Bulk procurement and transportation in the Saint John River valley

Conference Paper

Bulk procurement and transportation in the Saint John River valley

Susan E. Blair

Abstract

While archaeologists studying stone tool assemblages have devoted considerable attention to relationships among technology, raw material procurement and mobility, most of this attention has focused on the influence of mobility upon technology, and not on the influence of technology upon mobility. This particular focus has led to some oversimplifications in the modeling of hunter-gatherer socio-ecology and mobility, and an emphasis on pedestrian movements. In turn, this emphasis has significantly influenced our treatment of efficiency, reduction for transport, and technological organization. In this paper I discuss my recent research into technology and lithic reduction on the Maritime Peninsula, and examine some of the implications of bulk transportation with watercraft for analyses of hunter-gatherer mobility, lithic technology, and patterning in the archaeological record.