The Earliest Inhabitants: The Dynamics of the Jamaican Taino

The basic principle of separation of macrofossils employed was that of
dispersion, wash-over and flotation (Kenward, Hall and Jones 1980).
In the present case, successive subsamples were weighed out in 0.50-kg lots
and dispersed in a 5-litre bucket of water. The material was stirred in with
the water to ensure thorough mixing, and large inclusions such as stones, pot
and large shells were removed manually.
Floating and suspended material was decanted into nested sieves, the heavier
residue remaining in the bottom of the bucket. Flot was collected in a
500-µm mesh, which was adequate for retaining most seeds. A 4.75-mm
mesh was placed on top to screen out roots and other coarse matter.
Flot was resuspended in water when necessary, to clean it before decanting
it into sieves to rinse out the silt. The flot was then allowed to dry on
newspaper before sorting.
Residue remaining in the bottom of the original bucket used for flotation
was washed through nested sieves to facilitate sorting. Clogging of the sieves
was a problem, so it was necessary to experiment with additional, coarser
sieves to retain slowly disaggregating, coarse particles as well as a few remaining
fibrous roots. Choice of meshes was pragmatic: the finest used was
500-µm. Coarser ones used ranged through 2 mm up to 4.75 mm. Different
sieve fractions were allowed to dry on separate sheets of newspaper to aid subsequent
sorting of contents.
All the material thus obtained was sorted into categories using a low-power
lens for coarser material (larger pieces of charcoal, bone and shell), and a
stereoscopic microscope with a zoom magnification set at H 0.7 or slightly
higher for fine material (seeds, insects, smaller shells and charcoal fragments).
Identifications are provisional, but every attempt was made to check with
local specialists where appropriate.
Results
Fibrous roots formed a conspicuous component of the sample, warning of
the likelihood of recent organic intrusion. Of the botanical remains, the most
interesting finds are the fragments of wood charcoal. Two seeds that were
found were probably of recent origin. Of the zoological remains, the bones
and shells are probably reliable indicators of ancient human activity. The
insects and other arthropods can probably be safely dismissed as more recent
intrusions. Quantities are listed in Table 3.1.
T HE P RE-COLUMBIAN S ITE OF C HANCERY H ALL,ST A NDREW
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