Reproductions for NLAS Edukit

Stone, bone, ivory, wood, antler,
red ochre, and sinew
artifact reproductions

Here's an overdue look at the reproductions that I recently completed for a new exhibit in a suitcase that is being designed and assembled by Robyn Lacy for the Newfoundland and Labrador Archaeological Society.  The pieces that I made primarily represent the Indigenous and Pre-Contact cultures of the Province.  The diverse array of materials used in the reproductions include wood, antler, ivory, whalebone, sealskin, sinew, slate, chert, steel, caribou bone, red ochre, and cotton cordage.  In addition to the pieces that I made, Robyn gathered and made several more pieces that represent the Norse and European presence in the province.  Using reproductions allows the edukit to be used in a much more interactive way than if it was stocked with real artifacts.

Roughing out the composite pieces, including a slate ulu, wood snow goggles, and a steel crooked knife.  The small object in the middle is a reproduction of a Dorset polar bear head carving made from walrus tusk ivory.

Snow googles (Inuit), Maritime Archaic slate lance, Dorset knife, Beothuk arrowhead, Palaeoeskimo hafted side-scraper, Maritime Archaic whalebone barbed fish spear prong, ground slate ulu (Inuit), roof slate (Historic European), polar bear head carving (Dorset), Beothuk pendant, and crooked knife (Mi'kmaq/Innu)

The wood snow goggles are reproductions of Inuit goggles used to prevent snow blindness on bright spring days seal hunting.  The leather straps are sealskin and they are lashed in place with sinew.

Ground slate ulu, with a wood handle and sinew lashing.  This reproduction is based on a slate ulu blade from Labrador that is on display in The Rooms. The arrowhead in the upper right hand corner is a Little Passage or Beothuk style point.

I made two different styles of Dorset polar bear head carvings. The more natural carving on the left is the one in the kit.  The one on the right is a highly stylized 2D carving of a bear head.

Photo Credits: Tim Rast

Crooked Knife

Crooked knife made from a file like the one
shown beside it

I recently completed a set of reproductions based on artifacts from Newfoundland and Labrador for the Newfoundland and Labrador Archaeological Society.  The NLAS is making an exhibit in a suitcase that contains reproductions and activities that can travel around and be used in places like schools to help interpret the Province's archaeological past.  One of the tools in the kit is a crooked knife.  The crooked knife is an historic tool that is still used today by Innu and Mi'kmaq in the Province.  The reproduction that I made is generic enough that it might be at home on the Island or in Labrador, although I primarily used Innu tools as references. My main source was this one in the collections of the Canadian Museum of History.  

The file fits into a slot cut into the side of the handle

Crooked knives were made from re-purposed iron, especially iron files.  I used a file to make this one.  I broke an inch or so off of the end of the file, so that I'd have a 4-5" long blade.  I sharpened it along one edge (and then dulled it again to make it safe to handle).  A bit of heat and a hammer and anvil is enough to curve the tip.  These are a type of draw knife and the crook in the handle is there to support your thumb as you draw the blade towards you.  

A matching wood plug fits into the socket

The tang of the file/knife blade is fit into the wood handle by gouging out an open socket on one side of the handle.  The way the blade is fit into the handle seems to be one of the slight variations in design between the knives made on the Island of Newfoundland and those made in Labrador.   On the Island, the Mi'kmaq would fit the blade in a slot in the middle of the handle or the back edge rather than an open faced socket, like this one, which is modeled after an Innu example.  A matching wooden plug is carved to close the socket and everything is then lashed securely in place.  I used a cotton thread for this lashing.  I've seen reference to rawhide being used here, but I haven't really come across any good ethnographic examples with rawhide.  Rawhide makes good lashing, but on a handle like this, I could imagine the sweat from someone's hand making the binding rubbery and loose on a hot summer's day.  I think something that doesn't expand of loosen with moisture would be more desirable.

The assembled knife, ready for lashing

Finished.

Photo Credits: Tim Rast

Sheshatshiu Archaeology Now On Display

"Archeological exhibit opens in North West River" is an article by Derek Montague published today in The Labradorian about a new display of artifacts from Sheshatshiu in the Labrador Interpretation Centre. The article explains the background of the exhibit based on the archaeological work carried out by Scott Neilsen and his crew ahead of housing construction in the community.  I was asked to make a few reproductions for the exhibit based on the artifacts recovered and this article was my first chance to see the reproductions in use and on display.

