Down to Seeds and Stones: A New Look at the Subsistence Remains From Shawnee-Minisink

Abstract

The Shawnee-Minisink site is well known for yielding fish and plant remains from Clovis contexts. New investigations at Shawnee-Minisink have provided a sample of macrobotanical remains for comparison with the ten plant species previously recovered at the site. In this paper, I reevaluate the subsistence remains recovered during the 1970s excavations by American University and conclude that a limited number of plants were actually exploited by the site's occupants. The new macrobotantical remains from Shawnee-Minisink have provided a series of AMS dates, which offer the most precise age estimate for Clovis in the Northeast and provide an alternative interpretation concerning the role plants played in the subsistence practices of early Paleoindians. The subsistence evidence from Shawnee-Minisink shows variation in diet, but a difference that should be expected at large habitation sites.