Author Type

Graduate Student

Date of Award

1978

Document Type

Thesis

Publication Status

Version of Record

Submission Date

October 2026

Thesis/Dissertation Advisor [Chair]

Sears, William H.

Abstract

Pollen extracted from twenty-one fecal samples uncovered during the 1962-1970 excavations of a Hopewell Period ceremonial mound and artificial pond offer information on climate, habitats, diet, and season to contribute to the corn agriculture theory for the site. Plant families in the sample suggest today's sub-tropical moist climate and three major habitats: savannah, hammock, and meander valley, indicating that corn could have been a viable crop with proper drainage. A "starvation stew" partaken of in a "spring-rites" ritual is suggested and is compatible with the corn agriculture theory. Variety of wild plants in all samples suggests a grab-bag concoction with minimal dietary significance for any particular wild plant. A spring-blooming sample population over decades suggests that this stew was eaten only at this, a time of depleted corn stores. Ceremonial context of the sample suggests an annual spring-planting-rites communion "meal" to explain the single season sample for a sedentary agricultural people.

Extent

62 p.

Comments

Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters|Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 1978.|FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection|Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters

Identifier

FADT13917

Format

pdf

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