Soapstone procurement

Figure 8, Resource procurement and the utilization of soapstone in the eastern U,S, Sources of soapstone are identified by a letter in a square (0) soapstone artifacts which have REE patterns matching a particular quarry are identified by the letter assigned to the quarry placed on the map at the habitation site (8)...

While some caution must still be used in interpreting how closely samples must match, it is clear that analysis of the REE in soapstone can be used to obtain new information about the utilization of lithic resources. The reasons that this group of elements can identify the source of soapstone are geochemical. Soapstone is a relatively rare lithic resource formed by fairly complex metamorphic processes which leave a "fingerprint in terms of the trace element content. The distribution of material with this "fingerprint will help archaeologists to imderstand the process and pattern patterns of resource procurement. However, the examples discussed above show that it is also important to know age of the artifacts to interpret the geographical distribution patterns. 

Use of Rare Earth Element Analysis to Study the Utilization and Procurement of Soapstone Along the Labrador Coast... 

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