Abstract:
In the obsidian rich areas of central Oregon numerous lithic cache sites have
been documented and strongly suggest the existence of a regional caching practice,
however these sites remain poorly understood as cultural behavior. The primary
objectives of this study are to develop and apply a research strategy addressing the
caching behavior within a regional context, compile and expand data bases for
known cache sites, identify and clarify patterns associated with the caching
behavior, and interpret the results within the context of a preliminary investigation.
This researcher utilizes a regional methodology to study the caching
practice. A regional focus is of paramount importance because Central Oregon is a
vastly complex region in terms of its natural and cultural environments. The natural
environment is highly dynamic, dominated by climatic variability and volcanism.
The cultural environment is diverse and fluid as the caching region is
geographically located at the confluence of the southern Columbia Plateau,
northern Great Basin, and Cascade culture areas. A comprehensive regional
approach allows the integration of these complexities within the context of the
caching behavior.
This study assembles a comprehensive data base for each of the known
cache sites. The data base includes material characteristics and geochemical
attributes of individual cache sites, assemblages, and artifacts. New geochemical
sourcing studies were obtained for some of the caches. These studies expand the
existing data base and ultimately revise the obsidian sourcing data to comply with
current XRF standards.
The data bases are then used to identify and clarify patterns associated with
the caching behavior. The research suggests both a lanceolate and an ovate cache
type are represented in the central Oregon region. The notion of two identifiable
cache types is compared and contrasted with other regional archaeological sites,
particularly the Paulina Lake site in the caldera of Newberry Volcano. This
evaluation further supports the possibility of two cache types and suggests the
lanceolate and ovate type caches are probably separated chronologically as well as
culturally.
The comprehensive research design and subsequent results ultimately
fosters the development of new hypotheses for both the lanceolate and ovate cache
types. These hypotheses offer a new perspective for the chronological framework,
cultural affiliation, and function of the caching behavior within the context of
central Oregon's prehistory, and serves as a starting point for future research on
central Oregon lithic caching behavior.
