From Frog to Bat: The Extraordinary Bestiary of the Pre-Columbians from the Caribbean

Summary

This is an abstract from the "The Intangible Dimensions of Food in the Caribbean Ancient and Recent Past" session, at the 84th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Zooarchaeological studies bring information on the history of the vertebrate faunas during the last 30000 years and especially on their relationships with human activities since 5000 years in the Lesser Antilles.

In such an oceanic island environment, the Pre-Columbians have mainly exploited animals from the sea. However, in a society that consumes mainly fish, what is the place of other vertebrates in the food and the symbolism?

For example, the Racer snake (Alsophis) has been extinct in Barbuda during the historical time period and thus never previously described. This docile and non-venomous racer snake appears to have inhabited Barbuda and has been found in context dating to 400 AD. The presence of bones in cooking pits and articulations indicate that the snake was cut in sections and either burned or cooked for possible consumption.

In a second case, we will draw up a list of the animals of the ordinary and extraordinary bestiary of the Pre-Columbian of the Lesser Antilles, based on zooarchaeological analysis, chroniclers writings, engraved bones, and archaeological stylized representations on ceramics, lithics, and shells. We will discuss the symbolism of few animals: were the manatees, dogs, bats, frogs, lizards and snakes consumed or were they taboos?

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• The Intangible Dimensions of Food in the Caribbean Ancient and Recent Past   •
• Society for American Archaeology 84th Annual Meeting, Albuquerque, NM (2019)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 24117