Perspectives on the Use of European Material Culture at Two Mid-To-Late 17th-Century Native American Sites in the Chesapeake

Abstract

This article examines the assemblages of two Contact period Native American sites: Posey (c. 1650-1700) and Camden (c. 1680-1710). While the collections from these two sites share many similarities, their analysis revealed that occupants of the Posey site had far greater proportions of European material goods than their counterparts at the Camden site. The amount of European artifacts at each site was scant at best, but Posey residents used European artifacts as commodities for trade while Camden inhabitants possessed a number of formal European tools, suggesting that they were more directly integrated into daily activities.

The Archaeology of Native Societies in the Chesapeake: New Investigations and Interpretations

“…The resulting ''blind spot'' in early colonial studies (Mouer et al 1999) has persisted in the Chesapeake long after programmatic statements calling attention to it elsewhere (e.g., Lightfoot 1995). A number of recent studies have challenged this divide and critically interrogated colonial sources with archaeological evidence (e.g., Davidson 2004;Galke 2004;Mallios 2006). The most salient thread running through these studies is the recognition that Native American actors in the Chesapeake adopted highly varied strategies in the face of the colonial encounter.…”

“…68-72). These sites highlight alternative choices made by native households in the Chesapeake and ways that European materials were incorporated into traditional native practices and exchange spheres (Galke 2004). Other native sites from the colonial era lack European materials altogether (e.g., Stewart 1999), highlighting the range of social strategies adopted by Native Americans.…”

Personal Adornment and Expressions of Status: Beads and the Gambia River’s Atlantic Trade

“…In contrast, reusable resources like beads were displayed in these settings, transmitting sensorial meaning to one's neighbors. The objects incorporated into these practices were determined by local norms, and established "valuable" material classes in social negotiations forming a communal sense of taste (e.g., Galke, 2004;Loren, 2009;Silliman, 2009;Turgeon, 1997). It is important to acknowledge that a material object's own identity or function is situational.…”