“Left for the Tide to Take Back”: Specialized Processing of Seals on Machias Bay, Maine

ABSTRACT

Archaeological investigations at Holmes Point West (Maine site 62-8) on the eastern Maine coast yielded evidence of different processing and disposal practices for two seal species: gray seal (Halichoerus grypus) and harbor seal (Phoca vitulina). The site is associated with a ritually charged place, near an unusual concentration of petroglyphs (rock art) on Machias Bay. The faunal remains are interpreted in the context of Algonquin oral traditions emphasizing respect for the spirit of hunted animals, including the return of the bones of marine animals to the sea. Short of finding discarded bones directly in the sea, it may be difficult to identify and discern the impact of such behaviors, with accidental losses of marine faunal elements on terrestrial occupation sites providing only muted evidence. However, other practices such as retention and protection of specific bone elements can provide a means to evaluate off-site deposition and relationships between ritual and subsistence practices. Here we explore evidence that preferential retention of the left temporal bone (including the distinctive auditory bulla) of the large gray seal represents intentional selection and retention of a skeletal element, with other bones likely left where butchered “for the tide to take back to the ocean.”

Keywords:

• zooarchaeology
• taphonomy-formation processes
• Northeast
• cosmology
• coastal

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The faunal remains from 1973 were excavated under the direction of Robert Mackay and the University of Maine field school. Eric Lahti excavated Feature 73-3 in 1973 and assisted in relocating those excavations in 2008. The faunal sample was rescued from classroom use by Steven Bicknell. Of the authors, Ingraham conducted the analysis of the 1973 material that provided the basis of the study, Robinson elaborated on cultural and site interpretation, Sobolik was the lead zooarchaeologist, and Heller, a doctoral candidate in zooarchaeology, worked on both the 1973 and subsequently excavated faunal samples. We thank the Passamaquoddy Tribal Historic Preservation Office for collaboration on the Machias Petroglyph Project, and private land owners who have been very generous over the years. Arthur Spiess consulted on seal bone identification. David Sanger gave permission to cite unpublished papers, Nicholas Smith to cite personal communications, and Donald Soctomah to use a quotation as the title of the paper. Ann Surprenant, Matthew Betts, Mark Hedden and three anonymous reviewers provided valuable comments. Research on this project was funded by the Climate Change Institute and the Maine Academic Prominence Initiative (MAPI), which supports the field school. The authors are responsible for all shortcomings.