Ceramic Analysis and the Investigation of Matrilocality at the Smith Mohawk Village Site

Abstract

Ceramic analysis was undertaken to identify spatial patterns of stylistic variables which might shed light on the social organization of the prehistoric Mohawk, who have been described ethnographically as both matrilocal and matrilineal. Attribute analysis of samples of decorated ceramics recovered from two longhouses at the Smith site, in Fulton County, New York, was carried out. The percentage of occurrence of stylistic attributes was calculated, and a coefficient of agreement generated between pairs of ceramic samples. Based on these data, it is concluded that the ceramics demonstrate within-longhouse homogeneity. This would be compatible with a preferred, but not necessarily prescribed, matrilocal rule of post-marital residence.

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