"We thank you."
Posted on 05/06/2008 10:48:16 AM PDT by blam
45-Foot Ancient Canoe Stuck In The Muck Of Weedon Island
Tampa Bay Online
updated 3:10 p.m. CT, Mon., May. 5, 2008
By KEITH MORELLI of The Tampa Tribune
ST. PETERSBURG - Stuck somewhere in the muck of Weedon Island is a significant piece of history.
A 45-foot canoe, buried for more than a thousand years and used by a long-dead culture of Native Americans, worked its way to the surface, and now authorities are trying to figure out how best to preserve it.
The vessel is carved out of a single pine tree, and archaeologists say it was used to paddle over the open waters of the bay — unlike the other ancient canoes uncovered in Florida over the years, which were used to ply the calmer waters of lakes and rivers.
With the back end of the canoe broken off, it measures 39 feet, 11 inches. If the missing piece was attached, archaeologists estimate 5 more feet would be added to the length. The size of the vessel and configuration of the bow leads archaeologists to think the vessel may have been used to trade with people living some distance away.
"It's the longest prehistoric canoe ever found in the state of Florida," said Weedon Island Preserve Center manager Phyllis Kolianos.
"I think it's fascinating," she said this morning. "I think it's a very important find, and it's very significant. It gives us an understanding that these weren't simple people living here, that they were probably trading with other cultures."
The dugout is the first pre-Columbian seagoing vessel uncovered in Florida. It points to a culture that thrived in what would become the Tampa Bay area and traded with others along the Gulf of Mexico coast and beyond. The influence of the Weedon Island culture
(Excerpt) Read more at msnbc.msn.com ...
This is why you have to shread every scrap of paper today... The historians of the future will dig it out of trash heaps, reconstitute your DNA, and ask you annoying questions about what you used “this” for...
They were advanced enough NOT to use petrified wood for their canoes.
In most cases before the advent of iron tools, fire was used to burn out most of the wood using hot coals.
Bye, Bye Beringia (8,000 Year Old Site In Florida)
* 90 intact human brains that include the oldest DNA samples in the World.
It's not like they had to squeeze it in between American Idol and Dancing with the Stars.
“In most cases before the advent of iron tools, fire was used to burn out most of the wood using hot coals.”
That must have been like examining brand-new horseshoes...
I guess to people that think like you would have them invent the lumber mill and nails first, then build the canoe and be classified as “advanced”. Actually they used what nature had supplied them in their environment. My tribe carved solid canoes out of redwood trees. Although they did not make them 40 feet long, more like 16 to 24 feet.
I will never again refer to Stone Age people as "simple".
“That must have been like examining brand-new horseshoes...”
It doesn’t take long to inspect one of those...lol.
It was a pine tree soft enough to pound out. there are some big oaks and cypress there. They were smart enough not to use them.
Interesting find, but BFD. How do you suppose the Caribbean Islands were populated?
"We thank you."
Who are they voting for in 2008?
By hetrosexuals?
/johnny
That makes sense. Simple cultures use what nature makes available to them, sometimes very effectively, but still remain largely constrained by nature. Advanced cultures developed technologies that allow them to do far more given similar natural endowments.
What kind of pine was it? Not all pine is soft. Ever hear of yellow, or lob-lolly pine? It's quite hard and very common in the south.
Some letters were scratched on the side of the craft that, when fully deciphered, read. “AARP member since 900 a.d.”
Digging Up Coprolites, or How to Make a Living Rooting Around in Old Sewers comes to mind (and leaves just as quickly).
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