE. He argues that the incongruity of Cretan warriorhood reflects two distinct ideologies of violence that were concentrated in specific types of ritual space: collaborative camaraderie on the one hand and antagonistic individuality on the other. Despite this opposition, Cretans had to balance both narratives simultaneously, which ultimately developed warriorhood into a full-time vocation. This unique and complex system guaranteed the wealthiest Cretans coveted positions at the top of the socio-political hierarchy, regardless of their appearance, background, or personal identity. These accessible yet gatekept identities set the tenor for military power on Crete in the centuries that followed--the systems that Plato praised in the fourth century were the product of a long-standing and deeply entrenched ideological conflict that had raged across Crete since the seventh century.
Recent research at Mt. Lykaion, both at the southern summit of the mountain at the Sanctuary of Zeus and in the lower mountain meadow at the Sanctuary of Pan, is leading to new understandings about cult practices at this ancient site in Greece. Answering questions about the origins of Greek cult and Greek athletics are at the heart of the agenda of the Mt. Lykaion Excavation and Survey Project. Since 2004 the project has been working at the site of the Sanctuary of Zeus. The project is co-sponsored by the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, the University of Arizona and the Greek Archaeological Service under the auspices of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens.
AARHUS, DENMARK—According to a statement released by Aarhus University, a team of researchers has developed an LED multispectral imaging system (LEDMSI) that can be used in the field to examine a site before excavating it. The system uses 16 LED lights with 16 different wavelengths, including visible light, near ultraviolet light, and near-infrared light. Because different materials absorb and reflect light differently, the lighting system can reveal things that may not otherwise be visible to the eye. The team members, including Søren Munch Kristiansen of Aarhus University and David Stott of the Moesgaard Museum, first tested the system at the Iron Age site of Sorte Muld, or “Black Soil,” which is located on the Danish island of Bornholm. “The images looked almost psychedelic when we took them, and we only really saw what we had when we analyzed them back at the computer,” Kristiansen said. “Then we could see new layers and changes in the fill that we simply could not see with the naked eye,” he added. For example, the LEDMSI system revealed a change in the ground surface that could mark a break in activity at the site. Excavation will be used to test if this is the case. In addition, small bone fragments fluoresced under ultraviolet light. Previous research has linked fluorescence in bones at archaeological sites to the presence of collagen, which can be useful for DNA and protein analysis. The team is continuing to develop and test the LEDMSI system. To read about another application of multispectral imaging to assess how an artifact was made, go to "World's Oldest Book," one of ARCHAEOLOGY's Top 10 Discoveries of 2023.
