Settlement |
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Recent studies show that humans have colonized the American continent between 40,000 and 12,000 years ago after several land and maritime migrations from Asia. About 15,000 years ago, during the ice age, human groups reached the continent through a maritime route by following the pacific coast. Then around 12,000 years ago, at the end of the ice age, other groups crossed a land corridor free of ice called Beringia. That is the Paleoindian period. People of this period lived a nomadic lifestyle often hunting megafauna such as mammoth. After the extinction of the megafauna around 10,000 years ago, the retreat of glaciers allowed several groups to disperse into different environments and diversify their subsistence activities. This is the Archaic period. In the Northeast around 3,000 years ago, the development of pottery followed by the adoption of corn marked the beginning of sedentary life. This is the Woodland period. This chronology that we call Prehistory continues until the arrival of Europeans which marks the colonial period that goes on to this day.
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Fire board
Materials: wood During the pre-contact, the ability to make fire was essential for light, heat and cooking. Most techniques relied on friction between two pieces of wood such as a board and a spindle. |
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Chert spear
Materials: wood, chert, pitch, sinew Size (point): 4 inches The spear is a heavy caliber weapon widely used during the Paleoindian period. It allowed small groups of hunters to kill large animals such as mammoth. |
Chert knife
Materials: wood, chert, pitch, raw hide Size: 6 inches Flintknapping is a very ancient skill that was used to make sharp tools. A sharp knife was essential for hunting and fishing as well as crafting various objects. |
Slate knife
Material: slate Size: 5 inches Semi-circular slate knives found during the Archaic period were sharp but fragile and probably used for specialized activities such as fish preparation. |
Plant fibre cordage
Material: cedar bark Size: ⅛ inch diameter Cedar is a conifer whose inner bark can be seperated into fibres and twisted to make cordage. This material is particularly useful for fishing due to its resistance to decay. |
Fishing line weight
Material: stone Size: 2 ½ inches Some of the most ancient stone weights associated to fishing date from the Archaic period. They are generally ovoid stones with a deep groove near one end for attachment. |
Harpoon point
Materials: antler, raw hide Size: 2 inches Harpoons with detachable heads were generally used for seal hunting. This toggling point from the Maritime Archaic period was designed to lock itself under the animal’s flesh. |
Stone gouge
Materials: wood, stone, leather Size: 14 inches Climate warming during the Archaic period allowed the growth of forests which encouraged the development of a variety of polished stone tools for wood working. |
Slate spear
Materials: wood, slate, pitch, raw hide Size: point 6 inches Slate tools were common during the Maritime Archaic period. Spear points could reach impressive sizes and were used to hunt large sea mammals. |
Spear thrower
Materials: wood, stone, antler, leather, plant fibre Size: 2 feet A spear thrower is a wooden stick that multiplies the arm’s strength by acting as a lever to throw a dart with more force than a simple spear. |
Dart
Materials: wood, bone, pitch, sinew Size (foreshaft): 8 inches An innovation related to the spear thrower is the dart with a detachable foreshaft that allowed a hunter to retrieve the dart and reload it with another point instead of carrying many darts. |
Scraper
Materials: wood, chert, pitch, rawhide Size: 7 inches Chert was often used as a sharp edge material to scrape skins for tanning. Skins were stretched and scraped to remove the meat, fat and hair. |
Gorget
Material: slate Size: 5 inches A gorget is a perforated piece of slate or schiste generally rectangular or rounded in shape. Its function is unclear but it could be a body ornament with specific meaning. |