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“we have always been here”: the INDIGENOUS peoples of british columbia LECTURE OUTLINE: “WE HAVE ALWAYS BEEN HERE”: THE INDIGENOUS PEOPLES OF BRITISH COLUMBIA A. YUQUOT: “WHERE THE WIND BLOWS IN ALL DIRECTIONS B. AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK 1. Early Migration 2. Lithic Stage Of Prehistory (c. 14,000-5,500 BP) 3. Early Developmental Stage Northwest Coast (5,500-3,500 BP) 4. Middle Developmental Stage Northwest Coast (3,500-1,500 BP) 5. Late Developmental Stage Northwest Coast (1,500 BP-European Contact) 6. Late Period In The Interior (4,500 BP-European Contact) C. AN OVERVIEW D. WEST COAST WHALING PEOPLE: A CASE STUDY An aerial image of Friendly Cove/Yuquot Inside the Catholic Church at Yuquot Margarita James stands in the centre of the group at the 2016 Summerfest A representation of the Spanish settlement at Yuquot in 1791 John Dewhirst and Bill Folan dig at Yuquot in 1966 and uncover evidence of 4300 years of continuous settlement Another aerial view of Yuquot A tidewater fish trap near Friendly Cove pictured in 1912 The remains of the prehistoric First Nations fishery in the Comox Estuary Sonny McHalsie leads cultural tours explaining Sto:lo landmarks The transformer site Th’exelis on the Fraser is also known as Lady Franklin Rock A prehistoric shell midden on Quatsino Sound on Vancouver Island A petroglyph from Sproat Lake A panel from Petroglyph Park in Nanaimo Archaeological work on Triquet Island seems to have uncovered evidence of human habitation 14,000 BP Footprints 13,200 BP were discovered in 2014 on Calvert Island This robotic underwater vehicle may have found a 13,800 BP fishing weir off the coast of Haida Gwaii in 2014 LECTURE OUTLINE: “WE HAVE ALWAYS BEEN HERE”: THE INDIGENOUS PEOPLES OF BRITISH COLUMBIA A. YUQUOT: “WHERE THE WIND BLOWS IN ALL DIRECTIONS B. AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK 1. Early Migration 2. Lithic Stage Of Prehistory (c. 14,000-5,500 BP) 3. Early Developmental Stage Northwest Coast (5,500-3,500 BP) 4. Middle Developmental Stage Northwest Coast (3,500-1,500 BP) 5. Late Developmental Stage Northwest Coast (1,500 BP-European Contact) 6. Late Period In The Interior (4,500 BP-European Contact) C. AN OVERVIEW D. WEST COAST WHALING PEOPLE: A CASE STUDY The Charlie Lake Cave site near Fort St. John One of the 4-meter-deep pits at Charlie Lake Cave Charlie Lake Cave artifacts dating to 10,500 BP: Shown are a fluted point 3.9 centimeters long (upper left), a fluted-point surface find (upper right), a perforated schist bead (center) and at bottom two scrapers found with the point at upper right. An 8,000-year-old skeleton was found at Gore Creek Early Archaeological Sties in British Columbia Excavations at Kilgii Gway on Haida Gwaii found evidence of habitation stretching back to 10,700 BP Part of the Glenrose Cannery Site near the mouth of the Fraser Surveying at the Glenrose site Early Archaeological Sties in British Columbia Digging in the main trench at Namu in 1977 The Drynock Slide site in the Thompson River canyon near Spences Bridge: The thin horizontal white streak near the top is Mount Mazama volcanic ash. Immediately beneath is a layer of wind-laid sand that contains salmon bones and occasional artifacts dated about 7500 years in age. Crater Lake at today’s Mount Mazama in Oregon Some Middle Period Artifacts of the Interior: This shows spearheads and a single microblade core from the Nesikep and Lehman sites in the Fraser Canyon, near Lillooet, Dated about 6500 years in age. Obsidian Quarry Site on Mount Edziza in the Northwestern Interior A flaked knife point of Mount Edziza obsidian A cinder cone at Mount Edziza LECTURE OUTLINE: “WE HAVE ALWAYS BEEN HERE”: THE INDIGENOUS PEOPLES OF BRITISH COLUMBIA A. YUQUOT: “WHERE THE WIND BLOWS IN ALL DIRECTIONS B. AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK 1. Early Migration 2. Lithic Stage Of Prehistory (c. 14,000-5,500 BP) 3. Early Developmental Stage Northwest Coast (5,500-3,500 BP) 4. Middle Developmental Stage Northwest Coast (3,500-1,500 BP) 5. Late Developmental Stage Northwest Coast (1,500 BP-European Contact) 6. Late Period In The Interior (4,500 BP-European Contact) C. AN OVERVIEW D. WEST COAST WHALING PEOPLE: A CASE STUDY Early Development Stage Artifacts of the Coast, 3500-5500 BP: From left to right at the top are three bilaterally barbed antler harpoons, a unilaterally Barbed antler fishing-spear point, a diamond-shaped flaked-stone spearhead or knife, a Ground-slate point, and a small antler splitting-wedge. In the center are a spindle- Shaped bone object, a mussel-shell adze blade, and a stemmed flaked-stone point. At bottom are a small steatite labret and a pecked and ground chisel. Vancouver’s