Sizing up prehistory: sample size and composition of artefact assemblages

Abstract

A review of selected Holocene artefact assemblages in Australia demonstrates that assemblage composition is often dependent on the size of the sample. Rare types of objects, such as backed artifacts, are less likely to be present in small samples than in large ones. Although major questions in Australian archaeology focus on the presence or absence of such rare classes of object, the archaeological patterns have often been interpreted without regard to this sample-size effect. Consequently, interpretations of some temporal trends in Australian prehistory, such as the model that backed artifacts first appear 4000-4500 years ago, might be replaced with models that describe changing assemblage sizes through the Holocene. Similarly, some apatial differences in assemblage composition might also be adequately described in terms of varying sample size. The implications of this phenomenon are considered.

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