This article shows how archaeological and geological data can be used to visualize the ‘invisible’ production of salt through solar evaporation in the archaeological record. Evidence of salt exploitation from natural salt ponds is difficult to obtain using standard archaeological methods, limiting our ability to assess the significance of these practices in the past. Salt, however, was an important and valuable resource in many different cultural contexts. This study follows on previous research of a precolonial site on Middle Caicos, Turks & Caicos Islands, which suggested a relationship between this settlement and the exploitation of salt at the adjacent natural salt pan. Coring techniques were used to visualize and determine the pre-colonial availability of salt at MC-6. Stratigraphic sequences in the salt pond provided a detailed perspective on the pond's dynamic past and confirmed that salt production was possible in precolonial times. The research presented here tested the applicability of phosphorus and chloride values and X-ray diffraction of soil to identify precolonial salt production. Data from the site and the pond suggest that people settled the village as soon as the pond began producing salt, linking the presence of people to the availability and possible exploitation practices of salt.

中文翻译：

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土壤分析，以确定加勒比特克斯和凯科斯群岛的前殖民地盐产量

本文说明了如何利用考古和地质数据来可视化考古记录中通过太阳蒸发产生的盐的“无形”生产。使用标准的考古方法很难获得天然盐池中盐分开采的证据，这限制了我们过去评估这些做法的重要性的能力。但是，盐在许多不同的文化背景下都是重要而宝贵的资源。这项研究是在先前对特克斯和凯科斯群岛中凯科斯群岛前殖民地遗址的研究之前提出的，该研究表明该定居点与相邻天然盐田盐分开采之间的关系。取芯技术用于可视化和确定MC-6盐在殖民前的可用性。盐池中的地层层序为该池的动态过去提供了详细的视角，并证实了在殖民前时期可能进行盐的生产。此处进行的研究测试了磷和氯化物的适用性以及土壤X射线衍射以确定前殖民地盐产量的适用性。来自现场和池塘的数据表明，池塘开始生产盐后，人们就定居在该村庄，这将人们的存在与盐的可得性和可能的​​开采实践联系起来。