Burned Rock Complexes, Baked Clay Objects, Steatite, and Ceramics: Evolutionary Implications for Plains/Eastern Woodlands Cooking Technologies

Abstract

Burned rock complexes (BRC) have a broad geographic distribution. However, they are not a fully understood class of cultural feature. Dated to Early/Middle Woodland times by some Plains researchers, BRC also have been attributed to Late Archaic cultures in the Eastern Woodlands (e.g., Kentucky Shell Mound Archaic). Archaeologists have documented important Late Archaic/Middle Woodland cooking technologies other than BRC as well. These technological improvements include baked clay objects, steatite cooking slabs, and fiber- and mineral-tempered ceramics. Comparing various contextual, functional, and physical characteristics for these cooking tools results in an improved understanding of the advantages conferred by each. Such an understanding will shed light on the varying circumstances under which prehistoric groups utilized cooking technologies. The overall goal of this article is to develop models which account for the full range of variation in late prehistoric economies of the Central Plains and Eastern Woodlands.