89

(w\th five tahles, two text-figun:s and one v1ate)

The results of an archaeological reconnaissance of are summarised, eight radiocarbon dates are reported and a prdimin�Jy outline of Aboriginal land use patterns is presented. Key \Vords: Tasman Penlnsula, , Aboriginal occupation, archaeological survey. From SMITH, S.l. (Ed.), 1989: IS HISTORY ENOUGH? PA ST, PRESENT AND FUTURE USE OF HIE RESOURCES OF TA SMAN PENINSULA.Royal Society of Tasmania, Hobart: 89·-96.

INTRODucnON Link is known of Aboriginal Oil the east coast from the historic accounts of recent The title of the symposium, "Past, present and future past. Several summaries are available which present use of the resources of the Tasman Peninsula", is the krlown infonTlation (Jones 1974, Brown 1986), particularly relevant to prehistoric Aboriginal These indicate that Tasman Peninsula was in the archaeology which relies on extant evidence to re�on- territory of the Oyster Bay Trihe, with the local struct past partems of use of the region, residence of one band situated at , It Our knowledge of the nature occupation is likely that this band, of fifty is almost entirely dependent upon the information exploited Tasman Penjnsula, the that can be retrieved from former campsites and the historical evidence we must rely on rubbish discarded there. Only those sites that have to attempt to discover the nature survived into the present can contribute to the data- base, This paper outlines a interpretation Tasman Peninsula is a very good area in which of Aboriginal land use on the results of a survey to of Aboriginal land use, as it has of parts of Tasman Peninsula and quite of landscapes within a relatively published radiocarbon elates for four coastal small area. There is a of "ecological niches", makc several asumptions in each wilh different for human occupation detenllining patterns of land use. Firstly, and exploitation. The configurationmeans that coastal we assume that sites are not randomly placed across types from the very exposed and the landscape but; rather, each sitc represents a choice through to Inland there a made by a group of Aboriginal who knew variety of terrain, There is their country welL Secondly, it is that thcse good for locating sites as many choices were made, in part at least, in to satisfy parts the eastern half are comprised of sandstone some basic human needs; shelter, freshwater, food, which, when eroded, fonns caves. these

firewood, stone and other raw materials for tool· caves or rockshclters were camp sites of "'"'' '10",m, Thirdly, it is assumed that these needs are people alld the evidence of by the environment, and therefore by observed on the surface, understan,jiJlg that environment it is possible 10 recon- suli'ace of site locations werc made. The vj';ibilily accumulation of such understanding shouid lead to record at any one time, hypotheses about overall land lise of Tasman Peninsula. 90 D. Gaughwin

FORESTIER NORFOLK

PENINSUL A

BAY

Point

We dge Is.

D Hills. Coastal Plains. r::sJ� Survey Transect

Coastal Margins:

111 1 111/11 AI High energy. mostly hard.

A2{1J Me dium energy . hard shore.

A2(2) . soft shore. o 10 km A3(1) Low energy. hard shore I I

A3(2) . soft shore

FIG. 1 - Tasman Peninsula showing transects and land units. Aboriginal land usc' 91

