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The Soldier Ghaut Petroglyphs on Montserrat, Lesser Antilles

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 February 2021

John F. Cherry ,
Krysta Ryzewski Open the ORCID record for Krysta Ryzewski [Opens in a new window] ,
Susana Guimarães ,
Christian Stouvenot  and
Sarita Francis
John F. Cherry
Affiliation:
Joukowsky Institute for Archaeology and the Ancient World, Brown University, Providence, RI02912, USA ([email protected])
Krysta Ryzewski*
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, Wayne State University, DetroitMI48202, USA
Susana Guimarães
Affiliation:
Musée Edgar Clerc, Conseil départemental de la Guadeloupe, Conservatrice du parc archéologique des Roches Gravées, Guadeloupe ([email protected])
Christian Stouvenot
Affiliation:
Service Régional de l'Archéologie de la Guadeloupe, French Ministry of Culture, CNRS UMR 8096 ARCHAM ([email protected])
Sarita Francis
Affiliation:
Montserrat National Trust, Olveston, Montserrat ([email protected])
*
([email protected], corresponding author)
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Abstract

Only five years ago, Montserrat was a blank spot on the distribution map of islands in the Lesser Antilles where petroglyphs were known. In January 2016, hikers in Soldier Ghaut, a deeply incised watercourse in the northwest of the island, came upon a panel of nine petroglyphs engraved on a nearly vertical wall of volcanoclastic tuff. Soon afterward the petroglyphs were documented by the Survey and Landscape Archaeology on Montserrat project (SLAM). Then in January 2018 an additional petroglyph was spotted on a large slab of rock, detached from the rock wall on the opposite side of the ghaut. At the invitation of the Montserrat National Trust (MNT) and with European Union funding, Susana Guimarães and Christian Stouvenot traveled to Montserrat in 2018 to assist in further studies at the site. They conducted photogrammetric documentation and photography under enhanced lighting conditions and inspected the petroglyphs and their context in detail in order to advise MNT about their conservation and provisions for public access. This report presents this new group of petroglyphs and their landscape setting and considers questions of dating and interpretation.

Hace tan solo cinco años, Montserrat era un vacío en el mapa de distribución de petroglifos en las islas de las Antillas Menores. En enero del 2016 unos senderistas se toparon con nueve petroglifos tallados en una pared de toba volcánica casi vertical y llana en Soldier Ghaut, una rivera angosta y profunda en el noroeste de la isla. Luego, el proyecto Survey and Landscape Archaeology on Montserrat (SLAM) los documentó. En enero del 2018, otro petroglifo más fue divisado en una roca que se había desprendido de la pared de toba en el lado opuesto del ghaut. Invitados por el Montserrat National Trust (MNT) y con fondos de la Unión Europea, Susana Guimarães y Christian Stouvenot viajaron de Guadalupe a Montserrat en junio del 2018 para realizar más estudios del sitio. Con la asistencia de SLAM, llevamos a cabo documentación fotogramétrica y tomamos fotografías con iluminación artificial; también inspeccionamos los petroglifos y su contexto en detalle con el fin de aconsejar al MNT sobre su conservación y sobre posible planes para ofrecer acceso al público. Aquí presentamos este nuevo grupo de petroglifos en su contexto y paisaje y consideramos cuestiones de datación e interpretación.

Keywords

CaribbeanMontserratprehispanicpetroglyphsCaribeMontserratprehispánicopetroglifos
Type
Report
Information
Latin American Antiquity , Volume 32 , Issue 2 , June 2021 , pp. 422 - 430
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the Society for American Archaeology

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References

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