Ashley Smallwood (M.A.)                        (top)

I am conducting the use-wear analysis on the biface collection from the Gault site.  My research focuses on the processes involved in the development of polish and other wear traces from use-activities.  In order to apply accurate functional interpretations to the Gault bifaces, I am conducting a series of experiments using replica Clovis-style points to simulate projectile impact wear on horses, as well as traces produced from animal butchering.  My research interests include lithic analysis and its application to tool functionality and Paleoindian lifeways.

Charlotte Pevny (Ph.D.)                        (top)

The focus of my dissertation is on the lithic debitage and edge-modified flakes recovered from the Gault site in central Texas. To date, I have analyzed approximately 80,000 pieces of lithic debris from the Archaic, Late Paleoindian and Clovis layers. The microdebitage recovered from the site is providing important answers to questions such as the depositional context and feature location from the Clovis deposits. I am using experimental archaeology in conjunction with my edge-modified analysis to help make determinations not only about how tools were used and on what materials, but also how post-depositional processes affect lithic material, and in turn, affect use-wear studies. The last portion of my research deals with intrasite patterning and how the various artifact assemblages relate to each other.

Shanna Richardson (M.A.)                         (top)

My research concentrates on developing new techniques to conserve waterlogged bone.  Experiments were conducted on dehydrated bone fragments using various consolidants - silicone oil, polyvinyl acetate (PVA) with viscosity of 25, Acryloid B-72, Butvar 98, EM-02, methyltrimethoxysilane (MTMS), Paleo-Bond, and Rhoplex (Primal) WS24.  These experiments focused on penetration, strength, and appearance of the bone samples.  Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and environmental scanning electron microscopy (ESEM) were used to determine penetration depths.  The final analysis shows that all samples had received some observable penetration and/or coating, but the best consolidates for waterlogged bone is silicone oil, known as Polymer Passivation treatment, and methyltrimethoxysilane.  The results of this research was used to conserve an ulna, radius, partial femur, right and left mandibles, and maxilla of a Columbian mammoth recovered from the coastal region of Texas. Other conservation projects include the conservations of a 4,200 year old wooden bowl from central Texas with the silicone oil technology.

Victor Galan (Ph.D.)                       (top)

Victor Galan is working on the excavation of a biface cache near Houston, Texas.  To date, block excavations have recovered no additional artifacts in place to add to those disturbed by the landowner’s initial discovery with a box blade in 2004.  Results from a Ground Penetrating Radar Survey are pending.  With scant material culture evidence to guide the research, Victor is focusing his efforts on the analysis of the 20 bifacial artifacts recovered and understanding caching behavior of the Paleo-Indian and Early Archaic periods.

Juan Urista (M.A.)                        (top)

My research focuses on the geologic reconstruction of the Vernor Mammoth site in Clute, Brazoria County, Texas.  A mammoth and other Pleistocene-age fauna were recovered from a sand pit.  Higher up in the geologic matrix, a wooden bowl was found.  My job is to reconstruct the landscape based on stratigraphy and sedimentology in order to assess the environment in which the mammoth and the wooden bowl were deposited.  I will then assess the relationship between the mammoth remains and the bowl stratigraphically  - the stratigraphy can elucidate the relative age as well as the absolute age from organic material recovered, and can provide clues to the evolution of the site throughout the latter part of the Quaternary period.

Scott Minchak (M.A.)                        (top)

The Gault site, in central Texas, represents a unique location where there are two geological units that contain Clovis tools.  The oldest geological unit is a clay deposited in a pond that is overlain by silty clay overbank deposits. My thesis topic is an analysis of the use microwear on Clovis blades recovered from the two Clovis geological units. I am conducting this study to answer two questions: Were the Clovis blades utilized at the Gault site and is there a difference in the use-wear patterns of Clovis blades between the two geological units? and Is Gault, as a quarry/workshop site, a place to just obtain raw materials or did it also serve as a craft site? I have examined over 200 blades for my study. Use-wear experiments on hard and soft contact materials served as a reference base to test the patterns I observed on the Clovis artifacts.

Dawn Alexander (M.A.)                        (top)

I am currently working on the geoarchaeology and site formation processes at the Gault site.  My thesis includes a discussion of the geology of the Lindsey Pit where the Texas A&M University excavations took place.  As part of my study of site formation processes, I conducted an artifact refit study and analyzed artifact orientation data from the site.

Heidi Luchsinger (Ph.D. 2006)                       (top)

Dr. Heidi Luchsinger studied the late Quaternary geology and geoarchaeology of the middle Rio Negro River, Argentina. This valley contained a complex sequence of alluvial, eolian, and colluvial sediments detailing a rich archaeological record.

Dissertation title: The Late Quaternary Landscape History of the Middle Rio Negro Valley, Northern Patagonia, Argentina: Its Impact on Preservation of the Archaeologiucal Record and Influence on Late Holocene Human Settlement Patterns.

Michael Aiuvalasit (M.A. 2006)                        (top)

Michael Aiuvalasit conducted geoarchaeological investigations at the McNeill-Gonzales site, Texas. Artifacts ranging in age from the historic period to late Paleoindian were found in a series of colluvial and eolian sediments adjacent to the Guadalupe River.

Thesis title: Geoarchaeological Investigation at the McNeill-Gonzales Site (41VT141), Victoria County, Texas.

William Dickens (Ph.D. 2005)                       (top)

Dr. William Dickens conducted a technological analysis of the Clovis bifaces and blades from the Gault site (41BL323), Texas. The artifacts used in his study were obtained from two excavations conducted at the site by Texas A&M University.

Dissertation title: Biface Reduction and Blade Manufacture at the Gault Site 41BL323: A Clovis Occupation in Bell County, Texas.

James Wiederhold (M.A. 2004)                        (top)

Jim Wiederhold conducted experiments to determine the use-wear produced on end scrapers as a result of working hides. He then compared his experimental results with use-wear found on Clovis end scrapers from the Gault site, Texas.

Thesis title: Toward the Standardization of Use-Wear Studies: Constructing an Analogue to Prehistoric Hide Work.