METHODS RESTjLTS AND DISCUSSION

In February 1984 a field survey of parts of the peninsul.a wa, undertaken (Gaughwin 1985). The survey was conducted within three transects 'ivhich The greatest number of sites (78r}[) were located on a variety of landforms. the various coastal type� (table 2), Shell rniddens a numher of different eoa" were the Hlo'st ��te type although, plainsj swanlps and sandstone ridge interestingly, large number of shell and lithic SC;ttters country. CowrBge within the lransects was variable, '';'/en::, also (lable 3)0 The sites Vlere evenly primarily due to variations in ground visibility. distributed between lnediurn- and low·-energy shores Figure I indicates the transecls, with the but there was a preference for either hard shores figure 2 showing those areas considered Of those Gf mixed type where both rockplatform surveyed. and soft, sand Of mud, shores were availahle within Sites were recorded within three major a few hundred metres of the sire. This prctE�re]flCe analytical units: the Coastal (Unil A), the was further reflecwd in the shell content the sites, Coastal Plains (Unit B), and the (Unit C). These where rockplatform species including oysters, mussels were divided into a number of sub-units, such as, and walTener, predominated on both medium, and "high energy, hard shore coastal margin". These units "",,,,'np,-nv coasts. That more sites were associated are regarded as broadly homogeneous in terms of the shores is explained hy the greater resources available within them and hence their of marine resources on these flat and potential for human use. They are illustrated on tlgure weathered platfonns than on dolerite J and the resources likely to be present are listed in Artifacts manufactured from table 1. The survey located and recorded 72 sites were commonly found in sites on (fig. 2). Analysis of these siles has heen coasts where some sites had large detail 1985) and will only quantities of stone. with thousands of pieces here. recorded on the surface in several areas. �o stone

The Land IJnits

Land unit Likely resources

UNIT A: COASTAL MARGINS A] High energy - hard shore Rock platfonn shellfish, ClUsmceans, fish, seabirds, (?)seals, seaweed A2 Medium energy - hard shore: Rock shellfish, crustaceans, fish, sandstone seaweed, edible plants, cherty hornfels, dolerite fresh water A2 Medium energy - sof] shore: Shellfish, fish, edible plants, fresh water sand A3 Low energy - hard shore: Shellfish; cnlstaceans, fish, seaweed, edible sandstone plants, fresh walel dolerite A3 Low energy - soft shore: Shellfish, edibk plants, fresh waler sarld sand and Inud

UN!T H: COASTAL PLAINS Bl Well drained soils edible plants H2 Wetlands. swamps. lagoons eels, edible piants, fresh water

UNIT C: HILLS C I Steep ann rocky Mammals, birds, reptiles, edible plants. chelty C2 Undulating hornfels 92 O. Gaughwin

C14� . H09 � �. \ N Sloping Is . �.::-..-::.:':� ". Lagoon .: Beach

NORFOL K

BAY

North West Poin t Head

Outer North Head

[)3 Area surveye d

Sites .!eco((j�g ·

.. Middens

• Rock sheffer

Hand stencils.

• LithiC scoffer. H,ghcroft

0 Other

5km I

FIG. 2 - Site locations and areas surveyed on Ta sman Peninsula. itborig;nal land use 93

TABLE 2. Distribution of Aboriginal Sites with Respect to Lalla Units

No. of sites Sub-units No. of sites

UNIT A: COASTAL MARGlNS UNIT H: COASTAL PLAINS

A I High �nergy -- hard shore 0 B 1 We ll drained soils 8 A2 Medium energy - hard 'hore: B2 etc. sandstone 6 8 (11%) dolerite 5 A2 Medium energy -- soft shore: sand 6 A2 Medium energy -- mixed shore: sandstone/sand 11 UNIT C: HILLS dolerite/sand } A3 Low energy --- hard shore: C 1 Valley floor 1 sandstone 4 C2 Slopes, sides I dolerite 3 C3 Ridge, hilltops o A3 Low energy soft shore: To tal hills 2 (3%) sand 0 sand and mud 3 A3 Low energy ---- mixed shore: sandstone/sand 0 OTHER sandstone/sand and mud 10 dolerite/sand 1 Mixed inland (uHits B and C) 6 (8%) dolerite/sand and mud 4 Total coast 56 (78%)

