198 THE FLORIDA ANTHROPOLOGIST 2006 VoL. 59(3-4) Table 5. specimens. Sphericity of Miami Circle pumice [Sphericity | Count __| Percent _| Point site. Excavations associated with the 2.2 acre Miami Circle property produced numerous examples from virtually every area investigated. Excavations conducted in the early 1980s at the neighboring Sheraton Hotel property (referred to here as 8DA98) also produced examples of pumice. The vertical and horizontal distribution of pumice artifacts at Brickell Point is discussed below for each phase of work. Miami Circle Excavations The joint Miami-Dade County and Archaeological & Historical Conservancy excavations investigated three areas of the site. Area | refers to the excavation of the Miami Circle feature and is comprised of 57 5 x 5 foot square units; Area 2 consists of 8 units excavated to the northwest of the Miami Circle feature near the historic edge of the Miami River; and Area 3 is one unit excavated 107 feet (33 m) to the west of Area 1. Thirty-four of the 57 excavation units associated with Area 1 and the Miami Circle feature produced pumice artifacts. Examples of pumice also were found in the eastern extension trench associated with Area | (n=2), and there are miscella- neous examples associated with the original Circle trench (n=4). Pumice was found in 4 of the 8 units in Area 2, and Unit 17 (Area 3) produced 3 pumice artifacts. Interestingly, of the 39 units that produced pumice artifacts, 21 have more than one piece, and several units have five or more pumice artifacts. The distribution of pumice artifacts within Area 1-the Miami Circle feature is heavily weighted toward the northwest quarter of the Circle (n=33). The other quarters have half or fewer as many pumice objects when compared to the northwest quarter. This horizontal patterning suggests that while pumice is found throughout the site, there may be some areas with greater concentrations (Table 6). A weighted formula was developed in order to account for different volumes of soil excavated within each quarter (see Wheeler 2004b on shell tools from the Miami Circle). Units in the NW % of the Circle feature produced the most pumice artifacts and had one of the highest densities for pumice artifacts as well. This trend is similar to that noted for shell tools, and may suggest activity areas or areas with differential deposition of midden. Interest- ingly, the pattern observed for shell tools indicates similar densities of tools within areas 1 and 2, while the pumice distribution is weighted more toward Area 1 (the Miami Circle feature). This suggests that finer wood and bone working may have been done in and around the area where the Miami Circle is, while rougher woodworking tasks may have been concen- trated near the original shore of the Miami River. Vertical distribution of pumice also can be demonstrated for the deposits. Twelve units have pumice artifacts from two or more adjacent levels, while 5 units have pumice from non- adjacent units. If the pumice all originated from one or two major volcanic events, the vertical and horizontal distribution suggests the midden accumulated rather quickly over an extensive area. Alternatively, if the pumice represents material from a number of temporally distinct eruptions, there may be other cultural factors explaining its ubiquitous presence in the midden. 50 2.1-4 cm 45 40 35 <1 cm 2 30 1-2 cm 8 2.1-4 cm ° 25 i 5 4.1-6 cm iC oe 16.1-8 cm 8.1-10 cm 15 H>10.1cm 10 5 0 Figure 5. Histogram showing size distribution of pumice clasts.