ABSTRACT. Archaeologists for the past half century have considered bowhead whding to be an important and integral part of Thule Eskimo subsistence. This position has come into question recently. Arguments are set forth favoring the predominant archaeological view that bowheads were hunted and extensively used during the period A.D. 1000-1300 in much of the Canadian Arctic. Direct, indirect, and circumstantial evidence is outlined, ranging from the presence of whaling gear and graphic whaling depictions to arguments of resource maximization and ample storage capacity at Thule winter sites. Differences in interpreting the Thule record appear to reflect different methodological approaches of ethnologists and archaeologists.
Changes according to elevation in frequencies of naturally stranded bowhead whale (Balaena mysticetus) remains on Holocene beaches in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago (CAA) closely parallel previously reported temporal changes in frequencies of independently radiocarbon-dated bowhead remains from these same beaches. Specifically, on the basis of emergence curves determined for 10 localities surveyed in the CAA, stranded whale remains tend to be relatively common in beaches dating to approximately 2500 -5500 B.P. and those older than 8000 B.P., but relatively rare in beaches dating to 0 -2500 B.P. and 5500 -8000 B.P. The former beaches apparently developed primarily during periods of relatively ice-free summer conditions, while the latter developed during periods of relatively pervasive summer sea ice that prevented bowheads from entering the region. Length-based mortality profiles of the stranded whale assemblages suggest that random processes, such as ice entrapment, were responsible for the death of most whales found on these beaches.RÉSUMÉ. Des changements en fonction de l'altitude dans la fréquence de restes de baleines boréales (Balaena mysticetus) sur les plages de l'holocène situées dans l'archipel Arctique canadien (AAC) correspondent de près aux changements temporels rapportés précédemment dans la fréquence des restes de baleine boréale datés indépendamment au radiocarbone trouvés sur ces mêmes plages. Plus précisément, en se fondant sur les courbes d'émersion déterminées pour dix localités étudiées dans l'AAC, les restes de baleine échouées ont tendance à être assez communs sur les plages qui datent d'environ 2500 à 5500 BP et sur celles qui remontent à plus de 8000 BP, tandis qu'ils sont relativement rares sur les plages qui datent de 0 à 2500 BP et de 5500 à 8000 BP. Les premières plages auraient été créées surtout durant des périodes où il n'y avait pratiquement pas de glace estivale, tandis que les dernières se seraient formées au cours de périodes où la glace d'été envahissante empêchait les baleines boréales de pénétrer dans cette zone. Les profils de mortalité des assemblages de baleines échouées, profils fondés sur la longueur, suggèrent que des processus aléatoires, tels que l'enfermement dans la glace, ont été responsables de la mort de la plupart des baleines trouvées sur ces plages.Mots clés: baleine boréale, changement climatique, holocène, profils de mortalité, glace marine Traduit pour la revue Arctic par Nésida Loyer.
Bowhead whale bones in prehistoric Thule Eskimo contexts have been examined since 1975 in the central Canadian Arctic. Approximately 10,500 bones, representing almost 1000 animals, have been counted on the shores of six adjacent islands. Comparisons of Thule-derived bowhead samples with live Beaufort Sea samples and Early Holocene samples indicate that Thule Eskimo hunters selected yearlings and two- to three-year-old subadults, to the almost complete exclusion of calves and adults. Almost all bowheads found at Thule sites measure 7–10 m in length, estimated by regression analyses based on Alaskan bowhead skeletons of known size. Archaeological bowhead bones represent several stages of past hunting and processing behavior, including selective hunting, beach flensing and meal/blubber caching, winter house construction, and bone re-use from house ruins. The availability and abundance of bowheads were primary determinants of Thule subsistence-settlement patterns in this region. Archaeological whale bones arc a nonrenewable cultural resource of the New World Arctic that deserve study and protection.
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