Date of Award
12-2025
Culminating Project Type
Plan C Paper
Styleguide
other
Society for American Archaeology ( American Antiquity) style guide
Degree Name
Cultural Resources Management Archaeology: M.S.
Department
Anthropology
College
College of Liberal Arts
First Advisor
Mark Muñiz
Second Advisor
Debra Gold
Third Advisor
Angela Julin
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Keywords and Subject Headings
lithic analysis, cultural resource management, lithic use-wear analysis, artifact curation
Abstract
This Master of Science Research Portfolio is a culmination of three projects. Project 1 is an Experimental Archaeology project that consisted of a replicative lithic use-wear study. The goal of this experimental lithic replicative project was to create use-wear such as microchipping, micropolish, striations, and edge rounding on intentionally created tools and flakes. Then to observe them under high magnification microscopy (50x to 400x) to understand, identify and analyze how different diagnostic attributes of use-wear accumulated on the used edges of stone tools and how they can assist in recognizing use-wear on archaeological specimens. The tools and flakes were created from some of the most common microcrystalline lithic raw materials found in the archaeological assemblages in the central Minnesota region. The tools were created using traditional flintknapping techniques to replicate lithic tools and flakes found in the archaeological record. The knapped tools and flakes were then used in controlled experiments on traditional contact materials to simulate prehistoric activities such as hide processing, plant cutting, wood cutting, antler and bone cutting.
Project 2 was processing a Legacy Trunk Highway Survey Collection for Curation at Minnesota Historical Society. The goal of this project was to comprehensively analyze, inventory, catalog, label, bag, and curate the collection of artifacts from the Blue Earth Rest Area site (21FA0009). The project also included entering data into a spreadsheet catalog to be migrated into the Collections Management System (CMS); assembling associated documentation for curation; and creating an updated site form and submitting it to the Office of the State Archaeologist OSA portal. A total of 27 artifacts from the 1975 survey and a total of 761 artifacts from the 1976 survey were analyzed and processed as part of this project and are now curated at the Minnesota Historical Society.
Project 3 consisted of creating a time and productivity study to model the time it takes Cultural Resources Management (CRM) archaeologists to conduct specific kinds of surveys in specific environmental conditions such as agricultural fields, river shores, terraces, and wooded areas and the productivity levels that result. The data for the time and productivity study were based on daily summary forms from previous projects Stantec has done. Records of their past projects include information such as how many acres were covered for each environmental setting and what size crew was used. These data were used to analyze and determine average acres per person-day based on environmental setting and weather conditions. A mock proposal and a budget for a real RFP was also created as part of this project.
Recommended Citation
Dissanayake, Rajitha S., "Cultural Resource Management Archaeology Culminating Projects Research Portfolio: An Experimental Lithic Use-wear Study; Processing A Legacy Collection for Curation at MNHS; And A Time & Productivity Study Model for CRM Archaeologists" (2025). Culminating Projects in Cultural Resource Management. 61.
https://repository.stcloudstate.edu/crm_etds/61
Comments/Acknowledgements
There are many people who supported me throughout my journey up to here, and who I would like to thank and acknowledge. First and foremost, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my advisor Dr. Mark Muñiz. Your patience, invaluable guidance and belief in my potential carried me through moments when I doubted myself. And to all my Anthropology/ Archaeology professors I met here in U.S. including Dr. Debra Gold, Dr. Rob Mann, Dr. Matthew Tornow, Dr. Kelly Branam Macauley, Professor Darlene St Clair, Professor Katie Zeoli, Dr. Becky Floyd, and Dr. Goralski for all their invaluable guidance. You all taught me the ABCs of Archaeology and Anthropology, and I will forever cherish you all as my mentors.
My deepest love and gratitude go out to my family. Especially to my father and mother for always believing in me, encouraging me and supporting my ambition to become an archaeologist when everyone else was criticizing my choice. I’m here today because of you! And my sister, for being my confidante and always encouraging me to keep going. My partner Kasup for being my biggest supporter and for putting up with all my tantrums and for always bringing a smile to my face. You all kept me going when everything around felt overwhelming. Thank you for standing behind me through every high and low of this journey.
To all my friends and classmates, especially Jennifer Wilson, KC Roberts, Cara Jepson, Maria Burns, Alex Hedquist, and Mike Wilson thank you for all your support and for making my university life a more pleasant and memorable experience. I would also give thanks to my wonderful friends in Sri Lanka, who always encouraged me to keep going whenever I was feeling down.
I would also like to specially thank Stacy Allan from Minnesota Historical Society, who supported and guided me throughout my project and to Dan Wendt for graciously offering to teach me all about flintknapping and lithic resources, I’m immensely grateful for everything I learned from you. And also, special thanks go to Angela Julin from Stantec for providing me with field data for my project.
And finally, my heartiest gratitude to St. Cloud State University and Cypress College for providing me with a great education.