Social Landscape of Mound Field

This thesis documents the results and interpretations of data collected in the systematic shovel test survey of the Mound Field site (8Wa8) in coastal northwest Florida. Mound Field is a Weeden Island period circular midden site with an associated burial mound. The original gridded survey of the site took place in 2016 and additional topographic survey in 2018. This thesis seeks to identify the presence or absence of social stratification at the site through the analysis of archaeological data collected in shovel tests. Additionally, I use heuristic maps as a tool to recreate the deposition of the site and interpret the use of the landscape at the time of its occupation. This thesis determines that the Mound Field ring midden is characterized by very little intermixture of prestige items with utilitarian objects in the subsurface deposits. The data indicate the division of the ringed village into two distinct halves, each with similar archaeological deposits. The differential distribution of artifacts suggests some social stratification and intermixture of sacred and secular life.