An archaeology of salt production in Fiji

Burley, David V.; Taché, Karine; Purser, Margaret; Balenaivalu, Ratu Jone

doi:10.1017/s0003598x00067521

Cited by 8 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…Rather, technological change occurs in ceramic temper materials, in the forming methods by which jars are produced, in the loss or addition of vessel forms, and in ceramic firing technology. Similarly, change in respective burial practices appears to have occurred in parallel fashion, while site function is dramatically varied between the two occupations (Burley 2005;Burley et al 2011). The cumulative extent of these changes, we believe, represents a significant disjuncture in the archaeological record at Sigatoka, one where an intrusive and different population came to reside at the mouth of the Sigatoka River.…”

Section: Implications and Discussionmentioning

confidence: 81%

“…Navatu phase people took up residence on top of the former village after that event, this group having a distinct and different type of ceramic assemblage. The economic rationale for this occupation was the production of sea salt using large ceramic salt trays for solar evaporation of seawater (Burley et al 2011). Presumably in the onslaught of blowing sand, this village also was abandoned and subsequently buried.…”

Section: V Burley and K Edinboroughmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Discontinuity in the Fijian Archaeological Record Supported by a Bayesian Radiocarbon Model

Burley

Edinborough

2014

Radiocarbon

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The Fijian archaeological record is segmented into a series of phases based on distinctive transformations in ceramic forms. Interpretations of the mid-sequence (~1500-1300 cal BP) transition between the Fijian Plainware phase and the Navatu phase are contentious, with alternative explanations of population replacement versus internal processes of culture change. We present and analyze a series of Fijian Plainware and Navatu phase AMS radiocarbon dates acquired from superimposed but stratigraphically separated occupation floors at the Sigatoka Sand Dunes site on the southwest coast of Viti Levu. Employing an OxCal Bayesian sequential model, we seek to date the temporal span for each occupation as well as the interval of time occurring between occupation floors. The latter is estimated to be 0-43 calendar years at 2s probability. The magnitude of ceramic and other differences between the Fijian Plainware and Navatu phase occupations at Sigatoka is substantive. We conclude that the abruptness of this change can be explained only by exogenous replacement at the Sigatoka site.

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Section: Implications and Discussionmentioning

confidence: 81%

Section: V Burley and K Edinboroughmentioning

confidence: 99%

Discontinuity in the Fijian Archaeological Record Supported by a Bayesian Radiocarbon Model

Burley

Edinborough

2014

Radiocarbon

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“…While some authors have identified the transition from Fiji Plainware to Navatu around 1800 years ago using data from various sites across the Fiji Islands [68][69][70], this transition appears to occur later at Sigatoka, during the process of formation of Level 2 [59]. Excavations at the easternmost end of the dune revealed two stratigraphically separate but superimposed domestic occupations corresponding to the Fijian Plainware and Navatu phases respectively, with a village occupation dated to 1,433-1,298 cal BP and a subsequent occupation focused on sea salt production dated to1,330-1,266 cal BP [59,[71][72][73]. The change from Fijian Plainware to Navatu is seen as an abrupt cultural modification, interpreted by some as indicating interactions with external population(s) (e.g.…”

Section: Sigatoka Sand Dunes Archaeological Context and Chronology Is...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Life histories in Fiji as reconstructed from first millennium CE Sigatoka Sand Dune burials using isotopes

Herrscher,

Valentin,

Zinger

et al. 2024

PLoS ONE

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This paper aims to re-examine the dietary practices of individuals buried at Sigatoka Sand Dunes site (Fiji) in Burial Ground 1 excavated by Simon Best in 1987 and 1988 using two approaches and a reassessment of their archaeological, bioarchaeological and chronological frame. First, stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis was applied to document dietary changes between childhood and adulthood using an intra–individual approach on paired bone–tooth. Second, the potential adaptation of the individuals to their environment was evaluated through regional and temporal comparisons using inter–individual bone analysis. Ten AMS radiocarbon dates were measured directly on human bone collagen samples, placing the series in a range of approximately 600 years covering the middle of the first millennium CE (1,888 to 1,272 cal BP). δ13C and δ15N ratios were measured on bone and tooth collagen samples from 38 adult individuals. The results show that δ15N values from tooth are higher than those s from bone while bone and tooth δ13C values are similar, except for females. Fifteen individuals were included in an intra–individual analysis based on paired bone and tooth samples, which revealed six dietary patterns distinguished by a differential dietary intake of marine resources and resources at different trophic levels. These highlight sex–specific differences not related to mortuary practices but to daily life activities, supporting the hypothesis of a sexual division of labour. Compared to other Southwest Pacific series, Sigatoka diets show a specific trend towards marine food consumption that supports the hypothesis of a relative food self–sufficiency requiring no interactions with other groups.

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“…The pots in question function as containers for boiling brine in stoves, as well as standard units of measurement for trade, something we see in Mesoamerica and many other areas of the world, including the island of Fiji (Melanesia, South Pacific Ocean). In Fiji, clay pots were used in the process of salt elaboration, though the technology employed there relied on solar evaporation rather than boiling brine over fire (Burley et al 2011), as occurred in the Philippines. The assemblage here consists of decorated jars, probably used for water (or brine) transport in the saltworks, and a type of shallow vessel called a “salt tray,” used for the solar evaporation of brine.…”

Section: The Salt-making Tool Assemblagementioning

confidence: 99%

Salt-Making in Mesoamerica: Production Sites and Tool Assemblages

Williams¹

2021

Ancient Mesoam

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Common salt, or sodium chloride, has always been a strategic resource of primary importance throughout the world. In pre-Hispanic Mesoamerica, salt was used primarily for human consumption, as the native diet had little chloride or sodium, two chemical components that are indispensable for human health and nutrition. Here I discuss the traditional salt industries of Michoacán, Colima, Guerrero, the Basin of Mexico and Puebla, paying special attention to the production sites and the tool assemblages linked to salt production in these areas of Mesoamerica. This article sheds light on salt's role in the culture and history of the ancient Mesoamerican ecumene through the lens of ethnoarchaeology and ethnohistory.

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An archaeology of salt production in Fiji

Cited by 8 publications

References 12 publications

Discontinuity in the Fijian Archaeological Record Supported by a Bayesian Radiocarbon Model

Discontinuity in the Fijian Archaeological Record Supported by a Bayesian Radiocarbon Model

Life histories in Fiji as reconstructed from first millennium CE Sigatoka Sand Dune burials using isotopes

Salt-Making in Mesoamerica: Production Sites and Tool Assemblages

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