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Supplemental materials for paper: Mortuary assemblage diversity, Gahagan biface morphology, and the evolution of a Caddo burial tradition in the American Southeast
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Description: Contextual differences in Caddo burials that included Gahagan bifaces indicate two discrete burial traditions; one where a biface was placed _atop or alongside an individual_ and another where a cache of Gahagan bifaces was placed _along the northern wall of the burial feature_. This study asks whether assemblage diversity and evenness, for mortuary contexts associated with Gahagan bifaces, increases through time, and whether Gahagan biface morphology may differ based on context. A seriation of mortuary contexts paired with an analysis of mortuary assemblage diversity highlights changes in Caddo burial assemblages through time, where the earliest contexts express lower diversity and evenness than later contexts. Results also indicate that Gahagan biface morphology differs between Caddo burial traditions, indicating discrete communities of practice related to both object placement and shape preference. These findings comprise the basis for a discussion of the establishment, maintenance, and evolution of a Caddo burial practice, which occurs during the transition from mobile horticulture to an emergent---and more sedentary---agricultural lifeway.