artifacts were recorded in the oyster sites at low energy both flaked material with retouch and many cores. coasts. Small quantities of shell were found in these sites. Five islands, Dart, Hog, King George, Sloping Given the low levels of ground and hence and Wedge. were surveyed_ Six sites were recorded the low number of sites recovered in unit, It IS on Sloping Island, all of which were lithic scatters not to suggest specific uses of the coastal associated with varying amounts of sheiL The only plains at this stage. other cultural material observed on the islands, was two isolated artifacts found on Wedge Isiand. with the exception of Island, lise TABLE 3 islands was minor. I argued elsewhere that this may be due to the limiied range Relative Abundance of Different Types of of resources compared to the mainland. Sloping Island h",�,,,,i,,,,>1 Sites is the exception as not only are large numbers of muUonbirds but some good sources of cherty Site types No. (If % hornfels are on the beaches of the northwest sites coast. The availability of both of these resources -�------�-----�------seems to have made the 1.5 IT! voyage to this island Y Large shell midden 5 7 more attractive_ Linear midden 11 15 Partly deflated midden 1\ 11 Detlnted midden 19 26 Coastal Plains Shell and lithic scatter 10 14 Rockshelter with cultural The eight sites on the coastal plains were on well material 7 drained soils adjacent to wetlands. Ail of these sites 5 Lithic scatter 13 contained cherty homfels stone artifacts including 9 rockshelr£!r

The re8uhs of this

coastr;, while """",Ul' ''' shellfish, had amollllt� of chipped stolle indicating wider range of activities was undertaken at "iws, The oyster middens on low-energy coasts, on the to hffv'estone m1jfacis limited activity sites sicnilar f)D east coast. Utilir,ation of the coast relative inla.nd areas oj the useful the presence therefore, interesting til in sites inland as wt�Has on the A pwvided tbe best evidence. Here with loy./ densities of shell wef(� recorded within I llO iT'i of the sheH rniddens Roaring Further mland, ruckshehers ar ROO ill and up hDve Cthetls visible on the surface inciicatjng that: \vnen favourable inland cmnpite� available, hroad ran.ging set of foods, indwJing fi"iarine. \}/ere transported over long dl>;tance�. From this it seerns dear that the coastal rnargin and inland sItes were changing overall strategy of la.'1d use, the actual nature chronologie'll is not yet understood. sites the H.uthor The above results alkYvv pattern February to be suggested for the coastal rnargin�, four inlpOl1ant to know whether !h� observed today is [he result represents palimpst:�t of JHlcf�nt 'is

TARLE "

Sites with Radim:::lrl:!ol1 Dates

Site name! grid reference

Nubeena Shell midden Oyster sheHs, Low sandstone cliff, low 8411-593283 few rnussels energy, hard sandstone shore

Shell midden Rockplatform shells, Headland, medium energy, chipped stone sandstone shore

Low Poim 1 Lithic sca{tcr Rockplatform �hells, point, medium energy, 8411-556234 and shell midden fitonc mixed dolerite shore

Lithic scatter Rockplatfonn :)hens� Sand�heet, rnediunl t;TIcrgy� and shell midden chipped stone hard. sandstone

TARLE, 5

Site Total area Depth Material Age ANU (m) (em) dated (year§ 1U') Lab.No,

NubeClIlI 1 35;;37.5 15 730::f140 '1J'.",,,j charcoal 1 540±2 10 4823

Roaring Beach 20.5x80 charcoal 1180:i: 190 4820 shell 21i90+:!O 482 :'I': SllCH :i350±50 482)

