Vertisols and Their Implications for Archeological Research¹

Vertisols are soils with dynamic characteristics. They are capable of disrupting the stratigraphic sequence and/or cultural context of a site; in addition, these soils are not easily tilled by primitive agricultural methods. They seem to have been a factor in restricting the westward spread of prehistoric village farmers in Texas and thus contributed to the development of the so‐called “cultural sink.”