Table 1.
Size comparison of achenes (fruits) of domesticated H. annuus from archaeological sites in eastern North America and Mexico*
| Site | Time period | No. of Achenes | Length (mean) | Width (mean) | Index (LxW) | Ref(s). |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patrick, TN, MR 40 (F75) (F25)(F154) | Early, Middle Woodland (318 cal B.C. to A.D. 287)† | 3 | 7.3(8.1) | 2.9(3.8) | 21.2(30.8) | 23 |
| Rose Island, TN, MR 44 (F21)(F54) | Early, Middle Woodland (318 cal B.C. to A.D. 287)† | 4 | 7.1(7.9) | 2.5(3.2) | 17.8(25.3) | 23 |
| Newt Kash Hollow, KY | Late Archaic, Early Woodland (1162–369 cal B.C.)† | 14 | 8.6 | 3.8 | 29.2 | 21, 24 |
| Marble Bluff, AR, 34–23-345 | Late Archaic (1264–912 cal B.C.) | 19 | 8(8.9) | 3.4(4.4) | 27.2(39.2) | 25 |
| Marble Bluff, AR, 34–23-327 | Late Archaic (1032–920 cal B.C.) | 14 | 7.9(8.8) | 3.1(4.0) | 24.5(35.2) | 25 |
| Eden's Bluff, AR (32–3-1712) 3BE6 | Early, Middle Woodland (170 cal B.C. to A.D. 50) | 4 | 8.1 | 3.2 | 25.9 | |
| Salts Cave, KY (J IV: 4–11) | Early Woodland (654–416 cal B.C.)† | 57 | 6.7(7.4) | 2.6(3.3) | 17.4(24.4) | 26, 27 |
| Salts Cave, KY (feces) | Early Woodland (970–660 cal B.C.)† | 1,000 | 6.7(7.4) | 2.5(3.2) | 16.8(23.7) | 26, 27 |
| Mammoth Cave, KY | Early Woodland (539–239 cal B.C.)† | 80 | 6.3(7.0) | 2.4(3.1) | 15.1(21.7) | 24, 26 |
| Cueva del Gallo, Mexico | Formative (330–250 cal B.C.) | 3 | 11.5 | 5 | 57.5 | |
| San Andrés, Mexico | Late Archaic (2875–2575 cal B.C.) | 1 | 8.2(9.1) | 4.5(5.7) | 36.9(51.9) | 1 |
*When analyzing ancient sunflower achenes, archaeologists often use conversion factors to increase length (increased by 11%) and width (increased by 27%) to correct for shrinkage caused by carbonization (21). The numbers listed in parentheses are the corrected numbers; the other numbers are the actual measurements. Note that there are no correction factors for shrinkage applied to the Eden's Bluff, Newt Cash Hollow, or the Cueva del Gallo achenes. These samples were not carbonized and therefore needed no correction factors. Remains from the Hayes site (22), a Late Archaic site in eastern North America, were omitted from this analysis because no sunflower achenes were found there, only carbonized seeds without their encasing pericarps.
†Converted from conventional radiocarbon dates to calibrated dates using the Fairbanks calibration curve (28).