Publication: World Archaeology, Vol. 38, No. 3
Author: Richard Adams
Date of Publication: September 2006
PDF File: Adams-2006-The-Greater-Yellowstone-ecosystem-soapstone-bowls.pdf
URL: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00438240600814051
Description
Protohistoric and probably Late Prehistoric Mountain Shoshones (sometimes known as Sheepeaters) who lived in and around the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem of north-western North America made soapstone bowls in the mountains at the time of Euroamerican contact. The Rocky Mountain soapstone bowl industry is characterized by undecorated, flowerpot-shaped bowls that generally hold more than one litre. Using ethnographic and ethnohistoric data, as well as archaeological evidence, I examine how the distribution of soapstone – also known as steatite vessels refines ideas about Mountain Shoshone territory, which in turn makes it possible to delineate a Protohistoric seasonal mobility system that included summertime use of alpine mineral, floral and faunal resources.