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Preparing for the Feast: Facilitating Ancient Gatherings on the Florida Gulf Coast – Dr. Ginessa Mahar (Field Librarian, Anthropology, Smathers Libraries)
April 19, 2023 @ 6:30 pm
Join the Gainesville Society of the Archaeological Institute of America (AIA) for a public lecture with Dr. Ginessa Mahar on the Indigenous communities that inhabited Southeastern North America.
April 19, 2023 | 6:30pm | Fine Arts Building, 103
Nearly 2,000 years ago, Indigenous communities throughout Southeastern North America gathered at what are now known as civic-ceremonial centers. Comprised of terraformed mounds, platforms, and ridges of marine shell and encircling large open plazas these loci have been identified as places of both quotidian dwelling and ceremonial gathering. Evidence indicates that communities from across the Southeast traveled to gather at these sites, participating in large feasts coordinated by astrological events. This presentation will summarize what we know about one of these sites on the Florida Gulf Coast and how such feasting and gathering events were facilitated. Archaeological data presented focus on the tools and technology of mass-capture fishing practices and how methods changed to accommodate large, communal gatherings.
Co-sponsored by the Department of Classics, Department of Anthropology, and the School of Art + Art History.