From the article:

The highlight of the exhibit is a display of artifact recreations. These replica tools are all based off of artifacts found at the site. They were built using only the materials that would have been available to the Innu 3,000 years ago. 

People visiting the exhibits can pick up the replica tools and imagine how they were utilized.

Scott Neilsen holding a reconstruction of a quartzite biface as an adze or gouge, with other reproductions in their cases behind him.

Photo Credits: Derek Montague, Screen Captures from The Labradorian  

Intermediate Period Scraper and Beothuk Collection Update

The correct way to hold and
use this style of scraper.

After posting the photos of the Intermediate Period scraper reproduction on Wednesday, I've got some important feedback from folks in Labrador explaining the proper way to use the Innu style handle that I used to mount the stone endscraper.  I included a photo in that post showing two different ways to hold the scraper and they were both incorrect.  The scraper should be held vertically, with your hand holding the stem and the heavy bulb at the top to add weight to the downward scraping action.  Scott Neilsen sent me a link to a fantastic video clip showing this style of scraper in use: you can view it here, Skimming the Fat and Removing the Hair.

I carved a bit more of the bulb to
create a longer stem for holding the
scraper.

As I mentioned previously, all that was preserved at the 3000 year old archaeological site in Sheshatshiu were small end scrapers made on flakes.  The handle is an historic Innu design.  Until an Intermediate Period site with organic preservation is found, we don't know for sure what kind of handles were in use 3000 years ago.  However, if we are going to use the analogy of an historic Innu style handle for the reproduction, then I should at least show the correct way to use it.  There were several ethnographic examples that I used as inspiration for the handle.  This one on the Tipatshimuna website was my primary source for the overall shape and construction and I used the measurements for several pieces in the collection of the Canadian Museum of History to guide the handle's size, like this one and this one.  The examples in the CMH online collection range in length from 21 to 29 cm long.  The handle that I made is meant to fit a relatively small stone scraper, so I went with a 23 cm long handle which places it in the smaller range of the ethnographic examples.  My hands are a little big for this particular handle, but I carved it to fit Lori's hand.

Beothuk harpoon head, scraper, and knife lying on a
caribou skin harpoon line.  Everything is there, except for
the ochre.

In other news, I'm wrapping up a large order of Beothuk reproductions this weekend and have several other pieces in the Sheshatshiu Intermediate period collection to complete.  Its going to be a busy few days.  The Beothuk set includes a bow and arrow, harpoon, knife, scraper, and flintknapping kit.  I can draw on existing inventory for a couple of those pieces, like the bow and arrow, but the rest needed to be built from scratch.  Everything is done now except for staining them with red ochre, which is a very important step.  Hopefully on Monday I'll have some photos of the fully assembled and ochre stained Beothuk harpoon.  At 12 feet long, its one of the larger reproductions I've ever done.  Its drying on the floor downstairs, where it starts in the living room and ends in the dining room.

Photo Credits: Tim Rast

Plans and Profiles: Scott Neilsen Researching the Aboriginal History of Lake Ashuanipi, Labrador

Scott Neilsen strapping gear into
a canoe (Photo by Todd Kristensen)

Scott Neilsen is a PhD Candidate in the Archaeology Department at Memorial University of Newfoundland.  He's dedicated his life and career to understanding the history and archaeology of the First Nations peoples who have lived, and continue to live, in Interior Labrador.  In 2008, he and his young family moved to North West River, Labrador to be closer to the land and work that he loves.  Alongside his research, Scott serves as the Operations, Facilities and Logistics Coordinator at the Labrador Institute's Research Station in North West River.

When I asked the other archaeologists profiled in this series whose research they'd like to see highlighted, Scott's name came up more than anyone else, so, by popular demand, Scott graciously agreed to participate.  I think the best way to understand Scott's work is over a beer.  I apologize if you are reading this over breakfast, but pour yourself a pint and enjoy the conversation...

Plans and Profiles #8. Scott Neilsen, Aboriginal History at Lake Ashuanipi, Labrador

1) Tell me a little bit about your project.

I have a few on the go at the moment, but I think I’ll try and focus on my dissertation project “Archaeology Beyond the Horizon” (in the hopes that this will give me some incentive to get the writing finished).

Ferguson Bay, north end of Lake Ashuanipi, Labrador.

