This thesis is about constructing an archaeological predictive model for Bonaire, Dutch Caribbean. The idea for this research came out of the political change in the former Netherlands Antilles. On...Show moreThis thesis is about constructing an archaeological predictive model for Bonaire, Dutch Caribbean. The idea for this research came out of the political change in the former Netherlands Antilles. On 10-10-2010 the Netherlands Antilles were dismantled as an autonomous part of the Kingdom of The Netherlands and have formed new political entities. Through this change Bonaire became an overseas municipality of The Netherlands. With this change the bureaucratic system of Bonaire became part of the Dutch bureaucratic system. Bonaire has signed the Valletta Treaty in the meanwhile, which means that the cultural heritage management system has to be transformed into a completely new system. The archaeological predictive models which are described in this thesis can function as useful tools for the new cultural heritage management system on Bonaire. However, this is the first time that a predictive model has been made for Bonaire. These first phase models can be seen as the first steps in the development of predictive modeling on Bonaire. All aspects related to the construction of a predictive model were carefully considered.Show less
In this thesis the results of a cannon and anchor survey on the Caribbean island St. Eustatius are presented and discussed. St. Eustatius was an extremely busy port during the latter half of the...Show moreIn this thesis the results of a cannon and anchor survey on the Caribbean island St. Eustatius are presented and discussed. St. Eustatius was an extremely busy port during the latter half of the eighteenth century, and changed hands 22 times in the span of 180 years. To provide a framework in which these objects can be placed, an outline of the history of St. Eustatius as well as a general introduction to cannon and anchors are given. It was found that the French, Dutch, and English anchors encountered during our survey are indicators of the flourishing economy on St. Eustatius during the late eighteenth century. The cannon are particularly revealing, in that they can reveal a lot about the military history of the island. There was found to be a great variety of cannon on the island, ranging from the smallest calibers to 24-pounders, and from Norwegian to Spanish manufacture. These guns were cast in the late seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Besides general conclusions, a detailed analysis of the various forts and their guns is given. Some suggestions for the management of these artifacts are made as well.Show less
Caribbean archaeology is home to a variety of unsolved mysteries that still need to be solved. One of these mysteries concerns the subject of pre-Columbian ceramic stamps, better known as ‘body...Show moreCaribbean archaeology is home to a variety of unsolved mysteries that still need to be solved. One of these mysteries concerns the subject of pre-Columbian ceramic stamps, better known as ‘body stamps’, which have been primarily related to body painting in previous works. Archaeological and anthropological investigations dealing with the tropical lowlands of South America and the Caribbean have been carried out since the early 1900s. What has come to my attention is the lack of research that has been carried out on the topic of body painting and ceramic stamps. This thesis aims to enhance our general knowledge about the relationship between ceramic stamps in the Caribbean and the practice of body painting among contemporary Amerindian societies in the tropical lowlands of South America. Methods used in this thesis to reach this aim consist of: (1) gathering of as many photographs of stamps as possible for comparative reasons, (2) analyzing the available ethnographical and ethno-historical information to support the archaeological data, and (3) using the South American Lowland traditions to make an analogy for the practice of body painting in the Caribbean. The use of these methods brings us to several conclusions concerning the relationship between ceramic stamps and body painting. Firstly, ethno-historical sources confirm the practice of body painting in the Caribbean. Secondly, ethnographical research carried out by Kaplan and Overing (1980), brings forward the contemporary use of wooden stamps among the Piaroa, which can be used to make a hypothesis about the function of ceramic stamps in the Caribbean. Thirdly, by analyzing the stylistic traits and their chronological context, we can determine that the ceramic stamps of the Caribbean were presumably related to the roller stamps of the Middle Orinoco belonging to the Arauquinoid pottery tradition. Lastly, by analyzing the stamp motifs and their relation to Amerindian mythology described by early ethnographers, we can determine whether these stamps played a role in the Amerindian worldview.Show less
The Taíno peoples were discovered by Columbus in 1492, although for a long time he thought to have arrived at the islands surrounding the Japanese coast. He became very interested in the peoples he...Show moreThe Taíno peoples were discovered by Columbus in 1492, although for a long time he thought to have arrived at the islands surrounding the Japanese coast. He became very interested in the peoples he met and ordered Fray Ramón Pané to live among the people of two caciques. As a result one of the most important reports were written about the Taíno and the first ethnological work in the Americas. This work knows a history of many problems. These started during the writing period and ended with the disappearance of the original manuscript, after Fernando Columbus handled it. The term Taíno is used for almost all cultures found on the Greater Antilles, the Bahamas and a couple of the Lesser Antilles. However, this term, Taíno, should be used with great care. The area is not as homogeneous as first thought. There are differences is language, religion practices and sociopolitical structures and as of yet no element has found that characterizes this area as a whole. This term can be regarded as similar to the term Europe, a certain landmass that possesses several distinct cultural groups. The word Taíno is used here for the two communities in which Pané resided for a couple of years and where he wrote his reports. The Taíno were a society that showed great creativity and energy, they were the most developed in the Caribbean region. They had complex chiefdoms and lived in a hierarchical society. Their religion had evolved as well. Among others Pané wrote about the myths of the Taíno. Stevens-Arroyo has ordered these stories into two groups, creation myths and hero myths. All of these have larger themes and smaller elements in them, important for the community that acts and reacts on them. These themes will be compared to myths found on the mainland of South America to find out where the Taíno, according to the myths, could have originated from.Show less
