American Journal of Physical Anthropology
HINTS OF DIASPORA
Archaeologists found the remains
of at least 180 people – European,
Indian and African – near the
ruins of a colonial church in
Campeche, Mexico.
Posted on 01/31/2006 3:29:26 AM PST by Pharmboy
American Journal of Physical Anthropology
HINTS OF DIASPORA
Archaeologists found the remains
of at least 180 people – European,
Indian and African – near the
ruins of a colonial church in
Campeche, Mexico.
While remodeling the central plaza in Campeche, a Mexican port city that dates back to colonial times, a construction crew stumbled on the ruins of an old church and its burial grounds. Researchers who were called in discovered the skeletal remains of at least 180 people, and four of those studied so far bear telling chemical traces that are in effect birth certificates.
The particular mix of strontium in the teeth of the four, the researchers concluded, showed that they were born and spent their early years in West Africa. Some of their teeth were filed and chipped to sharp edges in a decorative practice characteristic of Africa.
Because other evidence indicated that the cemetery was in use starting around 1550, the archaeologists believe they have found the earliest remains of African slaves brought to the New World.
In a report to be published in The American Journal of Physical Anthropology, the archaeology team led by T. Douglas Price of the University of Wisconsin concluded, "Thus these individuals are likely to be among the earliest representatives of the African diaspora in the Americas, substantially earlier than the subsequent, intensive slave trade in the 18th century."
Dr. Price said last week that a more precise dating would be attempted soon with radiocarbon analysis of the excavated bones. Maps and other records of Campeche, on the Yucatán Peninsula, indicate that the burial ground was used from the mid-16th century into the 17th. A pre-1550 medallion was found in a grave.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Does anyone think it a bit odd that the map shows a slave route from a PORTUGESE town (Elmina) in Africa to a SPANISH colony? Portugal's slaves usually went to Portugal's colonies. And if they barely know the African slaves are West African, how do they know they came from Elmina?
Y'know, that struck me a bit also, though I rationalized it by thinking that merchants sell their "goods" wherever there's a market. So, at that time, I imagine that the Portuguese were the main slavers.
OK, I see the connection now. I didn't realize that Strontium was used to monitor mobility.
The taking of prisoners as slaves from enemy tribes and conquered peoples existed among the West Africans, and for that matter among ancient Europeans (Greeks and Romans) and Native Americans, from time immemorial. In the late 1600's English peasants who supported the failed insurrection of the Duke of Monmouth against King James II were condemned to slavery and shipped off to the Caribbean en masse to cut sugar cane on English plantations. But the industrial scale business of supplying tens of thousands of African slaves to Portuguese, Spanish, and British colonies in the New World was organized and overseen by Arabs.
This is not to discount the shameful participation of Christian Europeans, but ignoring or discounting the responsibility of muslims is like overlooking the role drug kingpins play in supplying crack in favor of condemning only the street corner vendors.
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Very interesting find
"How do they know that they spent their early years in Africa? They could have already been here and filed their teeth here."
chemical signatures of their teeth
Portugal and Spain were at this time bitter New World rivals. It is unlikely (though not impossible) that Portuguese slavers sold slaves to the Spanish, and very unlikely that any slaves in Mexico could be traced back to a Portuguese port. Plus, why no mention in the article of the extensive Aztec slaveholdings?
Yeah...you make good points. My expertise is pretty much limited to the time between the French and Indian War through General Washington's death, so I can't do much more than speculate on this stuff, which is always dangerous.
You are probably right--very interesting point you raise.
Didn't the missionaries use indians for slaves at the missions until they realized indians weren't good under duress? And didn't they import other slaves instead?
Actually the interesting point I raised is that I had to think that way at all. You hear a story like this and the first thing that comes to mind is how can someone use it to stiff someone else out of money in todays courts.
i.l.e., every race has been enslaved at one point or another by every other race. To return to the example in the article, very few Black slaves were transported to Mexico, and Black slavery never really took hold there. Of the Spanish Caribbean colonies, Cuba and Santo Domingo (for practical reasons) were the usual destinations.
Mainly. Not exclusively.
This is the first known case of tooth filing in Europe, but it was common practice in the Americas between AD 800 and 1050. Since the skeletons date from around the same time, this raises the possibility that the Vikings picked up the practice during their travels. Arcini hopes future finds will reveal where the practice arose and how it spread.
This came from the The New Scientist article that blam pointed us to.
Thanks.
The Portuguse(sp) brought a lot of Blacks to Brazil as slaves.
There are more Blacks in Brazil today than any other country outside of Africa.
Remember that from 1580 until 1640, Portugal was ruled by the King of Spain and incorporated into the Spanish Empire due to the death of the Portuguese line and the inheritance of the throne by the Spanish monarch, closest in bloodline.
It's a bit like Northern Europe. The Dutch and British were bitter rivals, with the Dutch at one point surging into the mouth of the Thames and burning the port of London! But then Wilhelm IV of Holland became William III of England, and Holland and England were at peace under the reign of the House of Orange. Rivals in trade? Yes. But still fundamentally allied and incorporated into one another's overall defense systems and trading empire.
Other than during the period of the "Spanish Captivity" of Portugal, from 1580 to 1640.
Most interesting.
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