Ravenscroft (34BV198) Bison Skull Piles: Explorations of Purpose and Meaning

Baker, Caitlin

Ravenscroft (34BV198) Bison Skull Piles: Explorations of Purpose and Meaning

dc.contributor.advisor	Bement, Leland
dc.contributor.author	Baker, Caitlin
dc.contributor.committeeMember	Randall, Asa
dc.contributor.committeeMember	Pitblado, Bonnie
dc.date.accessioned	2022-12-09T20:56:23Z
dc.date.available	2022-12-09T20:56:23Z
dc.date.issued	2022-12-16
dc.date.manuscript	2022-12-09
dc.description.abstract	Ravenscroft is a late Paleoindian arroyo bison kill located along a tributary of the Canadian River named Bull Creek in the Oklahoma Panhandle. Multiple field seasons eventually identified two stacks of bison skulls at the mouth of the arroyo. All but one of the skulls were missing mandibles. None of the skulls exhibited bashing, suggesting they were not set aside for brain removal. Two arroyos were identified, labeled RAV I and RAV II. Further complicating interpretations of purpose were the returned radiocarbon dates. Included in the piles were skulls representing at least three of the five kill events. These skulls span over 300 years of history, implying a much more complex purpose than subsistence or stockpiling. Through further analysis and comparison with other occurrences of stacked skulls worldwide, this thesis explores the potentially ritualistic aspects of this site and attempts to explain the purpose of the stacked skulls.	en_US
dc.identifier.uri	https://shareok.org/handle/11244/336910
dc.language	en_US	en_US
dc.subject	Archaeology	en_US
dc.subject	Ritual	en_US
dc.subject	Paleoindian	en_US
dc.subject	Bison	en_US
dc.thesis.degree	Master of Arts	en_US
dc.title	Ravenscroft (34BV198) Bison Skull Piles: Explorations of Purpose and Meaning	en_US
ou.group	Dodge Family College of Arts and Sciences::Department of Anthropology	en_US
shareok.orcid	0000-0003-3314-9429	en_US