Investigation of Punuk/Birnirk/Thule Relationships--Preliminary Evaluation of North Alaskan Site Potentials

Barrow Arctic Science Consortium (Basc), Barrow AK

Investigators

Abstract

The Principal Investigator has submitted a SGER proposal to survey and evaluate archaeological sites on the North Slope of Alaska that are at risk of loss due to erosion and other geologic processes. The survey will concentrate on locating "intact cultural deposits, especially midden deposit and preferably frozen; cultural deposits associated with the development of prehistoric whaling; exposed strata and nearby potential sources of paleoenvironmental data." Due to the dramatic climactic changes and processes in the Arctic over the last decade, previously recorded information on the location and condition of archaeological resources have become obsolete. The information gathered in the proposed survey is crucial to identifying sites for future research, particularly on the Punuk, Birnirk, and Thule archaeological cultures of the Arctic. The interface between these three groups is an important and timely research topic due to the fact that Thule most likely represents a highly successful adaptation to new and changing environmental conditions, not unlike those facing contemporary indigenous people occupying on the North Slope.