[NYSAA (1986)] 9 Rendezvous with Prehistory-The Riffles site Robert J. Gorall 22 The Ossining Rockshelter Stuart J. Fiedel 32 No. 92, Spring, 1986 1 local settlement system which became increasingly nucleated and seasonally extended at Winney's Rift during the course of the Middle to Late Woodland periods. Support for this interpretation also derives from seasonality studies of faunal remains and …

[NYSAA (1986)] to recover a more representative sample of smaller floral and faunal material. However, the presently emerging pattern for the Middle to Late Woodland deposits is one of multi-seasonal occupation. To reiterate these arguments, then, Winney's Rift is part of a long sequence of occupation clearly documented for the Fish Creek drainage, beginning probably in the Early Archaic. Moreover…

[NYSAA (1986)] of the rockshelter as it exists today. It is possible that changes in the site's appearance might have been caused by blasting. Even 55 years ago, Case warned that the rockshelter was endangered by suburban development, and noted the presence of blasting holes in the rocks. We observed two such holes drilled into the top of the roof slab; it was also evident that the face of the sou…

[NYSAA (1986)] artifacts, lay below the dark brown soil. This sterile deposit also existed in some spots on the southern side, but often the dark brown layer rested on bedrock in this sector. Projectile points and other lithic artifacts were concentrated at a depth of 80 to 140 cm below datum, 60 to 110 cm below the surface. Squares 5 and 6 yielded the greatest quantities of artifacts, bone, and s…

[NYSAA (1986)] and Funk assign to the type, Jack's Reef Corded Collar (1973:164, plate 80, no. 6). This is a Middle Woodland type, associated with a C-14 date of A.D. 630±100 at the Kipp Island site. So, the Ossining sherds probably date to some time between A.D. 600 and 1200. Occupation of the rockshelter during this period is confirmed by the presence of a Levanna point. As mentioned above, Case…

[NYSAA (1986)] Based on comparative study of the teeth, it seems that a minimum of 3, possibly 4 deer were butchered at the site. Their ages at death were: 1) 1 year, 4-5 months; 2) 2 1/2 years; 3) 8-10 years; 4) more than 6 years (possibly the same individual as #3). Deer generally give birth in late May or early June; thus, we can infer that deer #1 was killed in September or October, and deer #…

[NYSAA (1986)] Kill base dates to about 1600-1500 B.C., and the complete Orient Fishtail point and basal fragments can be dated to about 1000-700 B.C. There are no points in the collection that can be assigned to the Early or Middle Woodland periods. One Levanna point indicates occupation during late Middle Woodland or Late Woodland times (c. A.D. 9001300); the potsherds found at the site also dat…

[NYSAA (1986)] He notes that “inland rockshelters and open camps invariably fail to produce such items as plummets, ground slate points, and ulus. Only two shelters have contained gouges” (1976: 245). Funk observes that “of the classic non-projectile point Laurentian traits, only the ulu is moderately numerous in the lower Hudson Valley, and this is due to its remarkably high incidence on the Bann…

[NYSAA (1986)] rockshelters, may yield further insights into the problems of chronology and cultural reconstruction that have been raised here. FAUNAL REMAINS White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus): 175 identifiable pieces, 4425 small fragments Turtles (probably Chelydra serpentina (snapping) and Chrysemys picta (painted)) 329 pieces (303 carapace or plastron fragments, 6 claws, 4 beaks, 16 bo…