James M. Adovasio
Encyclopedia
James M. Adovasio is the director of the anthropology and archaeology department at Mercyhurst College
as well as director of the Mercyhurst Archaeological Institute in Erie, Pennsylvania
. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Utah
in 1970, where he had studied under Jesse Jennings, and a D.Sc. from Washington and Jefferson College in 1983. he served as commissioner of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC), and has had an active role with law-enforcement agencies helping to apprehend and convict people who loot archaeological sites.
Before arriving at Mercyhurst in 1990, Adovasio was chairman of the anthropology department at the University of Pittsburgh
, where he founded the cultural resource management program (CRMP) and directed the Meadowcroft-Cross Creek project beginning in 1973.
Adovasio worked on the Meadowcroft Rockshelter site in Pennsylvania and was involved in the debate on the colonization of the American continents. His work at Meadowcroft began in June 1973; ongoing research there has been funded by the NSF, the National Geographic Society, the State of Pennsylvania, the University of Pittsburgh, and others.
Adovasio has worked throughout North America and Eastern Europe, studying lithic technology and perishable materials (basketry, clothing, textiles, cordage, etc.). A topic that he discusses often is the role of women, children, and elderly people in prehistory and their relative absence from discussions of archaeological materials and theory. He has worked to reverse the gender bias in archaeology, focusing on crafts that are usually associated with females to demonstrate that the stereotypical way that ice-age life is typically portrayed (groups of men running around with spears, killing big animals) are incorrect and often outlandish. Although perishable artifacts can outnumber lithics by as much as 20:1 in sites with good preservation, stone tools are typically the only materials that are recovered in most contexts and, since they are associated with men (and since most archaeologists historically have been men), our interpretations of the past are often biased and incorrect.
He has been involved in the Clovis first debate based on his work at Meadowcroft for the past 30 years. The Clovis first hypothesis states that the initial colonization of the New World began about 12,500 years ago with the opening of an ice-free corridor between the two ice sheets that covered most of North America at the time. People walking across the then-exposed Bering land bridge from Siberia followed herds of animals into the Americas and subsequently populated the entire hemisphere to the tip of South America.
However, Adovasio discovered culturally distinct stratigraphic levels at Meadowcroft that date to over 16,000, and possibly as much as 20,000 years, before the present, invalidating the Clovis first hypothesis. Some archaeologists, including Vance Haynes
at the University of Arizona, claim that the radiocarbon samples taken from the early levels at Meadowcroft have been contaminated by nearby coal seams, resulting in artificially old dates. His very public and emotional defense of his data has caused people to disagree with his results for personal, instead of scientific, reasons.
Mercyhurst College
Mercyhurst College is a Catholic liberal arts college in Erie, Pennsylvania, USA.-History:On September 20, 1926, Mercyhurst College opened its doors just a few blocks away from the city's southern boundary. It was founded by the Sisters of Mercy of the Erie Diocese, who were led by Mother M. Borgia...
as well as director of the Mercyhurst Archaeological Institute in Erie, Pennsylvania
Erie, Pennsylvania
Erie is a city located in northwestern Pennsylvania in the United States. Named for the lake and the Native American tribe that resided along its southern shore, Erie is the state's fourth-largest city , with a population of 102,000...
. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Utah
University of Utah
The University of Utah, also known as the U or the U of U, is a public, coeducational research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The university was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret by the General Assembly of the provisional State of Deseret, making it Utah's oldest...
in 1970, where he had studied under Jesse Jennings, and a D.Sc. from Washington and Jefferson College in 1983. he served as commissioner of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC), and has had an active role with law-enforcement agencies helping to apprehend and convict people who loot archaeological sites.
Before arriving at Mercyhurst in 1990, Adovasio was chairman of the anthropology department at the University of Pittsburgh
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...
, where he founded the cultural resource management program (CRMP) and directed the Meadowcroft-Cross Creek project beginning in 1973.
Adovasio worked on the Meadowcroft Rockshelter site in Pennsylvania and was involved in the debate on the colonization of the American continents. His work at Meadowcroft began in June 1973; ongoing research there has been funded by the NSF, the National Geographic Society, the State of Pennsylvania, the University of Pittsburgh, and others.
Adovasio has worked throughout North America and Eastern Europe, studying lithic technology and perishable materials (basketry, clothing, textiles, cordage, etc.). A topic that he discusses often is the role of women, children, and elderly people in prehistory and their relative absence from discussions of archaeological materials and theory. He has worked to reverse the gender bias in archaeology, focusing on crafts that are usually associated with females to demonstrate that the stereotypical way that ice-age life is typically portrayed (groups of men running around with spears, killing big animals) are incorrect and often outlandish. Although perishable artifacts can outnumber lithics by as much as 20:1 in sites with good preservation, stone tools are typically the only materials that are recovered in most contexts and, since they are associated with men (and since most archaeologists historically have been men), our interpretations of the past are often biased and incorrect.
He has been involved in the Clovis first debate based on his work at Meadowcroft for the past 30 years. The Clovis first hypothesis states that the initial colonization of the New World began about 12,500 years ago with the opening of an ice-free corridor between the two ice sheets that covered most of North America at the time. People walking across the then-exposed Bering land bridge from Siberia followed herds of animals into the Americas and subsequently populated the entire hemisphere to the tip of South America.
However, Adovasio discovered culturally distinct stratigraphic levels at Meadowcroft that date to over 16,000, and possibly as much as 20,000 years, before the present, invalidating the Clovis first hypothesis. Some archaeologists, including Vance Haynes
Vance Haynes
Caleb Vance Haynes Jr. , known as Vance Haynes or C. Vance Haynes Jr., is an archaeologist, geologist and author who specializes in the archaeology of the American Southwest...
at the University of Arizona, claim that the radiocarbon samples taken from the early levels at Meadowcroft have been contaminated by nearby coal seams, resulting in artificially old dates. His very public and emotional defense of his data has caused people to disagree with his results for personal, instead of scientific, reasons.