Papers: Caribbean by Rick Schulting
Journal of Anthropological Archaeology, 2023
This paper presents the first systematic study of pre-Columbian imported stone celts recovered fr... more This paper presents the first systematic study of pre-Columbian imported stone celts recovered from the limestone islands of the Lucayan archipelago, comprising The Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands of the northern Caribbean/West Atlantic. The majority derive from antiquarian collections and early archaeological investigations, prior to the destruction of many sites due to guano mining and development; only a handful have been recovered during archaeological investigations since the 1960s. The corpus includes 224 celts, of which 162 are complete and provide the measurements for a comparison with width/length ratios of celts from the proximate source islands of Cuba and Hispaniola. While the Lucayan archipelago shows a slightly higher proportion of wider celts, consistent with more reworking, overall the corpus suggests that exchange networks were sufficient to meet demand. This conclusion is supported by the absence of any clear diminution in size with distance from sources. The majority of stone celts (71.9 %) have been identified as various forms of "jade," supplemented with a range of other materials. Despite the higher value often attributed to jade cross-culturally, we find no clear evidence for its differential treatment, though the archipelago's northern islands do have a lower proportion of jade versus non-jade celts.
Quaternary Research, 2018
We report on strontium (87 Sr/ 86 Sr) isotope results from 91 modern trees growing on the Bahamas... more We report on strontium (87 Sr/ 86 Sr) isotope results from 91 modern trees growing on the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands. The average 87 Sr/ 86 Sr ratio of 0.709169 ± 0.000010 is consistent with the late Quaternary limestone of the islands and with the modern ocean value. The absence of any detectable influence of 87 Sr-enriched Saharan dust is notable, given the known contribution of this material to both past and recent soils of the Caribbean. Our results indicate that the impact of Saharan dust to the modern biosphere of the Bahamian archipelago is at least an order of magnitude less than modeled in currently available strontium isoscapes for the circum-Caribbean. We suggest that the bioavailability of Sr in Saharan dust may be considerably less than previously thought. Nevertheless, further work could usefully be carried out in the Bahamian archipelago on plants with different rooting depths, growing on different soil types and on limestone of different ages. Our results have particular relevance for the refinement of existing strontium isoscapes and the archaeological provenience of artifacts, animals, and people in the circum-Caribbean.
This paper focuses on the material study (radiocarbon dating, wood identification and strontium i... more This paper focuses on the material study (radiocarbon dating, wood identification and strontium isotope analyses) of four large ‘India occidentali’ clubs, part of the founding collections of the Ashmolean Museum, in Oxford, and originally part of John Tradescant’s ‘Ark’, in Lambeth (1656). During the seventeenth century, the term ‘India occidentali/occidentales’ referred not only to the ‘West Indies’ (its literal translation), but to the Americas as a whole; hence, the Ashmolean clubs and, indeed, the c forty examples of similarly large, decorated clubs known in international museum collections had no firm provenance and lacked even the most basic information. Previous attempts at attribution, based on stylistic comparisons with nineteenth- to twentieth-century Brazilian and Guyanese clubs, have proved inconclusive given the unique features of this club style, raising the intriguing possibility that these may be exceptionally rare examples of ‘Island Carib’ (Kalinago) material culture, particularly as images of such clubs appear in seventeenth-century ethnographic accounts from the Lesser Antilles. This paper provides new data for these poorly known objects from early collections, revealing not only the type of wood from which they were carved (Platymiscium sp. and Brosimum cf guianense) and their probable dates of manufacture (c AD 1300–1640), but also their possible provenance (strontium results are consistent with a possible range from Trinidad south to French Guiana).
Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 2017
We report on the results of a multidisciplinary project (including wood identification, radiocarb... more We report on the results of a multidisciplinary project (including wood identification, radiocarbon dating and strontium isotope analysis) focused on a collection of pre-Columbian wooden carvings and human remains from Pitch Lake, Trinidad. While the lake's unusual conditions are conducive to the survival of organic artefacts, they also present particular challenges for analysis. There is a loss of any contextual association beyond that of the lake, and specific methodologies are required to deal with pitch contamination. A surprising taxonomic range of woods was employed for the various utilitarian and ceremonial items recovered. The 14C results range from ca. 3200 BC to ca. AD 700, and include the earliest known wooden carvings in the entire Caribbean. The strontium isotope results-interpreted with the aid of an isoscape developed for the project, based on extensive samples of modern trees across Trinidad and Tobago-indicate that most carvings are consistent with the site's immediate environs; however, a 'weaving tool' came from a more radiogenic region that is unlikely to be found on Trinidad, suggesting links with the South American mainland.
Antiquity, 2017
The Pigorini cemi is an icon of Caribbean colonial history, reflecting early trans-Atlantic cross... more The Pigorini cemi is an icon of Caribbean colonial history, reflecting early trans-Atlantic cross-cultural exchanges. Although well documented, the piece has received surprisingly little systematic study. We present the first structural analysis and radiocarbon dating of the sculpture (modelled at AD 1492-1524), and a brief discussion of the materials from which it is comprised. These include indigenous shell and European glass beads, newly identified feather and hair fibres, and the enigmatic rhinoceros-horn mask carved as a human face. We also address the sculpture's hidden internal wooden base, which is shown to be a non-indigenous display mount made of European willow (Salix sp.).
Uploads
Papers: Caribbean by Rick Schulting