Tropical Foodways and Exchange along the Coastal Margin of Northeastern New Guinea. (2nd October 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Gaffney, Dylan; Greig, Karen; Stoddart, Debbie; Tromp, Monica; Field, Judith H.; Luu, Sindy; Coster, Adelle C. F.; Russell, Tristan; Mandui, Herman; Summerhayes, Glenn R.
• Is Part Of: Journal of field archaeology. Volume 45:Number 7(2020)
• Page Start: 498
• Page End: 511
• Publication Date: 2020-10-02
• Subjects: dental calculus analysis -- starch analysis -- pottery residue -- zooarchaeology -- Madang -- Pacific; Archaeology -- Periodicals; Archaeology -- Methodology -- Periodicals; 930.105
• DOI: 10.1080/00934690.2020.1786285
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0093-4690

Abstract

ABSTRACT: New Guinea was host to some of the most complex maritime interaction networks in the tropics. We take a multi-proxy approach to investigate the foodways at the heart of the extensive Madang exchange network in the last millennium before the present: 1) invertebrate zooarchaeological analysis identifies the dependence on shellfish collecting from the coral reef and sandy floor littoral zone; 2) examination of vertebrate remains demonstrates the rearing and consumption of key domesticated animals (pigs and perhaps dogs), alongside reef fish, birds, and possibly snakes; 3) human dental calculus analysis distinguishes that marine plants, palm, betelnut, and probably banana were consumed; 4) pottery residue analysis suggests that a variety of starchy crops were being cooked in locally made ceramics. We use this information to develop interpretations about the nature of land-use, mobility, and exchange along New Guinea's coastal fringe, as well as how foodways have transformed throughout the Late Holocene.