Fingerprinting the stone: Utilizing portable x-ray fluorescence (pXRF) spectrometry to interpret distribution of fine-grained volcanic toolstone on the Plateau of British Columbia

This thesis is an exploratory source characterization and provenance study outlining the spatial distribution of fine-grained volcanic (FGV) lithic material from sources across the Plateau of British Columbia. Using portable X-Ray Fluorescence(pXRF) analysis, elemental signatures for known sources are generated, and then compared to lithic artifacts from assemblages located in the study region. It is determined that some of the examined sources can be distinguished from one another using pXRF; however, several cannot. Furthermore, it was determined that FGV material is widely available, and ubiquitous across the Plateau and was utilised extensively in localized contexts, as well as exchanged over long distances.