Kennewick Man from coast, anthropologist says

Kennewick Man apparently was just a visitor to the area of present-day Kennewick, the latest results of the study of his skeleton indicate.

Douglas Owsley, a Smithsonian Institute anthropologist, gave an update of scientific findings Wednesday at Archaeology Days at Grant County Public Utility District in Beverly. He led the court battle to study the 9,300-year-old skeleton found along the Columbia River in 1996.

An isotopic analysis of Kennewick Man's bones shows he most likely was eating a coastal diet based on marine proteins, such as seals, Owsley said.

"It's very confusing and very unexpected," he said.

The study determined a nitrogen isotope value for his bones, which would be low if he were eating animals that grazed, but high if he were eating a diet of meat higher up the food chain.

Grazers such as deer and elk "were just not in his world," Owsley said [...] tri-cityherald.com/

Actualización 02-11-12. Burke archaeologist challenges Smithsonian over Kennewick Man
 A Burke Museum archaeologist is raising the alarm over the Smithsonian's science. Their mistake? No peer review.
The discovery of Kennewick Man, the name given to the 9,200 year-old skeleton unearthed in southern Washington nearly a decade ago, has unearthed plenty of questions among anthropologists and tribal members about what Kennewick Man's life might have been like. To Burke Museum anthropological archaeologist Peter Lape though, the biggest question at hand is whether peer review, a time-honored scientific practice, is being ignored by leading forensic anthropologist Douglas Owsley, whose team has been the only one allowed to study Kennewick Man's bones since they were discovered in the mid-90s...