Around this time each year, I’m asked these questions: What is the PTT Grants program and what are we really looking for in a good grant application?

It’s true that the Call for Proposals outlines the nuts and bolts for eligibility and applying. Please be sure to read it! But for those who want some insight into the broader view of what makes a successful application, this blog post is for you.

This project involved developing a new method for using the chemical content of freshwater mussel shell as a means of sourcing prehistoric, shell-tempered pottery and shell artifacts to their places of origin. By extension, this means that prehistoric trade and exchange networks can be mapped out.

Because each waterway is chemically different to some extent, and because mussels incorporate the chemicals into their shells, it is theoretically possible to identify where shell artifacts or shell-tempered pottery was made by chemically analyzing the shell.