Modeling Amerindian Sea Travel in the Early Colonial Caribbean

摘要: It is difficult to discuss pre-and early post-European contact life in the Caribbean. In part, this is due to the nature of European record keeping, which often failed to fully capture Amerindian practices. Archaeologists have long attempted to resolve these difficulties through the analysis of early colonial Caribbean materials and objects that reflect both Spanish and Amerindian influence. Through the use of computer modeling it is possible to approach this issue from a new perspective, that of discerning mainland–island or inter–island connections across the pre–Columbian and historic divide. Modeling hypothetical canoe routes based on the location of inhabited sites (between 1000 AD–1550 AD) across Trinidad and the mainland coast of South America towards the Windward Islands can help to explore possible avenues of travel that were changed or interrupted during the early colonial period. This paper will …