If Cain Had Been a Fisherman...’ - Historical and Archaeological Dimensions of a Whaling and Cod-Fishing Site on the ‘»Other»’ Labrador Coast

Summary

As is by now a well-known fact, cod-fishing enterprises, closely followed by whaling expeditions, were the first attractions that brought Europeans to the north-eastern shores of Canada from the early 1500s onwards. Petit Mécatina Island 3 (Hare Harbor 1, EdBt-3), a whaling and cod-fishing site discovered in 2001, is so far one of the few sites of this type known on that particular stretch of Québec’s Lower North Shore. It has been subject to continuous excavations on land and under water ever since, and an ever-growing team of researchers is studying its relations to the 16th to 18th century Basque ventures in the Americas.In 2010, a historical overview for the region as well as a discussion of the large variety of ceramic finds on this particular site were offered by the author at the SHA conference in Florida. Since then, research has progressed rapidly, and the 2014 paper will serve to present exciting new data on the ceramic collection from Petit Mécatina as well as to explore various find contexts as they relate to the history of the site and the region.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• The Archaeology of Basque Fisheries throughout the Atlantic, a Reappraisal   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2014

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): SYM-16,04