Yankeetown,Duffy,or Duffytown?: An Examination of Ceramic Variability in the Lower Ohio Valley

Abstract

A recent stylistic analysis of ceramic material from the Yankeetown site (12-W-1) of southwestern Indiana has revealed a greater diversity of decorative elements than that indicated by previous descriptions of Yankeetown Phase pottery. The analysis revealed a particularly high frequency of bar stamped rim sherds that were similar to Duffy Complex ceramics from southeastern Illinois. The results of the analysis were compared with Winters's (1967) typological description of “Duffy Decorated” ceramics and revealed a number of close affinities between Yankeetown and Duffy material culture. Furthermore, the presence of diagnostic Yankeetown Incised and Fillet ceramics on sites within the Duffy “core” area as well as apparent similarities in settlement configurations suggest that these two complexes are in fact one in the same cultural-historical unit.

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