Students and staff from the University of West Florida Archaeology Institute have spent several weeks conducting a large-scale excavation of a prehistoric Native American site on the Pensacola campus. With the work wrapping up this week, the team is trying to gather as much data as possible about the site before construction of a retention pond there.
On this day, Jennifer Melcher, UWF archaeology faculty research associate, and first-year historical archaeology grad student Abigail Bauman have been collecting soil samples for phosphate testing on the site to help identify areas of human activity.
So far, numerous artifacts have been recovered, but Bauman says she’s been most intrigued by the discovery of a lot of lithic material or stone remains, especially the unique find of a full projectile point made from Tallahatta sandstone.
“You don’t see that kind of material often being used anywhere,” said Bauman. “So especially in this region, where it’s not a popular material that grows naturally, because there aren’t any rocks that grow naturally here, it’s very interesting to see that type of tool being created and worked and in such prominence.”…