Pointe de Caille. Desarrollo cultural postsaladoide en la isla de Saint Lucia

This book presents the results of an excavation at the prehistoric settlement of Pointe de Caille, on the Atlantic coast in the south of the island of Saint Lucia, carried out by the University of Vienna. The archaeological excavations in this settlement are the most extensive ever undertaken in the Lesser Antilles. They resulted in the discovery of a more than 800-year habitation of an area, from, according to carbon 14 analyses, the 6th/7th centuries to the 13th/14th centuries AD that was previously almost unknown archaeologically. A settlement of such longevity, extending over the whole Postsaladoid era, is exceptional in the Caribbean, and in contrast to the previous Saladoid era, exhibits a great cultural diversity. This study focuses on answering the many questions associated with this development as well as the social and cultural changes which took place during this long period. The changes are particularly marked in funerary customs since from the Saladoid Period to the late Suazoid a gradual development towards a more socio-politically complicated structure is especially noticeable. This monograph concentrates on both architecture and tombs, and documents the entire archaeological remains of this Caribbean material culture. Ceramic objects comprise both objects of daily use and those of ceremonial character, and the method used in the study of these ceramics led to a detailed analysis of pottery traditions and their development. Based on the results obtained, different forms of exchange between the prehistoric people of Saint Lucia and inhabitants of the other areas of the West Indies could be identified, together with differing phases of intensity over time. In addition long distance exchange of prestige objects could be noticed; thus contacts and transfers of ideas throughout the Caribbean between the Greater Antilles and the South American continent were detected. The book contains a CD-ROM of the entire study material with numerous charts and graphs thus facilitating future studies into the native cultures of the West Indies.