The idea for the title came from a paper written by Anthropologist Jose Mailhot, called “Beyond Everyone’s Horizon Stand the Naskapi”. In this paper Mailhot wrote about the history of the cultural moniker Naskapi. She explained that although the Naskapi lived in the Lake Plateau Region of the Labrador Peninsula, they were actually the same as the Montagnais who lived along the Quebec North Shore (together they are the Innu). As she saw it, the European colonists who wrote about the Naskapi had little to no interaction with them, and because of this the tales they wrote were not accurate.

The isolation of the Naskapi in the interior and the assumptions that resulted from this reminded me of a problem I see in the archaeological history of the Labrador Peninsula. Which is, that we often make assumptions about what went on in the interior without looking to see what is actually there. For this reason I chose to do a survey of Lake Ashuanipi in western Labrador for my PhD research, to see what was actually there.

Lake Ashuanipi, Labrador, FeDn-01. Late period biface tip, made out of Labrador Trough chert.

Lake Ashuanipi, Labrador, FeDn-01. Showing excavation 

profile. Note buried paleosol in profile, and hold down rocks

for canvas tent at surface.

From historical documents I knew going in that Lake Ashuanipi was part of an Innu travel route between the Quebec North Shore and the Lake Plateau, but I didn’t know if it had been used prior to European settlement on the coast or to what degree the Lake had been inhabited. Overall we spent three summers surveying portions of the lake (it is huge so we couldn’t cover the entire area). We identified recent enthnographic sites, and pre- and post-contact archaeology sites. And in some cases, these components were stratified within the same site.

Ashuanipi Travel Routes. Map showing location of Archaeology Beyond the horizon Study Area, with travel routes. (image created by Edmund Montague)

2) How did you become interested in this particular problem?

Lake Ashuanipi, Labrador, FeDn-01. Excavation complete. 

Note multiple components visible, i.e. tent hold-down stones

at original surface as well as hearthstones in profile and 

at base of excavation. (photo by Todd Kristensen)

Two ways, really. First, during my MA I did research on the Intermediate period (ca.3500 – 2000 BP) in Labrador. Specifically, I was focused on the culture-history of First Nation populations at this time. It was during this research that I first came to realize that although archaeologists had talked about a generalized subsistence pattern for First Nations at this time, spending summers on the coast and winters in the interior, very few archaeologists had actually looked for, or excavated any Intermediate period sites inland, away from the coast and inlets.

Second, my supervisor, Dr. Lisa Rankin, introduced me to Ed and Joyce Montague from Labrador City. They were both members of the heritage society there, and had been the primary forces behind establishing the Gateway Museum in that community. They were interested in having someone do archaeological research in the area, and were just too damn nice for me to be able to say “no”. It also didn’t hurt that Ed was very knowledgeable about the regions geography and history.

Lake Ashuanipi, Labrador. FeDn-01. 19th century HBC trade knife (?), in situ.

Lake Ashuanipi, Labrador. Baking Innu bread in
the beach sand. Note colouring of heated sand.

3) Has your project changed since you originally began working on it? How?

I’m not sure that the project has changed much. However, I have come to realize that the long-term history of the Labrador Peninsula is much more complicated than it is traditionally portrayed. And I am finding that it is rather difficult to convey this complexity within the traditional culture-history terminology that has been used. Living in Labrador since 2008 has given me a totally new perspective on the social and cultural climate of the sub-arctic.


4) If you could ask the people/person who lived at your site one question what would it be?

How come you aren’t using Ramah chert like all your buddies?

Menihek Lake, Labrador, GaDq-2. Large chunk of Labrador Trough chert.

5) Have you ever found anything in the field or in the lab that you wish you hadn't?

Lake Ashuanipi, Labrador, FeDn-01. Test pit,
with two components visible in profile.
Can lid near surface and FCR near base. 

Also note buried paleosol.

Not that I can think of. It’s usually the opposite…I wish I had found stuff that I didn’t.


6) Why did you choose Memorial University of Newfoundland?

To be totally honest, they were the only ones who’d take me when I decided to do an MA. UNB wanted me to do a qualifying year. (I wasn’t the greatest student in my undergrad). I had worked with Dr. Lisa Rankin in Labrador in 2002 and she saw something in me that led her to take a chance on me (I still don’t know what that something was). Also, I had fallen in love with Labrador when I was there and MUN seemed like the obvious choice to be able to get back…and here I am, still. Things seemed to work out well during the MA, so when it came time for the PhD it seemed best just to stay put. I don’t regret it for a second. I had/have an awesome cohort, the faculty is smart and nice, and St. John’s is a great city.

