| This thesis used a feminist archaeological theoretical framework to approach the analysis and presentation of the osseous tool collection from the Broken Mammoth site (XBD-131) in interior Alaska. The Broken Mammoth site dated to the Pleistocene/Holocene transition and has good organic preservation, which allowed for the recovery of seven formal osseous tools, which were available for physical analysis. Each tool was assessed for use and manufacture wear, and examined and photographed using a high-resolution scanner, digital micrograph, and standard digital camera. The tools were compared to a dataset of osseous tools from Western Beringia, Eastern Beringia, and North America compiled from previous research, in order to interpret the collection by function. The tools were interpreted as a combination of a projectile point or composite projectile pre-form cache, blunted projectiles, a foreshaft or projectile, and an eyed-needle. The feminist theoretical approach was used to develop a reflexive interrogation of the process of the tool analysis and to engender activity at the Broken Mammoth site.;The osseous tool collection was, in part, reflective of hunting strategies for small, fur bearing animals and of detailed or decorative sewing. I conducted a review of ethnographic literature from the Arctic and Subarctic, noting where men and/or women participated in the manufacture of clothing from raw material procurement through hunting to use of a completed garment. This analysis revealed the importance of women's labor in this process.;The results of the ethnographic review were applied to previous research from the Broken Mammoth site, and the results of the osseous tool analysis, leading to the conclusion that women's activities are visible at the Broken Mammoth site. |
