Pre-Colombian Jamaica: Caribbean Archeology and Ethnohistory

184 / Appendix A.
Table 22. Radiocarbon Dates from Newry.
laps with occupation 1 at Green Castle (Y25). The excavated material from all
trenches amounted to about 3,200 potsherds, 580 pieces of chert, some pieces
of coral, and a few other items including ground stone and worked shell. The
pottery is generally similar to that found at Green Castle but there are some
differences of detail.
Lisabeth Carlson (2003b) analyzed the fauna. Five thousand, three hundred
forty- four bones produced a minimum number of individuals (MNI) of
243. There were 27 species of bony fishes and shark, four species of mammal,
seven species of bird, and four species of reptile. In terms of MNI, fish and
shark were predominant, with 150 individuals. Most numerous were groupers
(Serranidae), freshwater sleepers (Eleotridae), and parrot fishes (Scaridae). The
freshwater fauna also included one American eel (Anguilla rostrata). The most
common terrestrial mammal was hutía, with an MNI of 30. It should be noted
that there was also a minimum of 10 iguanas (Cyclura collei), which supports
Johnson’s identification of this species at Cinnamon Hill (J10). Birds are relatively
frequent. They include one specimen of an olive- throated parakeet (Aratinga
nana). As Carlson points out, parrots were a popular trade item among
the Taíno. This parakeet is local to Jamaica, and would have been valued for its
feathers. According to Carlson’s calculations, marine species provided 64 percent
of the usable meat weight consumed at this site, whereas terrestrial species
provided 36 percent. As at other sites investigated by the UWI–Murray State
University team, it was reported that “the density of bone is very high and the
preservation of the pieces of bone is excellent.”
References: AJ 1985, 1 and 2:5; Carlson 2003b.