Lake Ashuanipi, Labrador, FeDn-01. 19th century aeolian pipe, in situ. (photo by Todd Kristensen)

7) How do you unwind when you need to get away from your research?

Menihek Lake, Labrador. Medicine ball sized boulder
of chert along the Shore of McPhadyen River.

I work full-time for the Labrador Institute of Memorial University, looking after the research station in North West River, so I actually have to find time to do my research, rather than get away from it. However, I do play darts every Wednesday night at the community centre in North West River…it’s loads of fun. Not because I’m good at darts…it’s byob.


8) What is one thing that you can’t imagine doing fieldwork without?

Hmmmm, I’ll say a good hat. My favorite one wore out in 2010 and I’ve been looking for a suitable replacement ever since.

Lake Ashuanipi, Labrador. Matt Beaudoin and I (right) loading canoe at FeDn-01 (I miss that hat…it had dragons on it!). (photo by Toss Kristensen)

9) What books or websites would you recommend if people want to learn more about your area of interest in general? Or your project in particular?

In relation to my PhD research I’d suggest they get Jamie Brake’s book: The Ferguson Bay 1 Site and the Culture History of Western Labrador (available from Copetown Press) and Henry Youle Hinds book: Explorations in the Interior of the Labrador Peninsula.

If they are interested in the Intermediate period in Labrador they can check out the facebook group “Archaeology in Sheshatshiu” (this page is for a community archaeology project I oversee in Sheshatshiu), or my MA thesis: Intermediate Indians: The View from Ushpitun 2 and Pmiusiku 1.

More generally, I recommend people read Stephen Hull’s blog: Inside Newfoundland and Labrador Archaeology. It covers a variety of topics in the NL archaeology, and I think he sometimes includes references and recommended readings on the subjects.

Portage trail (FcDm-06) between south tip of Kapitagas Channel and Riviere aux Esquimaux. Part of historic travel route between Sept Iles, Quebec and Lake Ashuanipi, Labrador.

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Are you part of an archaeological research project or perhaps you know an archaeology student who could use a boost in exposure.  I'd love to hear your recommendations for future interviews. elfshot.tim@gmail.com

Photo Credits:
Scott Neilsen, unless otherwise noted in the captions.
Plans and Profiles Banner, Tim Rast based on a linocut by Lori White

A Point Revenge Arrow

Point Revenge Arrow Reproduction

This is a reproduction of a Point Revenge, or pre-contact Innu arrow based on artifacts from Labrador.  The Innu people are alive and well and living in Labrador.  Archaeologically, the ancestors of the Innu left a material culture that Archaeologists call  "Point Revenge" or "late Labrador Recent Indian".  Their projectile points were corner-notched arrowheads, most commonly made from Ramah Chert.  If you want more information about the Recent Indian peoples who lived in Newfoundland and Labrador, I would refer you to these two informative blog posts from Inside Newfoundland and Labrador Archaeology:

Recent Indian Tradition: Newfoundland

Recent Indian Tradition: Labrador

Point Revenge and Little Passage reproductions

What's interesting is that the archaeological recovered stone tools left by the ancestors of the Beothuk and the Innu were almost identical even though the two groups were historically quite different.  Take this arrow for example. When I make a Little Passage or Beothuk arrow, I start with a stone point and build the rest of the arrow around it.  I base the organic components on ethnographical observed Beothuk arrows.  I followed the same steps to make this Point Revenge arrow, except I used Innu arrows as the ethnographic reference.  Even though the projectile points are identical, the reconstructed arrows wind up looking quite different.

These are links to some of the arrows that I used as references for the Innu arrows - they are in the Ethnology Collection at The Rooms here in St. John's:

http://www.tipatshimuna.ca/1110_e.php?catalogue_no=III-B-111

http://www.tipatshimuna.ca/1110_e.php?catalogue_no=III-B-112 

http://www.tipatshimuna.ca/1110_e.php?catalogue_no=III-B-113 

http://www.tipatshimuna.ca/1110_e.php?catalogue_no=III-B-114

Stone, pitch, sinew, wood

I don't know the exact origin of these arrows and some aspects of their construction seem a little rough or unusual.  I suspect that they were made by an Innu person in the last century for someone from the south who wanted to collect examples of Innu arrows.  They feel like they were made by someone who had seen arrows and knew what they should look like, but didn't necessarily have a lot of experience with their construction.  Still, I don't have any reason to doubt the general size and shape of the arrows, the number of feathers used, the decoration, or the use of pitch as an adhesive, so I used those details in my reproduction.

