QUESTIONING COMPLEXITY: THE PREHISTORIC HUNTER-GATHERERS OF SAPELO ISLAND, GEORGIA

In this dissertation, I examine trajectories of cultural evolution among complex
hunter-gatherers and middle range societies. Broadly, I consider the theoretical issues
related to these two areas of study and how we should conceptualize the study of sociocultural
evolution in societies organized at this scale. I apply these ideas to the study of
the prehistoric hunter-gatherers who occupied Sapelo Island, Georgia, U. S. A.
Specifically, I examine the Archaic period (4200 – 3000 B. P.) occupation of the Sapelo
Shell Ring complex, located on the western side of the island. In particular, I study issues
of sedentism, settlement aggregation, mound construction, and the emergence of social
inequality as they relate to shell rings in the southeastern United States, as well as other
areas of the world. One of the central problems for studying these sites is whether shell
rings form by gradual accumulation or by intentional construction and the concomitant
social formations associated with these two different behaviors. Using geophysical
survey, artifact distributions, and radiocarbon dating, I examine the use and nature of
space at the site as well as site formation processes. I present the results of both the
growth band analysis on clams and the isotopic analysis on clams and oysters from the
site in order to address season of occupation. In addition to this new data, a reanalysis of
previous excavations is presented. Combined, these data lend important insights into
different dimensions of socio-political complexity. Specifically, these data suggest that
the Sapelo Shell Ring complex population was relatively large for its time. It addition, it
seems that at least some portion of the population occupied the site year-round. Despite
it large population size and reduced mobility the occupants of the site maintained at least
some degree of egalitarian social relations.

本论文旨在探讨复杂狩猎采集社会与中层社会的文化演化路径。整体而言，本文将探讨这两大研究领域的相关理论议题，并阐释我们应如何为该层级规模的社会构建社会文化演化研究的分析框架。随后，本文将上述理论思路应用于美国佐治亚州萨佩洛岛史前狩猎采集群体的考古研究。具体而言，本文聚焦该岛西侧的萨佩洛贝壳环遗址群（Sapelo Shell Ring complex）在距今4200至3000年的古风期（Archaic period）的人类活动遗存。尤为具体的是，本文将研究与美国东南部乃至全球其他区域贝壳环相关的定居化、聚落集聚、土丘营建以及社会不平等起源等议题。针对该类遗址的核心研究问题之一，便是贝壳环究竟是通过逐步堆积还是刻意营建形成，以及这两种不同营建行为所对应的伴随性社会形态。本文借助地球物理勘探（geophysical survey）、遗物分布分析以及放射性碳定年（radiocarbon dating）技术，探究该遗址的空间使用特征与空间属性，以及遗址形成过程（site formation processes）。为厘清遗址的人类占据季节，本文呈现了遗址出土蛤类的生长纹分析（growth band analysis）结果，以及蛤类与牡蛎的同位素分析（isotopic analysis）结果。除上述全新数据外，本文还对既往考古发掘资料进行了重新分析。综合而言，这些数据为社会政治复杂性的多维度研究提供了重要洞见。具体而言，数据显示萨佩洛贝壳环遗址群的人口规模在其所处时代相对庞大。此外，至少有部分人口常年定居于此遗址。尽管该遗址人口规模庞大且居民流动性降低，其社群仍维持了至少一定程度的平等主义社会关系。