Crossing the Borders: New Methods and Techniques in the Study of Archaeological Materials from the Caribbean

96 / Benoît Bérard
thick flakes produced during the first phase. This work is realized by the bipolar
technique using a preferential striking platform (Figure 7.2a). The knappers try to
obtain small straight flakes. That second phase of the débitage, which is recurrent
and well organized, is realized more carefully. The very small size of some cores
implies the use of some specific prehensile systems.
Different elements can be highlighted in that short presentation. The method
of reduction is relatively simple. The reduction process is very short, and, in general,
only a few products are obtained (especially during the first phase). However,
the method used is really efficient and quick: a minimum of time and of percussion
instances is necessary to obtain a small set of flakes. Even though the early
Cedrosan Saladoid reduction strategies are simple and poorly organized, they are
not entirely opportunistic. This is proven by the clear articulation existing between
the two goals described above. Rather than opportunism, the débitage reveals
that the knappers have a large freedom of action, freedom linked with a
low level of social and cultural investment. The most characteristic element is the
knapping of the small flakes by the bipolar technique. I will try to see now if that
cultural investment is sufficient to support our comparative study.
Huecan Saladoid Knapping Technology
The presentation here of the Huecan Saladoid reduction technique is based on the
analysis of a collection coming from the site of La Cathédrale de Basse- Terre in
Guadeloupe. The site was excavated in 2002 under the direction of Bonnissent and
Romon. 3 It is composed of an Early Ceramic Age occupation partially disturbed by
a colonial cemetery. The débitage remains presented here come from the test pits 1
(a 2 x 2 m test pit) and 7 (a 3 x 5 m test pit). Two occupational levels, none clearly
individualized, constitute the Amerindian occupation of that site. Following the
analysis of the ceramic remains (Bonnissent in Bonnissent and Romon 2004), the
lower level is associated to the Huecan Saladoid subseries and the upper one is considered
as a mix or a transitional level associating elements linked to the Huecan
and the Cedrosan subseries. At this stage, I have not been able to identify a pertinent
technical variation in the lithic collection associated with that chronological
or spatial division, therefore I will make a global presentation of the débitage remains
coming from the two test pits and the two levels. Two hundred and forty
eight pieces of débitage constitute that collection.
The raw materials used are mainly Long Island (Antigua) flint (64 percent).
This type of flint is characterized by the presence of a white chalky cortex and
a clear brown to dark gray color. Long Island is the major source of siliceous raw
materials for the northern part of the Lesser Antilles (see Knippenberg this volume).
Igneous stones (andesite and basalt, 10 percent), red jasper (7 percent), and
a set of amorphous silicifications (sedimentary or hydrothermal) compose the rest
of the sample. Igneous stones can be found around 10 km away from the site to the
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