FIRE FEATURES AND RITUAL: AN ETHNOARCHAEOLOGICAL $1$/<6,6,1),-,¶6/$8*5283 by MALLORY K. MESSERSMITH SHARYN R. JONES, COMMITTEE CO-CHAIR MICHAEL D. MURPHY, COMMITTEE CO-CHAIR LORETTA A. CORMIER SARAH H. PARCAK A THESIS Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in the Department of Anthropology in the Graduate School of The University of Alabama TUSCALOOSA, ALABAMA 2012 Copyright Mallory K. Messersmith 2012 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ABSTRACT This thesis examines the earth oven, a common Fijian feature, from an ethnoarchaeological perspective. Earth ovens are ubiquitous in the archaeological record of the Pacific, yet little attempt has been made to determine standardized criteria for distinguishing these features from another common fire feature, the domestic hearth. This study aims to lay out criteria for distinguishing these similar features, as well as begin to explore methods for investigating ritual and religion in the archaeological record through these features. It utilizes DUFKDHRORJLFDOHWKQRKLVWRULFDODQGHWKQRJUDSKLFGDWDIURP)LML¶V/DX*URXS to achieve these goals. Earth ovens hold an important role in contemporary household food preparation, as well as preparation for feasting and ceremonies. Historical accounts of the region directly following European contact also point to the use of earth ovens in associations with rituals, including feasts and cannibalistic practices. While these rituals are no longer practiced, analysis of suspected ritual features, examination of ethnohistorical records, and comparison with ethnographic parallels of everyday fire features can aid in the recognition and interpretation of prehistoric ritual sites. ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who have helped turn this thesis into reality. First and foremost, I would like to thank my committee members: Dr. Sharyn Jones, Dr. Loretta Cormier, Dr. Sarah Parcak, and Dr. Michael Murphy. Special thanks go to Dr. Jones and Dr. Cormier for taking me to Fiji in the first place and making all of this possible, as well as for their invaluable support, assistance, and encouragement. Thanks also to Dr. Parcak for her constant input and support during the entire thesis process. I would like to thank all of those in Fiji for their assistance in this study. I am particularly grateful to the Fiji Museum, Sepeti Matararaba, Sepeti Colati, Rusila Colati, Inoke, and Vina. Thank you also to all the people of Nayau and the people of Cicia for welcoming me into your homes and putting up with my bizarre questions and crazy measurements. Vinakavakalevu to you all. Special thanks go to the organizations that generously provided funding for this project. Funding for the first two field seasons was provided by the National Science Foundation (NSF) Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) grant, A Long-Term Perspective on Marine Biology and Conservation: Interdisciplinary Field School in the Lau Group, Fiji (Grant #: SES- 085136), awarded to Dr. Jones and Dr. Cormier. The NSF Alabama Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) Graduate Research Scholarship Program provided funding for the academic years 2010-11 and 2011-12. I would like to thank my friends and fellow students, who were always willing to bounce ideas around or flesh out problems along the way. Finally, special thanks to my family who never stopped encouraging me in this process. iii CONTENTS ABSTRACT«««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««LL ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS««««««««««««««««««««««««««LLL LIST OF TABLES««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««vi LIST OF FIGURES«««««««««««««««««««««««««««««vii 1. INTRODUCTION««««««««««««««««««««««««««««« 2. BACKGROUND AND LITERATURE REVIEW«««««««««««««««4 Background on Nayau, Cicia, Lau, and Fiji«««««««««««««««««««4 Earth Ovens and Hearths.................................................................................................................5 Ethnographic Observations of Lovo Building and Hearths.............................................................9 Ritual Associations of Earth Ovens...............................................................................................12 Ritual in Prehistory........................................................................................................................13 3. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS.................................................................................18 Ethnoarchaeology..........................................................................................................................18 Methods..........................................................................................................................................20 Ethnographic Measurements..............................................................................................20 Archaeological Methods for Case Study Features.............................................................22 4. DATA ANALYSIS....................................................................................................................27 Ethnographic Measurements and Observations.............................................................................27 Nayau.................................................................................................................................27 Cicia...................................................................................................................................29 iv Spatial Analysis.............................................................................................................................31 Earth Oven or Hearth?...................................................................................................................33 Archaeology ± Na Masimasi, Unit N18.........................................................................................35 Stratigraphy........................................................................................................................35 Ceramics and Lithics..........................................................................................................37 Vertebrate Fauna................................................................................................................38 Invertebrate Fauna.............................................................................................................39 Fire-cracked Rock (FCR)...................................................................................................40 Archaeology ± Wai Turuturu East, Unit J18.................................................................................41 Stratigraphy........................................................................................................................41 Artifacts/Ecofacts...............................................................................................................42 Ceramics and Lithics..........................................................................................................43 Vertebrate Fauna................................................................................................................44 Invertebrate Fauna.............................................................................................................46 Fire-cracked Rock (FCR)...................................................................................................47 5. DISCUSSION............................................................................................................................48 Discussion of Case Studies............................................................................................................48 Evaluation......................................................................................................................................53 6. CONCLUSION..........................................................................................................................55 REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................58 v LIST OF TABLES 4.1 Measurements of hearth dimensions and lovo diameters from Nayau.................................28 4.2 Distances between lovo and either kitchen or main house...................................................28 4.3 Ethnographic measurements of lovo from Cicia..................................................................30 4.4 Comparative characteristics of lovo and hearths..................................................................33 4.5 Comparison of artifacts/ecofacts from NMMY Unit N18....................................................36 4.6 Pottery attributes of sherds from NMMY Unit N18.............................................................36 4.7 Vertebrate fauna from NMMY Unit N18............................................................................38 4.8 Invertebrate fauna from NMMY Unit N18..........................................................................38 4.9 Compilation of artifacts/ecofacts from WTTE Unit J18.......................................................42 4.10 Diagnostic attributes of pottery from WTTE Unit J18.........................................................42 4.11 Vertebrate fauna from WTTE Unit J18................................................................................43 4.12 Invertebrate fauna from WTTE Unit J18..............................................................................45 5.1 Comparison