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Terrestrial Mollusks as Chronological Records in Brazilian Shellmounds

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 May 2017

Kita D Macario*
Affiliation:
Laboratório de Radiocarbono, Instituto de Física, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Av. Gal. Milton Tavares de Souza, s/n, Niterói, 24210-346, RJ, Brazil
Maria Cristina Tenório
Affiliation:
Departamento de Antropologia, Museu Nacional, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Quinta da Boa Vista, s/n, Rio de Janeiro, 20940-40, RJ, Brazil
Eduardo Q Alves
Affiliation:
Laboratório de Radiocarbono, Instituto de Física, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Av. Gal. Milton Tavares de Souza, s/n, Niterói, 24210-346, RJ, Brazil Oxford Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit, University of Oxford, Dyson Perrins Building, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3QY, United Kingdom
Fabiana M Oliveira
Affiliation:
Laboratório de Radiocarbono, Instituto de Física, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Av. Gal. Milton Tavares de Souza, s/n, Niterói, 24210-346, RJ, Brazil
Ingrid S Chanca
Affiliation:
Laboratório de Radiocarbono, Instituto de Física, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Av. Gal. Milton Tavares de Souza, s/n, Niterói, 24210-346, RJ, Brazil
Bruna Netto
Affiliation:
Laboratório de Radiocarbono, Instituto de Física, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Av. Gal. Milton Tavares de Souza, s/n, Niterói, 24210-346, RJ, Brazil
Carla Carvalho
Affiliation:
Laboratório de Radiocarbono, Instituto de Física, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Av. Gal. Milton Tavares de Souza, s/n, Niterói, 24210-346, RJ, Brazil Departamento de Geoquímica, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Outeiro São João Batista, s/n, Niterói, 24001-970, RJ, Brazil
Rosa Souza
Affiliation:
Departamento de Biologia Marinha, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Outeiro São João Batista, s/n, Niterói, 24001-970, RJ, Brazil
Orangel Aguilera
Affiliation:
Departamento de Biologia Marinha, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Outeiro São João Batista, s/n, Niterói, 24001-970, RJ, Brazil
Renato B Guimarães
Affiliation:
Laboratório de Difração de Raio-X, Instituto de Física, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Av. Gal. Milton Tavares de Souza, s/n, Niterói, 24210-346, RJ, Brazil
*
*Corresponding author. Email: kitamacario@gmail.com.

Abstract

Among other zooarchaeological remains, terrestrial snails’ shells from the Thaumastus and Megalobulimus genera are found in some Brazilian shellmounds, presenting a potential substitute for charcoal in radiocarbon dating analyses, as reliable representatives of the atmospheric carbon isotopic ratio. In this paper, we present statistically similar results of both charcoal and land snails samples from the same archaeological contexts in three settlements on the coast of Rio de Janeiro. The Manitiba I shellmound results range from 4.2 to 3.7 ka cal BP (95.4%), contemporary with the Saquarema shellmound, occupied during the period from 4.3 to 3.6 ka cal BP (95.4%). For the Usiminas shellmound, two groups of samples revealed different periods of time for two occupational layers from 2.3 to 2.1 ka cal BP (95.4%) and from 1.6 and 1.3 ka cal BP (95.4%). A model constraining each group of samples to within a single phase has a general agreement of 97% with only two outliers out of 22 dates, yielding minimum individual agreement of 74% and 7% posterior outlier probability for Saquarema shells. These are good examples of sites in which the occupation chronology can be successfully obtained by the radiocarbon dating of land snails.

Type
Method Development
Copyright
© 2017 by the Arizona Board of Regents on behalf of the University of Arizona 

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Footnotes

Selected Papers from the 8th Radiocarbon & Archaeology Symposium, Edinburgh, UK, 27 June–1 July 2016

References

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