Marpole Midden in 1908 Middle Developmental Stage Artifacts of the Coast (1500-3500 BP): At the top, left to right, are a bone awl, two ground-slate points, two flaked-stone stemmed points, a large leaf-shaped spearhead or knife from Namu, a unilaterally barbed bone point, an antler toggling-harpoon head, a composite antler toggling-harpoon valve and two unilaterally barbed antler harpoons. In the center are two bone pendants from Prince Rupert, a bone needle, a perforated claw pendant and two dentalium-shell beads, a ground-slate fish-knife and a small adze blade. At the bottom are a string of slate disc-beads, a north- coast rib-stone, and a decorated steatite bowl. Carved stone club from Hagwilet, Lower Skeena River area, North Coast: This is one of a cache of 35 clubs, each uniquely designed. Similar artifacts found at Prince Rupert and on Haida Gwaii appear to be as much as 2500 years old. This carving depicts a supernatural creature with a bird-like head and four dorsal fins that form protruding blades for the weapon. These drawings show different kinds of toggling harpoons and their component parts found in coastal sites of the last 3500 years. Middle Developmental Era Antler and Bone Sculptures (1500-3500 BP): At top left are a stylized bone bird-pin and a miniature long-beaked bird-mask of antler. In the center, from left to right, are three human effigies of bone and antler, two stylized antler bird-figures, and an antler sculpture of a long-beaked bird. The decorated carving- tool handle at the bottom is in the form of a sea monster or wolf. All pieces are from the south coast, and all but the miniature mask and the central human-face effigy are from the Marpole site. Steatite Seated-Human- Figure Bowl from the Lower Fraser River Valley Coastal Petroglyph: This carving, near Prince Rupert, is called “The Man Who Fell From Heaven.” Many Tsimshian stories tell about this site and the powerful supernatural being who fell from the sky-world long ago to leave his impression in the rock. Carved Cedar Handle from Prince Rupert: This 1600-year-old wooden carving, 19 centimeters long, was preserved in waterlogged deposits at the Lachane site. originally, it was probably a handle on the lid or sides of a wooden box or bowl. The Skagit Atlatl Late Developmental Stage Artifacts of the Coast Coast Salish Weaving Scene painted by Paul Kane in 1840s Early Photograph of a Haida Village (1878) LECTURE OUTLINE: “WE HAVE ALWAYS BEEN HERE”: THE INDIGENOUS PEOPLES OF BRITISH COLUMBIA A. YUQUOT: “WHERE THE WIND BLOWS IN ALL DIRECTIONS B. AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK 1. Early Migration 2. Lithic Stage Of Prehistory (c. 14,000-5,500 BP) 3. Early Developmental Stage Northwest Coast (5,500-3,500 BP) 4. Middle Developmental Stage Northwest Coast (3,500-1,500 BP) 5. Late Developmental Stage Northwest Coast (1,500 BP-European Contact) 6. Late Period In The Interior (4,500 BP-European Contact) C. AN OVERVIEW D. WEST COAST WHALING PEOPLE: A CASE STUDY Late Period Artifacts of the Interior (Last 4500 Years) A model pithouse on display at the Provincial Museum The Keatley Creek site near Lillooet A 20-metre-diameter housepit in a prehistoric village site of about 100 houses near Lillooet in the Fraser Canyon Late Period Steatite Sculpture from the Plateau: The double-headed wolf Bowl at left was found near Lillooet. The human-figure bowl was found near Lytton at The confluence of the Fraser and Thompson Rivers. A rattlesnake is draped over the brow Of the figure, while a frog or toad climbs up its back. C. An Overview • It has been estimated that at the time of the first contact with Europeans, nearly half the indigenous people in Canada lived in what is today British Columbia. • Estimates of numbers are tentative. • The anthropologist Wilson Duff concluded that 80,000 or more aboriginals lived in British Columbia in the late 18th century. • A number of contemporary scholars suggest a pre-contact population in the range of 200,000 to 300,000. • At least 34 distinct languages were spoken. Characteristics Of Pre-Contact Coast Culture • The economies were based on the two bountiful staples of salmon and cedar. • All the coastal peoples lived within sophisticated social organizations based on the concept of inherited rank and on intricate patterns of sanctioned and prohibited behaviour. • Nowhere north of Mexico were distinctions between individuals of high and low status so sharply drawn as on the northwest coast. • People of the coast were recognized as belonging to specific houses and clans. • Outside and below these classes were slaves, in some villages making up a third of the population. The Subarctic • The Subarctic includes most of the northern portion of the Canadian provinces.