Low Point 2<1;dO charcoal 1750±180 4R18 40 charcoal 5400j3 10 4819

Sloping Mand ]xl (midden 25 shell 2650±70 4825 area only) 96 D. Gaughwin all were taken from eroding sites. The sections ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS exposed by erosion were cleaned back and the samples then taken by sieving each layer. Charcoal was I would like to acknowledge the field assistance of collected where possible, shells when there was Jane Rider, Robyn Sim and Daryl West and the insufficentcharcoal foran adequate sample. The shell continued assistance of the Port Arthur Conservation dates have not been corrected for the "marinereservoir Project, especially Dr Brian Egloff. Dr Caroline Bird effect" and approximately 450 years should be commented on a previous draft. This work was carried subtracted from these (Head et al . 1983). out with the co-operation of the Tasmanian Aboriginal 'These dates (table 5) add to the sketchy Centre. The fieldwork was funded by a La Trobe understanding of Aboriginal land use on the coastal University grant. margins of the peninsula by providing a chronology. Although the sample of dates is small, some sugges tions can still be made. If the sea reached its REFERENCES present level at about 6000 years ago (Chappell & Thorn 1977), then the date of c.54oo years ago for BOWDLER, S., 1984: Hunter Hill . Te rra Low Point indicates marine resources were being used Australis 8. Department of Prehistory, Research School quite soon after. There is a long and more or less of Pacific Studies, Australian National University, continuous use of these coastlines. This repeated use ' Canberra. of all the sites suggests a well regulated pattern of BROWN, S., 1986: Aboriginal archaeological resources in land use in the area, with perhaps more sites being south east Tasmania. Occas. Pap. Tasm. Natl Pks Wildl. used in the last 3000 years. The tendency for the low Servo 12 energy site, Nubeena 1, to be occupied later may be CHAPPELL, J. & THOM, B.G., 1977: Sea levels and the result of the small sample of sites dated. The date coasts. In Allen, J., Golson, J. & Jones, R. (Eds): SUNDA AND SAHUL: PREHISTORIC STUDIES for Sloping Island is interesting as it is at this time IN SOUTH EAST ASIA, MELANESIA AND AUSTRAL/A. that Hunter Island was reoccupied. Both Vanderwal Academic Press, London: 275-291. (1978) and Bowdler (1984) have argued for an GAUGHWIN, D., 1985: An archaeological reconnaissance expansion of the Aboriginal Tasmanian world in that of the Tasman Peninsula, February 1984. Aust. period, with many offshore islands being incorporated Archaeol. 20: 38-57. into the system. Such changes in Aboriginal systems HEAD, J., JONES, R. & ALLEN, J., 1983: Calculation of can be further investigated in this region, given the the "marine reservoir effect" from the dating of shell­ age range of the dated sites. Furthermore, synchronic charcoal paired samples from an Aboriginal midden patterns of this site use may be investigated in order on Great Glennie Island, . Aust. Archaeol. 17: 99-112. to understand how the land was used at any one JONES, R., 1974: Tasmanian Tribes. In Tindale, N.B. (Ed.): period. ABORIGINAL TRIBES OF . University of California Press, Berkely: 317-356. LOURANDOS, H., 1968: Dispersal of activities: the east CONCLUSION Tasmanian sites. Pap. Proc. R. Soc. Tasm. 102(2): 41-46. Previous researchers have tended to look at patterns LOURANDOS, H., 1977: Stone tools, settlement, of Aboriginal land use in Tasmania from the adaptation: a Tasmanian example. In Wright, R.V.S. perspective of the island as a whole or by comparing (Ed.): STONE TOOLS AS CULTURAL MARKERS. the east and west coasts as if these were appropriate Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies, Canberra: analytical units (see Vanderwal & Horton 1984 and 219-224. Bowdler 1984 for exceptions). Undoubtedly, however, STOCKTON, J., 1983: The prehistoric geography of the details of the complexity of local adaptations have northwest Tasmania. Unpubl. Ph.D. thesis, Aust. Natl been overlooked by investigating such a broad canvas. Univ., Canberra. VANDERWAL, R., 1978: Adaptive technology in Consequently, it is now time to begin looking for southwest Tasmania. Aust. Archaeol. 8: 107-127. regional patterns in Tasmania. The preliminary results VANDERWAL, R. & HORTON, D., 1984: Coastal from the peninsula illustrate its potential for a detailed southwest Tasmania. Terra Australis 9. Departmentof study of the land use systems of a single Aboriginal Prehistory, Research School of Pacific Studies, Aust. band and provide a valuable counterbalance for the Natl Univ., Canberra. broad generalisations of previous researchers in Tasmania. It is therefore important that these sites be managed in the present so that we can have greater understanding of the past in the future.