Applying a coastal-geoarchaeological approach, we synthesize stratigraphic, sedimentological, mollusk-zooarchaeological, and radiometric datasets from recent excavations and sediment coring at Harbor Key (8MA15)—a shell-terraformed Native mound complex within Tampa Bay, on the central peninsular Gulf Coast of Florida. We significantly revise the chronological understanding of the site and place it among the relatively few early civic-ceremonial centers in the region. Analyses of submound contexts revealed that the early first millennium mound center was constructed atop a platform of sand and ex situ cultural shell deposits that were reworked during ancient storm landfalls around 2000 BP. We situate Harbor Key within a seascape-scale stratigraphic and paleoenvironmental framework and show that the shellworks comprise an artificial barrier protecting the leeward estuary basin (and productive inshore wetlands) from high-energy conditions of the open bay and swells from the Gulf of Mexico. The sedimentary and archaeological records attest to the long-term history of morphodynamic interaction between coastal processes and Indigenous shell terraforming in the region and suggest that early first millennium mound building in Tampa Bay was tied to the recognition and reuse of antecedent shellworks and the persistent management of encompassing cultural seascapes.

我们采用沿海地质考古方法，综合了最近在 Harbour Key (8MA15) 进行的挖掘和沉积物取芯的地层学、沉积学、软体动物-动物考古学和辐射数据集。佛罗里达州。我们大幅修改了对该地点的时间顺序理解，并将其置于该地区相对较少的早期公民仪式中心之列。对地下土丘环境的分析表明，早期的第一个千年土丘中心是在沙子和易地文化贝壳沉积物的平台上建造的，这些沉积物在距今 2000 年左右的古代风暴登陆期间被改造。我们将Harbour Key置于海景规模的地层和古环境框架内，并表明贝壳结构包括一个人工屏障，保护背风河口盆地（和富有成效的近海湿地）免受开放海湾的高能条件和墨西哥湾海浪的影响。沉积和考古记录证明了该地区沿海过程与土著贝壳地形改造之间形态动力学相互作用的长期历史，并表明坦帕湾第一个千年早期的土丘建筑与对先前贝壳制品的识别和再利用以及持续管理有关。涵盖文化海景。