Fradkin, Arlene

This thesis analyzes the creative strategies of African American female artists used to recreate the visual narrative of black female bodies in Western Art. Four artists are examined: Emma Amos, Adrian Piper, Alison Saar, and Simone Leigh. Emma Amos uses acrylics and textiles to address the strategies used by white male artists in the portrayal of black female bodies. Adrian Piper centers her performance piece on stereotypes to question racial stereotypes directed at black women. Alison Saar examines Topsy, a character from Harriet Beecher Stowe’s novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, who regains agency from slavery tropes. Simone Leigh interprets Harriet Jacobs autobiographical experience by using utilitarian objects and architecture to contest the ideologies of slavery. The perspectives of these artists are critical to understanding how they view themselves through their own lenses as opposed to those of the dominant white culture, addressing the origins of ideologies surrounding black female bodies. Examination of each artist's work shows that the black women’s lived experiences are not monolithic or stereotypical.

The West Kendall Tree Island site (8DA1081) is a black dirt midden situated on
the northeast end of an everglades tree island. The site has been intensely disturbed by
excavation pits, particularly on the highest elevations of the site, and becomes
increasingly disturbed by a growing Kendall population. Faunal remains recovered in
2008 are examined to reconstruct past ecological habitats, comparing the faunal
composition to tree island sites within the Florida Everglades. Based upon identifications,
the composition of the site is similar to those of the region, being comprised primarily of
freshwater aquatic species and aquatic reptiles, with minimal selection of terrestrial
faunal resources.

This thesis examines Woodland settlement patterns at the Brickhill Bluff site on Cumberland Island, Georgia. Aspects of Woodland habitation and social organization are not well understood along the Georgia coast. Using shell and artifact distribution data from excavations at Brickhill Bluff, this thesis attempts to discern how Woodland populations, specifically Deptford and St. Johns cultures, utilized the site between 1000 B.C. and A.D. 1000.
This study also examines the efficacy of the midden typology already established for the South Atlantic Coastal Plain by statistically comparing the artifact assemblage from Brickhill Bluff to samples from sites used to develop this midden typology. The aims of this research are to identify past cultural activities at Brickhill Bluff - specifically seasonal oyster collecting, general hunting and gathering strategies, and residential density. These criteria are compared with an established matrix designed to discern how past groups utilized southeastern coastal shell midden sites.

The Jupiter Inlet I site is situated between the Atlantic coast and the Loxahatchee
River in southeast Florida. Although excavations were previously conducted, faunal
remains were not systematically collected until recently. Molluscan remains recovered in
2010 are examined to reconstruct past ecological habitats, identify which water bodies
were used for extracting resources, and document changes in molluscan species over
time. Based upon identifications, only brackish and marine species are represented,
indicating that the Loxahatchee River was brackish rather than freshwater during the time
of occupation and that the site inhabitants were collecting mollusks from both the lagoon
and coastal waters.

This thesis is a critical study of two exhibits, First Encounters Spanish Exploration in the Caribbean and A Tribute to Survival. The objective of the thesis was to understand if and how indigenous activists, using the media as tool, were able to change curatorial approaches to exhibition development. Chapter 1 is broken into three sections. The first section introduces the exhibits and succinctly discusses the theory that is applied to this thesis. The second section discusses the objectives of the project and the third provides a brief outline of the document. Chapter 2 discusses the historical background of American museums in an attempt to highlight changes in curatorial attitudes towards the public, display, interpretation, and authority. Chapter 3 gives a more in-depth overview of the methodology and materials utilized in the thesis. Chapter 4 is a critical analysis of the literature for both First Encounters and A Tribute to Survival. Chapter five is a summary of the thesis and offers a conclusion of the effectiveness of using the media as a tool.

The early economic and social development of Fort Lauderdale began in the late nineteenth century. Today’s well-known Stranahan House in downtown Fort Lauderdale was originally the Stranahan Trading Post and General Store, which was in operation from 1894 to 1906. Adjacent to this building was a campground, which was used by early Florida white settlers and Seminole Indians. This thesis presents a study of 204 whole glass bottles recovered from the Stranahan campground archaeological site (8BD259). The analysis confirms that a greater proportion of the bottles were used when the property was a campsite. Moreover, soda/mineral water, not alcohol, was the more common type of beverage consumed at the site during this time.

British colonization of the Bahamian island of Eleuthera began in the mid-­‐ seventeenth century with the arrival of Puritans who came from Bermuda, seeking refuge from religious
persecution. Funded by a group of British investors called the Eleutherian Adventurers, This first group of settlers shipwrecked and took refuge in a cave, now known as Preacher’s Cave, where they adapted to the island’s maritime tropical environment. Archaeological excavations conducted at Preacher’s Cave recovered a large quantity of faunal remains. This thesis presents an analysis of these materials and compares the resultant findings to existing historical records pertaining to this settlement. Whereas historical sources document chronic shortages of imported food supplies, the archaeological faunal assemblage demonstrates that the Preacher’s Cave settlers relied primarily upon available resources of the sea and nearby habitats.

Between January and August 2002, the Department of Anthropology conducted an archaeological investigation of site 8PB5375, located on a barrier island in southeastern Palm Beach County, Florida. Testing revealed that the site contains three occupational components that all date to the Glades I early period (2450 to 1450 B.P.). The components consists of (1) three midden areas, each consisting of numerous kitchen middens and an open, public space; (2) a sand/shell midden containing dense bone and ash; and (3) a small shell midden with an associated cooking pit. These components are interpreted to represent several temporary habitation campsites, a seasonal extractive camp, and a short-term campsite, respectively. The occupations retain Archaic influences yet follow Glades developmental trends of increasing pottery usage, reliance on fishing, and coastal occupation. The study provides basic information on precolumbian subsistence and settlement patterns in Palm Beach County, an area that has received little archaeological attention.

This study is a spatial analysis conducted in the Main Chamber of Actun Tunichil Muknal, a Terminal Classic Maya ceremonial cave (A.D. 830--950), located in Western Belize. The research examines ancient Maya ritual cave use by analyzing artifact deposition patterns. Using a Geographical Information System (GIS), it provides a methodology for the development of comparative models of spatial organization. The system facilitated data visualization, exploration, and generation. The GIS was instrumental in the analysis of the proximity of artifacts to natural morphological features of the cave. Artifact deposition patterns were correlated with known ritual behavior patterns from the region. Using this method, boundary markers, artifact pathways, and a centrally located symbolic three-stone-hearth feature were identified. This study suggests that, within the cave, the ancient Maya employed a cognitive model of spatial organization similar to that witnessed by ethnographers in other venues, or reported in ethnohistorical texts in rites of foundation.