Abstract

This paper examines the archaeological expression of the Locarno Beach - Marpole transition on Southern Vancouver Island. A total of nineteen sites dating between 2600 - 2000 years BP will be studied and compared to existing explanations of the Locarno Beach - Marpole transition. Multidimensional scaling will be used to show the relationship of Southern Vancouver Island archaeological sites during the Marpole transition to other contemporaneous Gulf of Georgia sites. Information collected will be viewed with the backdrop of the differential rise of sociocultural complexity on the Northwest Coast.