The stone adze and obsidian assemblage from the Talasiu site, Kingdom of Tonga

Abstract

Typological and geochemical analyses of stone adzes and other stone tools have played a significant role in identifying directionality of colonisation movements in early migratory events in the Western Pacific. In later phases of Polynesian prehistory, stone adzes are important status goods which show substantial spatial and temporal variation. However, there is a debate when standardisation of form and manufacture appeared, whether it can be seen in earliest populations colonising the Pacific or whether it is a later development. We present in this paper a stone adze and obsidian tool assemblage from an early Ancestral Polynesian Society Talasiu site on Tongatapu, Kingdom of Tonga. The site shows a wide variety of adze types; however, if raw material origin is taken into account, emerging standardisation in adze form might be detected. We also show that Tongatapu was strongly connected in a network of interaction to islands to the North, particularly Samoa, suggesting that these islands had permanent populations.

Hafted stone tools in the Asia Pacific region

“…Adzes are not common in Lapita archaeological sites, but a site in Tonga dating from 2700-2500ya, a relatively early phase in the settlement of Western Polynesia, yielded a variety of complete and fragmentary stone adzes. These adzes were mainly plano-convex forms lacking obvious tangs (Reepmeyer et al 2021). The assemblage is not obviously different from blades found in New Guinea (for example), implying that distinctive Polynesian forms developed after this primary colonization event.…”

Hafted stone and shell tools in the Asia Pacific region

“…Adzes are not common in Lapita archaeological sites, but a site in Tonga dating from 2700-2500ya, a phase that followed on from the initial settlement of Western Polynesia, yielded a variety of complete and fragmentary stone adzes. These adzes were mainly forms with lenticular and planoconvex cross-sections, lacking tangs (Reepmeyer et al 2021). The assemblage is not obviously different from blades found in New Guinea, 6 and the authors note that evidence for a distinctive 'Lapita adze kit' is scarce.…”

The Birth of Polynesia: An Archaeological Journey Through the Kingdom of Tonga

“…I have reexamined these closely with one determined to be a nonvolcanic material and another with a context wrongly grouped with Lapita. Reepmeyer et al (2021) have more recently identified a small number of Sāmoan adze flakes/fragments in late Lapita deposits at Talasiu. premise.…”