Society for California Archaeology 2010 Annual Meeting

58 Society for California Archaeology Annual Meeting 2010
• General Session 2 (De Anza South); Friday, 10:00 AM
The research presented is a comprehensive overview of prehistoric archaeological findings
which document Native American utilization of the upper reach of the Middle Fork of the
American River and Picayune Valley in Placer County, California. This research contributes to
the understanding of high elevation prehistoric land use in the western Sierra crest zone and
better defines the association of the rock art in the prehistoric record of the region. The data
examined was collected from 34 prehistoric sites, and additionally site testing was performed at
one prehistoric site which contains both petroglyphs and habitation remains.
DAHDUL, Mariam
University of California, Santa Barbara
Origins of Native American Olivella Shell Beads in the Coachella Valley, California
• General Session 3 (Arlington); Friday, 8:45 AM
Archaeological sites in the Coachella Valley have yielded thousands of shell beads identified as
coming from the Santa Barbara Channel Islands region through trade. Analysis of bead
assemblages from seven sites in the valley indicates that these artifacts were made from both
Pacific Coast and Gulf of California shell, suggesting that beads flowed into the Coachella
Valley from the Chumash area as well as the Hokokam territory. There is also evidence of
small-scale bead production in this region of southeastern California in the form of shell detritus
and beads-in-production.
DAHLUM II, Timothy
California State University, Northridge
Obsidian, Ideology, and Social Organization in Central Baja
• Symposium 1 (La Sierra); Thursday, 1:06 PM
The movement of obsidian across the Baja peninsula is a direct linkage to the movement of
humans across the landscape. The significance can be found in caches of obsidian artifacts as
well as from the ethnohistoric account from the people in the region and their neighbors. The
movement of obsidian across the landscape, and the scope of time, also illuminates the evolution
of the social and ideological ties of the landscape. Obsidian is one indicator of the
interconnectedness amongst the groups of people on the peninsula via their exchange of goods,
ideas, and culture.
DALTON, Kevin
California State University, Chico
The Influence of Group Size and Hunting Technology on the Geographic Placement of
Prehistoric Hunting Enhancement Features
• Poster Session 4 (Ben H. Lewis Hall North); Friday, 3:30 - 5:00 PM
Understanding hunter-gatherer social complexity is critical to explaining resource acquisition
systems. Data from an extensive survey in northeastern California are used to discuss the
geographic placement of hunting enhancement features. The observed patterning in the spatial
positioning of the features is shown to be consistent with expectations derived from optimal
foraging theory. Results show that the spatial placement of hunting features is affected by group
size and performance characteristics of the bow and arrow.