Island Ecology

	Prehistoric Production and Trade Recent Archaeology on Santa Catalina IslandVirginia Howard University of California Los Angeles, CA
Steatite Quarry, from which bowls and other vessels were carved © 1997 Virginia Howard

UP MOUNTAINS,
     DOWN MOUNTAINS
THROUGH MAZES OF OAK,
     BETWEEN CACTUS,
AROUND THE BISON
     IN SPITE OF SNAKES

During the field seasons of 1995, 1996 and 1997, fearless field crews including archaeologists, Santa Catalina Island's volunteers, UCLA graduate and undergraduate students, and UCLA's Friends of Archaeology, enthusiastically surveyed over 1700 acres, documented over 70 sites and excavated eight sites to better understand the production of steatite (soapstone) vessels (ollas, bowls and comals). The generous support of the Catalina island Conservancy and the National Science Foundation made this effort possible, and they have our sincere gratitude.

Used for storage, cooking and ceremonial functions, these vessels constitute one of the most important trade materials in the Chumash and Gabrielino (Tongva') worlds from circa 1100 A.D. into the Historic era. In Chumash and Tongva' sites on the Southern California mainland, these vessels appear to have been important wealth goods, even when used for utilitarian purposes. Soapstone vessels performed many of the functions normally associated with pottery cookware and storage and may partially account for the absence of pottery development by the Chumash.

Chumash and Tongva' Territories
© 1997 Virginia Howard

The extensive soapstone quarries and mines on Santa Catalina Island constitute the only known worked source for soapstone vessels within the Chumash and Tongva' territories. Thus the Pimugnans (Santa Catalina Island's Tongva' peoples) had a virtual monopoly over the production and exchange of this valuable trade item. What effect did the virtual monopoly have on the socio-economic interaction between the indigenous peoples on Santa Catalina Island, the mainland and other Channel Islands? Did some people become part-time specialists in response to the increasing demand for these high status vessels? Did local chiefs have any control over the production and exchange of these vessels? These issues are linked with the broad theoretical interest in the rise of economic and social complexity in hunting and gathering societies in general, and societies in Southern California specifically.

Evidence of soapstone bowl production still exists on Santa Catalina Island in the form of quarries, mines, debris from shaping the bowls and broken tools. It was these traces of past production activities that the field crews initially located (or relocated) through survey work. Then we documented them by mapping the site, illustrating the extent of the quarry/mine, characterizing the petrology and tool marks present on the outcrop, and describing the types of artifacts associated with the quarry and/or mine. While arduous and time-consuming, this detailed surface survey was necessary if we were to understand the regional extent, and patterning of the production sites.

As a result of the survey effort, seventy-six mining and/or quarry sites were documented. Quarries are soapstone outcrops from which vessels have been carved and removed. While some quarries evidence the removal of one to four vessels, it is not unusual for a quarry to be so intensively worked that more than one layer of vessels has been removed, leaving a concave surface. The removal of bowls from the outcrop results in depressions or "bowl scars", within which the "bowl stub" (a circular neck from undercutting the vessel prior to removal) is often visible. In contrast, the term "mining pit" is used to denote an excavated pit feature created by mining for steatite float (disconnected boulders and cobbles). The natural soapstone cobbles are then further shaped into bowls, ollas, comals and dishes. Quarries and mining pits may occur as separate entities or may be associated in more complex sites.

An interpretive quarry site located at Catalina's Airport-in-the-Sky provides interested individuals with an opportunity to see a vessel quarry. This quarry is a short hike down a marked trail (docents at the Airport can provide additional information). Portions of a soapstone vessel quarry are also available for viewing on Casino point here in Avalon.

The survey results were intriguing. Distinct differences between low and high intensity quarries and mining pits and the associated petrology and artifacts became apparent as site data were collated. These patterns suggested that a shift in production organization, from the domestic mode of production (i.e., where every family crafts its own vessels and perhaps I or 2 to trade) to craft specialization (i.e., where part-time specialists craft vessels for exchange), may have occurred. While intriguing, the survey data alone could not be considered conclusive. A variety of factors can and have influenced the surface deposition of site deposits including unauthorized collecting of artifacts.

A more controlled database than was previously available was required to further address questions of craft specialization. Eight sites, representing the range of site type variation identified by the survey phase, were selected for small scale excavation. Test units were placed in site areas that were most likely to yield the specific types of data we needed to evaluate the presence or absence of craft specialization at a site. These data included: tools used, types of vessels being crafted, material selection, datable materials (i.e., organic materials suitable for Carbon 14 dating, obsidian for obsidian hydration dating, or chronologically diagnostic artifacts), volume of production, and standardization of production methods.

The guiding logic underlying the evaluation process is that if you have part-time craft specialists working at a site, they will work differently than someone that goes to the quarry to craft a single vessel. A craft specialist in order to work more efficiently:

• will be more concerned about the overall quality of an outcrop (after all they anticipate removing many vessels, not just one or two from the rock).
• will likely have special toolkits used to craft vessels only.
• often develops standardized methods of production with high rates of success.
• will craft more than one vessel, and will generate a high volume of production.
• will often have special workshop areas where the production of vessels predominates.

Site excavations have been completed and some of the patterns identified in the survey phase were substantiated by the excavation phase. Laboratory analysis of the excavated material is, however, ongoing, and definitive answers will have await the completion of that analysis. Regardless of the final conclusion on the presence or absence of craft specialization, our project, with the help of over 3 8 volunteers, has been a tremendous success. Data has been gathered that will assist in the greater understanding of site distribution patterns and the range of production activities taking place on Santa Catalina Island. My gratitude goes to the many volunteers that made this project a success!