Analysis of homogeneity in a historic coffin nail and screw assemblage for use in relative chronology

The historic burial ground (1722–1859) of the First Baptist Church of Philadelphia was excavated in 2016/17 as part of a development project. All human remains were reinterred in Mount Moriah Cemetery in 2024. The excavations recovered skeletal remains representing several hundred individuals (MNI = 354), Many of these individuals were recovered in coffins which were still in suitable condition to be documented. However, because the headstones were historically removed, dates are limited leaving artifacts and historical records to provide a time range of the sample's burial dates. Nails and screws collected from 206 of the coffins provide a unique opportunity to analyze a large sample of fasteners from a historic burial ground. This paper presents the results from a novel method of empirically driven analysis of the nails and screws in which we attempt to extract supplemental data to assist placing the coffin sample in a time range within the burial ground usage.