Comparative Archaeology Database | Center for Comparative Archaeology | University of Pittsburgh
Belize Valley Archaeological Reconnaissance Faunal Dataset
Norbert Stanchly identified these specimens in 2010. These specimens are from the 2007-2009 field seasons and are associated with the report A Report on the Baking Pot Faunal Remains: 2007-2009 Field Seasons, (2011), The Belize Valley Archaeological Reconnaissance Project: A Report of the 2010 Field Season, by Norbert Stanchly, edited by Julie A. Hoggarth, and Jaime J. Awe, pp. 89–138. Vol. 16. Institute of Archaeology, Belmopan, Belize. The inventory was created from the tables in the report and the context information presented in the text. This information was adapted to the BVAR faunal catalog system as much as possible.
[Comma delimited UTF-8 format]
[Excel format]
Code definitions for the variables shown below are provided here. Each line in the .CSV file represents one survey collection unit. There are 367 lines, each with 24 variables separated by commas. The variables are listed in the following order:
| 1 | Entry Number |
| 2 | Source - the published faunal report that provided the data |
| 3 | Site - the specific site within the broader Baking Pot site |
| 4 | Period |
| 5 | Context 1 - section of Baking Pot site |
| 6 | Hierarchical Group - tiers of the settlement system
1: Polity Capital/Major Center 2: Secondary Minor Center 3: Tertiary Minor Center 4: Small Minor Center 5: High-status commoner household 6: Low-status commoner household |
| 7 | Context 2 - type of deposit that contained the fauna |
| 8 | Group - broad category that specifies the location within the site epicenter or settlement |
| 9 | Structure/Area - provides the structure or area within a site which was excavated/surveyed where the material was collected |
| 10 | Phylum |
| 11 | Class |
| 12 | Order |
| 13 | Family |
| 14 | Genus/Species |
| 15 | Body Portion - describes the portion of the body the individual skeletal element comes from anatomically |
| 16 | Element - identifies the specific bone on the animal, or portion of any exoskeleton |
| 17 | Side - side of the body the specimen is from (appendicular and cranial elements are typically sided, while vertebrae are not) |
| 18 | Portion - portion of the specific skeletal element present |
| 19 | Number of Identifiable Specimen (NISP) |
| 20 | Minimum Number of Individuals (MNI)
MNI was calculated by taking the most commonly occurring element of a taxon from a particular context |
| 21 | Lot Number |
| 22 | Catalog Number |
| 23 | Comments - any additional information |
| 24 | Context Source - the source that describes the context from which the fauna was collected |
The first line of the .CSV file, for example, looks like this:
1,Stanchly 2010,M-009,?,Settlement,5,Domestic,M-9,M-9,Mollusca,Gastropoda,Neogastropoda,Olividae,Oliva sp.,
XO,MS,N,UN,1,,1712,F1157,"Tinkler, Cut/Polished",Wilkinson 2009
This means that entry number 1 is referenced in the source "Stanchly 2010." It was found in site M-009 and the period could not be determined. It was found in a settlement context and a part of hierarchical group 5, a high-status commoner household. It was found in domestic fill. It is a part of group M-9 and found in area M-9. It is a part of the Mollusca phylum, Gastropoda class, Neogastropoda order, Olividae family, and Oliva sp. species. It is a portion of the exoskeleton, is a marine shell, and is not sided. It is unknown what portion is present. There is one identifiable specimen and no minimum number of individuals is provided. It is a part of lot 1712 and catalog number F1157. It has the additional comment "Tinkler, Cut/Polished" and its context source is "Wilkinson 2009."