In 2003 the authors discovered and excavated a Lapita site at Naitabale close to the southern end of Moturiki Island (central Fiji). Today the site is 350 m inland from the coast, but in Lapita times it was located behind the active beach ridge. A large collection of potsherds (including 92 dentate-stamped or incised Lapita sherds), shell, and animal bones was recovered, together with a human burial. Sherd decorations show affinities with the Western Lapita Province rather than the Eastern Lapita Province (which includes Fiji). Temper analyses of 45 Lapita sherds do not show any unmistakably exotic (to Fiji) pottery, but 29 percent are nonlocal to Moturiki and nearby islands. Fish bones are mostly from inshore species (dominated by Scaridae), while nonfish vertebrates are dominated by turtle and include dog and chicken. Shellfish remains are dominated by gastropods, mostly Strombus spp. (43 percent of gastropod MNI). The surf clam (Atactodea striata) accounts for 38 percent of bivalve MNI, with Anadara antiquata and Gafrarium pectinatum each representing 14 percent of the bivalve MNI. The skeleton is that of a woman (Mana) 161–164 cm tall who died at 40–60 years of age. Six radiocarbon dates from bones overlap 2740–2739 cal. years B.P. (790–789 B.C.). The mandible lacks antegonial notches but is not a proper rocker jaw. The cranium was better preserved than any Lapitaassociated skeleton hitherto described, which allowed the head to be reconstructed. Stable-isotope analyses show that her diet contained significant amounts of reef foods but was probably dominated by terrestrial plants. The Lapita occupation of Naitabale is likely to have begun by 2850 cal. years B.P. (900 B.C.). Radiocarbon dates and pottery decorative styles both suggest Naitabale was first occupied within the early part of the Lapita history of Fiji.
A newly-discovered Lapita settlement at Bourewa on southwest Viti Levu Island, Fiji, was established originally on an offshore island perhaps as much as 1220 BCE by people whose main concern was optimal access to the broad fringing reef. Satellite settlements were established at nearby Rove and Waikereira later in Lapita times. The three oldest radiocarbon dates obtainedfrom the base of the tightly-packed shell midden layer excavated at Bourewa and charcoal in the beach sand below are calibrated/corrected to 1220-970 BCE, 1210-940 BCE, and 1130-910 BCE.The BourewaLapita site appears to be the oldest-known in Fiji.
We examine two basalt industry sites, one at Tafuna and one at Pava'ia'i, located on a Holocene lava and pyroclastic plain, several kilometers from potential adze-quality-basalt quarries. Statistical analyses of flakes from two discrete 'workshops' are used to reconstruct the adze production process at each site. The results show that while the Pava'ia'i site was a production site for adzes, the Tafuna site was both a production and reproduction site for adzes and scrapers. This suggests that the basalt-tool production system was diverse and multi-dimensional.Tutuila was an adze production centre in the South Pacific (Best et al. 1992;Clark et al. 1997). Adzes made from the fine basalt of Tutuila were widely distributed in the region between the Solomon Islands and the Cook Islands ( Figure 1) and have thus long been a major focus for understanding long-distance interaction in Oceania.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.