@article {9774,
	title = {Geochemical and Mineralogical Constraints on the Provenance of L{\textquoteright}sitkuk Bear River Pottery from the Annapolis Basin, Nova Scotia},
	journal = {Canadian Journal of Archaeology},
	volume = {38},
	year = {2014},
	pages = {076-105},
	abstract = {<p>Seven sherds of ancestral (Woodland Period) Mi\&rsquo;kmaq pottery excavated from L\&rsquo;sitkuk Bear River (\&ldquo;LBR\&rdquo;; Borden number BdDk-1) and sediments from the Annapolis Basin, its tributaries, and elsewhere in southwestern Nova Scotia are chemically analyzed. The goal of this investigation is to (1) compositionally characterize these ceramic wares, and (2) identify the source of the raw materials used in their manufacture to confirm that these ceramic artifacts were produced near to where they were found. The results identified two compositional groupings of pottery and one outlier sample. One group (Group A) is enriched in diverse trace elements (notably the Rare Earth Elements and some high field-strength elements) that exploratory statistics (multidimensional scaling) indicate are geochemically linked to sand and the most Al-rich clays from the Annapolis Basin/Bear River area as well as disaggregated biotite granodiorite derived from Devonian plutons cropping out inland. Sherds with lower concentrations of these trace elements (Group B) are linked to clays along the Annapolis River, and are depleted in granodiorite constituents. The outlier has a composition similar to Group B sherds but contains some distinct temper grains (e.g., Mg-rich biotite). The trace element signature of LBR pottery is largely controlled by accessory minerals, notably phosphates such as monazite that originate at least in part in the granodiorite. The granodiorite temper grains in the potsherds more clearly link these ceramics to this area than the other materials used in their production. Although recognized as an important trade and meeting site with a continuous cultural sequence between ca. 2150 and ca.\&nbsp;950 B.P., the analytical data reported here suggest that LBR pottery, including the anomalous sample, were produced domestically, and that the ancestral Mi\&rsquo;kmaq potters were highly selective in choosing the raw materials they used to make their wares.</p>},
	author = {J. Victor Owen and Dorota Forfa and John D. Greenough}
}