Point Revenge, Beothuk, Copper Inuit

Even though a Point Revenge (pre-contact Innu) and Little Passage (Pre-contact Beothuk) stone arrowhead look identical, when you reconstruct the arrows based on the ethnographically available information they wind up looking very different.  The type of wood used is different: the Innu used tamarack or spruce for arrow shafts, while the Beothuk used pine.  The length of the arrows are different; the Innu arrows are described as being 24-30" long, while the Beothuk made longer 36" arrows.  The feathers are different; the Innu used three grey or white ptarmigan feathers, while the Beothuk used two goose feathers.  The decoration is different; the Innu decorated each end of the arrow with red paint, while the Beothuk covered the entire arrow with red ochre.

The shaft flattens toward the string nock

Aside from the projectile point, the only common treatment that I could see on both arrows is the flattened shape of the arrow shaft beneath the feathers and the shallow "V" or "U" shaped string nock.  Both groups would have tied their arrowheads and feathers in place and the Innu arrows show evidence of a light coloured pitch.  I don't know whether the Beothuk used pitch or not on their arrows, so I don't know if that is another similarity or another difference.  Likewise, the Innu arrows do not have the feathers glued down along the spine, just tied at both ends.  The drawings of Beothuk arrows suggest that the feathers may have been glued down to the shaft, but I can't say for certain.

Beothuk arrows and Innu arrows differ from each other in almost every way that an arrow can.  I think that the length of the arrows is especially significant.  The Innu arrows would be too short to make full advantage of the 6 foot long Beothuk bows and the oversized Beothuk arrows would be clumsily large in the Innu bows.

Arrows: Point Revenge/Innu (top) and Little Passage/Beothuk (bottom)

Side view of the hafted point

I'm not sure how to interpret this.  I don't know if I'm correct in assuming that all of the historic features of the arrows would have appeared on the pre-contact arrows.  Maybe the similarities in the lithic toolkits extended to all other aspects of the material culture and the Recent Indian arrows on the Island and in Labrador looked identical 1000 years ago.  Maybe they evolved along two separate lines since then from some sort of common arrow ancestor.  I'm not sure.

Ramah chert in grey and black

On this particular arrow, I used a coarse black chert.  This arrow was a paid commission and as much as I'd like to stay true to the Labrador Recent Indian preference for Ramah Chert, I still can't sell the stuff - so I went with this black chert because its comparable to the black version of Ramah Chert.  The shaft is made from tamarack, which I chose over spruce in this case because its colour gives it a slightly more antiqued look than bright white spruce.  I felt it matched the look of the ethnographic arrows a little better.  The arrow is about 27" long.  I used three strips of white feathers that I picked up on the barren grounds south of St. John's.  Ideally, these would be ptarmigan and although I don't know exactly what bird dropped them and its possible that they are ptarmigan, I kind of doubt it.  I used pitch for the glue on both the point and at each end of the feathers and tied them in place with sinew.  The pitch on the ethnographic arrows is light coloured, so I didn't add any charcoal to the gum.

Red paint; a memory of red glue?

I added red pigment to each end of the arrow shaft before tying the point and feathers on.  The Innu use bright red and blue paints on a lot of their objects.  I used red ochre mixed with oil for the base of the stain, although I did punch it up with a dash of red oil paint to brighten the ochre a bit.  The placement of the red paint seems decorative - if it has a special meaning I wouldn't want to guess what it might be.  Although, it is interesting that the red stain is applied in the same places that the arrow and feathers are tied down.  The archaeologist speaking at MUN this Friday is looking at the use of red ochre as an additive in adhesives used during the Middle Stone Age in Africa.  Ochre was used for a lot of things in Newfoundland, but I don't think that I've ever heard that it was mixed with pitch to make a better adhesive.  Still - IF it had been, then it would leave a red stain on each end of an arrow that would look very similar to the pattern of red paint on the ethnographic Innu arrows.  Its an interesting coincidence and maybe something to follow up on.

Photo Credits: Tim Rast