Neutron Activation Analysis Reveals Jamaican Origin of Afro-Caribbean Ware Excavated from the Cayman Islands

Abstract

Afro-Caribbean ware is Caribbean-made pottery manufactured both at the craft and industrial scale by enslaved and free potters of African descent. Previous sourcing studies have shown historic variation in centers of production and market distribution of these wares across the Caribbean. We used Neutron Activation Analysis (NAA) on a clay sample and 13 low-fired coarse earthenware sherds excavated from the historic-period Jackson Wall Manor site on Grand Cayman. We found that the Grand Cayman clay was compositionally inconsistent with any previously analysed ceramic sherds in the University of Missouri Research Reactor (MURR) NAA Caribbean database, and that the ceramic samples excavated on Grand Cayman showed high statistical correlation with Jamaican ceramic groups. These findings suggest that coarse earthenware on Grand Cayman was transported from Jamaica, a nearby colony with established potteries and markets, rather than being produced locally. Jamaican yabbas, which combined African and European manufacturing technique and forms, were imported into Grand Cayman to fit local needs.