Arenal Prehistory Project
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The Arenal Prehistory Project () was a multidisciplinary research effort taking place between 1984 and 1987 that uncovered evidence of human occupation from
Paleoindian Paleo-Indians were the first peoples who entered and subsequently inhabited the Americas towards the end of the Late Pleistocene period. The prefix ''paleo-'' comes from . The term ''Paleo-Indians'' applies specifically to the lithic period in ...
and Archaic times through four sedentary phases to the
Spanish Conquest The Spanish Empire, sometimes referred to as the Hispanic Monarchy or the Catholic Monarchy, was a colonial empire that existed between 1492 and 1976. In conjunction with the Portuguese Empire, it ushered in the European Age of Discovery. It ...
in the
tropical rainforest Tropical rainforests are dense and warm rainforests with high rainfall typically found between 10° north and south of the Equator. They are a subset of the tropical forest biome that occurs roughly within the 28° latitudes (in the torrid zo ...
of Northwest
Costa Rica Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...
.


Introduction

The Arenal Prehistory Project took place as the start of a larger, ongoing research effort in the area around
Lake Arenal Lake Arenal () is a lake in the northern highlands of Costa Rica. It is the largest lake in Costa Rica at . Its depth varies between seasonally. History Hacienda La Rosita, which was owned and operated by P. Eckrich & Sons, a subsidiary of t ...
and
Arenal Volcano Arenal Volcano () is an inactive andesitic stratovolcano in north-western Costa Rica around northwest of San José, in the province of Alajuela, canton of San Carlos, and district of La Fortuna. The Arenal volcano measures at least high. ...
in Guanacaste province, Costa Rica that has spanned from the early 1980s to the present day. This particular area of Middle America was found to be especially suitable for archaeological study because its dominant geographical feature, the still-active Arenal Volcano, had erupted at least nine times in prehistory and provided for extraordinary site-preservation with stratified layers of
tephra Tephra is fragmental material produced by a Volcano, volcanic eruption regardless of composition, fragment size, or emplacement mechanism. Volcanologists also refer to airborne fragments as pyroclasts. Once clasts have fallen to the ground, ...
that facilitated the dating of uncovered discoveries. Examination of the area affected by volcanic eruptions also allowed for further study of human adaptation to such events. Primary disciplinary fields involved in the research project were archeology, botany, and volcanology. Funding was primarily granted by the
National Science Foundation The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) is an Independent agencies of the United States government#Examples of independent agencies, independent agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government that su ...
and the
National Geographic Society The National Geographic Society, headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States, is one of the largest nonprofit scientific and educational organizations in the world. Founded in 1888, its interests include geography, archaeology, natural sc ...
. The Project's publishing researchers include Payson Sheets, Brian McKee, Marilynn Mueller, and Mark Chenault of the
University of Colorado The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: the University of Colorado Boulder, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs, the University of Colorado Denver, and the U ...
, John Hoopes of the
University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States. Two branch campuses are in the Kansas City metropolitan area on the Kansas side: the university's medical school and hospital ...
, William Melson of the
Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...
, Tom Sever of
Stennis Space Center The John C. Stennis Space Center (SSC) is a NASA rocket testing facility in Hancock County, Mississippi, United States, on the banks of the Pearl River (Mississippi–Louisiana), Pearl River at the Mississippi–Louisiana border. , it is NASA ...
, and John Bradley of San Juan College.


Research methods

Excavation sites were chosen where a recently dammed and expanded Lake Arenal had exposed artifacts on the shoreline, the three major sites out of 39 total being Tronadora Vieja (Costa Rica's earliest dated formative village), Bolivar, and Silencio. The operation-lot system for field control was used in survey and excavation. Volcanological study was able to determine the sequence of prehistoric eruptions of Arenal Volcano and corresponding tephra deposits. When artifacts were found in association with these deposits, they could be independently dated using the predetermined sequence data as well as
radiocarbon dating Radiocarbon dating (also referred to as carbon dating or carbon-14 dating) is a method for Chronological dating, determining the age of an object containing organic material by using the properties of carbon-14, radiocarbon, a radioactive Isotop ...
. Over 12,000
potsherds This page is a glossary of archaeology, the study of the human past from material remains. A B C D E F ...
were found and analyzed, with pre-existing pottery sequences from Middle America and
Mesoamerica Mesoamerica is a historical region and cultural area that begins in the southern part of North America and extends to the Pacific coast of Central America, thus comprising the lands of central and southern Mexico, all of Belize, Guatemala, El S ...
used for comparison. Similarly, 8,755 chipped stone artifacts were found and analyzed, being classified in 18 different categories for comparison with those in existing databases. Only 224 ground stone artifacts were found and analyzed. Botanical remains (carbonized macrofossils, pollen, and
phytoliths Phytoliths (from Greek, "plant stone") are rigid, microscopic mineral deposits found in some plant tissues, often persisting after the decay of the plant. Although some use "phytolith" to refer to all mineral secretions by plants, it more commonl ...
) were found and analyzed to profile the dietary habits of the region's previous inhabitants.
Remote-sensing Remote sensing is the acquisition of information about an object or phenomenon without making physical contact with the object, in contrast to in situ or on-site observation. The term is applied especially to acquiring information about Earth ...
imagery was also used, and revealed prehistoric footpaths used for human transportation, which were excavated in 38 places by the researchers during the study.


Findings

The Arenal Prehistory Project succeeded in uncovering and examining archaeological evidence for human occupation in the Northwest Costa Rica research area spanning 5,500 years, from 4000 BC to the time of the Spanish Conquest. It defined phases of occupation (see section below) that differ chronologically and in some technological and cultural aspects, but that are also, at their cores, remarkably similar given the numerous volcanic upheavals the area endured. Researchers found villages to have been occupied continuously from 2000 BC up until the centuries before the arrival of the Europeans, and stone tools to have been made the same way all throughout the recorded period of occupation. Compared to other Mesoamerican and Middle American populations, the Arenalan one was determined to have been incredibly self-sufficient (thanks in large part to the local availability of resources) and stable, having never experienced huge population increases or periods of dependence on a single agricultural staple.


Arenal phases of occupation

Snead 2009


Notes

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References

* Sheets, Payson and Hoopes, John, et al. "Prehistory and Volcanism in the Arenal Area, Costa Rica." ''Journal of Field Archaeology.'' 18.4 (Winter, 1991): 445-465. * Snead, James E. ''Landscapes of Movement: Trails, Paths, and Roads in Anthropological Perspective.'' Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2009. Print. * Melson, William G. "Prehistoric Eruptions of Arenal Volcano, Costa Rica." ''Vinculos.'' 10 (1984) 35-59. Archaeology of Costa Rica Mesoamerican studies Mesoamerican archaeology