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Why a Standardization of Strontium Isotope Baseline Environmental Data Is Needed and Recommendations for Methodology

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 March 2017

Deanna N. Grimstead ,
Selin Nugent  and
Jean Whipple
Deanna N. Grimstead
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, Ohio State University, 4034 Smith Laboratory, 174 W. 18th Ave., Columbus, OH 43210-1106, USA (grimstead.1@osu.edu)
Selin Nugent
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, Ohio State University, 4034 Smith Laboratory, 174 W. 18th Ave., Columbus, OH 43210-1106, USA (grimstead.1@osu.edu)
Jean Whipple
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, Ohio State University, 4034 Smith Laboratory, 174 W. 18th Ave., Columbus, OH 43210-1106, USA (grimstead.1@osu.edu)
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Abstract

Since initial applications of strontium isotope human sourcing in the early 1990s, the use of the method has steadily increased in archaeology and in anthropology more broadly. Despite this trend, the collection of necessary baseline environmental data has not been standardized and sometimes does not occur at all. A thorough environmental sampling strategy will ensure that all the variability within a selected region is documented, which is a critical step to improving the accuracy of sourcing studies. Furthermore, shared strontium baseline data collections are needed to improve the intercomparability of datasets and results. This paper provides a case study from a semiarid region in northwestern New Mexico, USA, highlighting the need for a bottom-up approach to baseline data collection (from bedrock to animal) and describes the methods of pre-field planning and collecting, including rationales for what samples to collect for Sr isotope baseline data. The authors hope that this paper will lay a foundation for the implementation and standardization of Sr isotope baseline data collecting, which does not currently exist.

Desde las primeras aplicaciones del estudio de isótopos de estroncio para determinar la procedencia de restos humanos en la década de 1990, el uso de este método ha incrementado de manera constante en la arqueología y la antropología en general. A pesar de tal aumento, la colección de datos ambientales de referencia no ha sido estandarizada y a veces no ocurre. Una estrategia de muestreo ambiental exhaustiva garantiza que se documente toda la variabilidad dentro de una región, lo que es un paso crítico para mejorar la precisión de los estudios de procedencia. Además, es necesario mantener bases de datos de referencia compartidas para mejorar la comparabilidad de datos y resultados. En este artículo se presenta un estudio de caso desde la zona semiárida del noroeste de Nuevo México, EE.UU., donde se destaca la necesidad de un enfoque ascendente a la colección de datos de referencia, desde la roca madre hacia los animales. También se describen los métodos para la planificación pre-campo y la recolección de datos. Se describe el uso conjunto de las muestras de estroncio, oxígeno y carbono, y los factores que se deben considerar en la selección de muestras de referencia. No hay manera de reemplazar la formación en el campo con instrucción profesional; sin embargo, en caso que los nuevos practicantes no tengan acceso a este tipo de formación, esperamos que este artículo sirva como guía de campo.

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Type
Articles
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Advances in Archaeological Practice , Volume 5 , Issue 2 , May 2017 , pp. 184 - 195
Copyright
Copyright 2017 © Society for American Archaeology 

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