The Archaeology of Tanamu 1

Presenting results from Tanamu 1, the first site to be published in detail in the Caution Bay Studies in Archaeology series. Yielding well-provenanced and finely dated assemblages of ceramics, faunal remains, and stone and shell artefacts, these remarkable sites extend the range of the Lapita cultural complex to the south coast of Pa

The Archaeology of Tanamu 1 presents the results from Tanamu 1, the first site to be published in detail in the Caution Bay Studies in Archaeology series. In 2008-2010, the Caution Bay Archaeological Project excavated 122 stratified sites 20km northwest of Port Moresby, south coast of Papua New Guinea. This remains the largest archaeological salvage program ever undertaken in the country. Yielding well-provenanced and finely dated assemblages of ceramics, faunal remains, and stone and shell artefacts, this remarkable set of sites has extended the geographical range of the Lapita cultural complex to not only the mainland of Papua New Guinea, but more remarkably to its south coast, at Australia’s doorstep. At least as important has been the discovery of rich and well-defined layers deposited up to c. 1700 years before the emergence of Lapita in the Bismarck Archipelago, providing insights into pre-ceramic cultural practices on the Papua New Guinea south coast. Sites and layers interdigitate across the Caution Bay landscape to reveal a 5000-year story, each site contributing unique details of the grander narrative. Positioned near the coast on a sand ridge, Tanamu 1 contains three clear occupational layers: a pre-Lapita horizon (c. 4050-5000 cal BP), a Late Lapita horizon (c. 2750-2800 cal BP), and sparser later materials capped by a dense ethnohistoric layer deposited in the past 100-200 years. Fine-grained excavation methods, detailed specialist analyses and a robust chronostratigraphy allows for a full and transparent presentation of data to start laying the building blocks for the Caution Bay story.

Chapter 1. Emerging Out of Lapita at Caution Bay - Bruno David, Ken Aplin, Cassandra Rowe, Matthew Leavesley, Katherine Szabo, Thomas Richards, Ian J. McNiven, Fiona Petchey and Herman Mandui Chapter 2. Tanamu 1: A 5000 Year Sequence from Caution Bay - Bruno David, Thomas Richards, Ian J. McNiven, Ken Aplin, Fiona Petchey, Katherine Szabo, Jerome Mialanes, Cassandra Rowe, Bryce Barker, Sean P. Connaughton, Matthew Leavesley, Herman Mandui and Chris Jennings Chapter 3. The Ceramics of Tanamu - Bruno David and Holly Jones-Amin Chapter 4. The Stone Artefacts of Tanamu - Jerome Mialanes, Anne Ford, Bradley Goodall, Maria Codlin, Mark McCoy, Glenn Summerhayes, Bruno David, Thomas Richards and Ian J. McNiven Chapter 5. The Molluscan Remains of Tanamu 1: Subsistence and Resource Habitats - Brit Asmussen, Patrick Faulkner, Katherine Szabo and Sean Ulm Chapter 6. The Non-molluscan Faunal Remains of Tanamu 1: Implications for Site Taphonomy, Environmental Change, and Resource Exploitation - Ken Aplin Chapter 7. The Worked Shell of Tanamu - Katherine Szabo Chapter 8. Tanamu 1: Conclusions and Future Directions - Katherine Szabo, Bruno David, Ian J. McNiven and Matthew Leavesley Appendix A. Chert Fracture Types by XU, Tanamu 1 Square A Appendix B. Chert Fracture Types by XU, Tanamu 1 Square B Appendix C. Mollusc Weight (g) per XU for Tanamu 1 Square A Appendix D. Mollusc MNI per XU for Tanamu 1 Square A Appendix E. Mollusc Weight (g) per XU for Tanamu 1 Square B Appendix F. Mollusc MNI per XU for Tanamu 1 Square B Appendix G. Non-molluscan Faunal Remains by Weight per XU, Tanamu 1 Square A Appendix H. Non-molluscan Faunal Remains by Weight per XU, Tanamu 1 Square B Appendix I. Representation of Burning Categories in Bone by Weight, Tanamu 1 Square A Appendix J. Terrestrial Vertebrate Taxa per XU, Tanamu 1 Squares A and B Appendix K. Large Vertebrate Remains Encountered During Excavation of the Stepping-out Squares Appendix L. Occurrence of Fish Family and Crab Taxa by XU in Square A References, Chapter 1. Emerging Out of Lapita at Caution Bay – Bruno David, Ken Aplin, Cassandra Rowe, Matthew Leavesley, Katherine Szabó, Thomas Richards, Ian J. McNiven, Fiona Petchey and Herman ManduiBruno David, Thomas Richards, Ian J. McNiven, Ken Aplin, Fiona Petchey, Katherine Szabó, Jerome Mialanes, Cassandra Rowe, Bryce Barker, Sean P. Connaughton, Matthew Leavesley, Herman Mandui and Chris JenningsBruno David and Holly Jones-AminJerome Mialanes, Anne Ford, Bradley Goodall, Maria Codlin, Mark McCoy, Glenn Summerhayes, Bruno David, Thomas Richards and Ian J. McNivenBrit Asmussen, Patrick Faulkner, Katherine Szabó and Sean UlmKen AplinKatherine SzabóKatherine Szabó, Bruno David, Ian J. McNiven and Matthew Leavesley