A new student-led research project examining seasonal oyster harvesting by Gullah/Geechee communities on Ossabaw Island, Georgia, before and after Emancipation. Using laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) on archaeological oyster shells, the study compares enslaved and post-Emancipation contexts. Preliminary results show consistent winter–spring harvesting across both periods, suggesting enduring ecological, health, and cultural constraints. The work highlights oysters’ role in Gullah/Geechee subsistence and demonstrates LIBS as a powerful method for reconstructing past harvesting practices
Alejandro León Cristóbal is a doctoral researcher from the University of La Rioja (Spain). He does research in marine mollusc shells, ethnoarchaeology, oxygen isotope analysis, Palaeolithic Archaeology and Mesolithic-Neolithic Transition. The main objective in his doctoral thesis is to improve the understanding of the last hunter-gatherer-fisher societies of the Cantabrian Region.
We have been busy in the last few months and decided to give you an overview of all the things we did in one go, so that not a single output gets forgotten. This includes several trips of our team, but also guests coming to visit us at LEIZA.