Under the direction of Dr. Vaughn Bryant, Ms. Kristin Sobolik will analyze archaeological materials and comparative samples which will provide the basis for her doctoral dissertation. The project focuses on the subsistence adaptation of Archaic peoples, early hunters and gatherers, who lived in the Lower Pecos Region (Texas) of the Chihuahuan Desert. It utilizes two approaches. Ms. Sobolik will visit this research area in each of the four major seasons and conduct biological surveys to determine the types and the densities of resources available. She will also collect samples which will provide a comparative base for the identification of archaeological materials. Secondly, she will examine archaeological remains, stored at the Texas Archaeological Research Laboratories in Austin, from a number of Pecos sites. She will combine the results of faunal, floral, and coprolite analyses with data drawn from skeletal studies of prehistoric inhabitants to delineate Archaic subsistence patterns and draw inferences about paleodiet. The archaeological sites in the Lower Pecos region are of interest for several reasons. First, although a large number have been carefully excavated over the last several decades, much of the material has not been analyzed. This is unfortunate because in this desert region preservation is excellent. Plant remains which can serve both to reconstruct diet and environment are abundant and such situations are rare. The archaeology of the region is also important because the long prehistoric record documents how technologically simple populations adapted to and survived in a harsh and variable desert environment. Ms. Sobolik's research will synthesize a broad range of data from a number of sites. This project is important for several other reasons as well. Methodologically it is valuable because it explores how very diverse data sets may be drawn together and analyzed to yield nutritional information. If successful it will provide a model which may be applied in other regions of the world. The work will also assist in the training of an extremely promising young scientist.
