Thistle Hill: A New Look at the Late Archaic

Abstract

<p>This report discusses the excavation and analysis of the Southern Ontario Late Archaic Thistle Hill site (AhGx-226). Excavations concentrated on two house floors with Internal storage pits and hearth(s), delineating the site margins, recovering artifacts from the topsoil and features, and reconstructing paleo-environment through pollen, floral and faunal analyses, and comparative data. The site is interpreted within a cultural ecological framework using paleo-environmental and physiographic data. As well, this report examines some of the assumpt10ns associated with the Late Archaic, such as the littoral/inland, summer/winter, macro/microband dichotomies. Artifact and environmental analyses indicate a correlation between Small Point site location and microenvironment exploitation. A microenvironment-oriented subsistence model is postulated for all of the Late Archaic.</p>