Hunter-Gatherer Mortuary Practices during the Central Texas Archaic

Abstract

Archaeological studies over the past eighty years have reconstructed the subsistence, technology, and settlement patterns of the Edwards Plateau hunter-gatherers, but until now little information has been available on their burial practices, due to the scarcity of known burial sites. This detailed archaeological report describes the human skeletal remains, burial furnishings, and fauna recovered from Bering Sinkhole in Kerr County, the first carefully excavated hunter-gatherer burial site in central Texas. This comprehensive site report provides valuable baseline data for all students of hunter-gatherer societies. It will also be of interest to the growing number of avocational archaeologists in Texas.