The Distribution and Research Value of Archaeological Mussel Shell: An Overview from Mississippi

Abstract

Archaeological mussel shell rarely has been employed beyond paleodietary analysis in eastern North America, and most published work is site-specific in nature. Broad-scale syntheses of data on freshwater mussel shells are needed to realize the research potential of this common archaeological material. Such syntheses should also reveal gaps in our knowledge and perhaps illuminate reasons for why such gaps exist. In this paper, data on freshwater mussel shells from sites in Mississippi are gathered, and broad patterns in temporal and spatial distributions as well as site structure are discussed. The spatial data clearly suffer from survey, recovery, analytical and reporting biases, while data on temporal trends and site structure are lacking or are available at only gross levels. Given that shell data can be used in a number of research areas (e.g., biogeography, paleoenvironment, chemical sourcing, measurement of environmental disturbance), such unsystematic treatment of shell remains is unwarranted and should be corrected.