Dig Casts New Light On Indian Culture

Archaeologist Martin Gallivan was online Wednesday, Aug. 22 at 2 p.m. ET to take your questions about new findings at Werowocomoco, the capital city of the Algonquian tribe, and what they reveal about the history of Virginia Indian culture.

A transcript follows.

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Shepherd Park, D.C.: It's not surprising to hear about an unexpectedly advanced culture being found in coastal Virginia. Are you familiar with the book "1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus" by Charles C. Mann? He describes the precolombian cultures of the Americas as being very advanced and widespread and cites evidence that these cultures were almost completely wiped out by diseases brought by the earliest European explorers.

Martin Gallivan: Greetings... Martin Gallivan here. Great question. I do know Mann's book entitled "1491" and enjoyed reading it. Mann highlights the complex and dynamic histories of Native societies throughout the Americas prior to colonial contact. Werowocomoco is really another chapter in this story. Virginia Algonquians were creating immense, even monumental spaces at the site for generations prior to Jamestown's settlement in 1607. In fact, Werowocomoco has a history of at least 400 years as a powerful capital prior to 1607.

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Martin Gallivan: Greetings This is an exciting opportunity to interact with folks who have read Brigid Schulte's excellent story about Werowocomoco this morning.

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Washington, D.C.: How does the site at Werewocomoco compare to the site at Jamestown?

Martin Gallivan: Both Jamestown and Werowocomoco are highly significant sites. Though the history of these two places is closely intertwined during the early 1600s, each invokes different historical narratives. The story of Jamestown - how 100 English men and boys established the first successful English colony in North America despite incredible hardship - is a compelling one. It's a story often told in terms of the origins of America or of American democracy. Werowocomoco reminds of other historical narratives that are often dealt with in a cursory fashion today. Werowocomoco's archaeology reflects a long history of Native life in Tidewater Virginia - stretching back over 10,000 years. It's a dynamic history with constant changes in Native lifeways. Werowocomoco tells us that the ancestors of the Powhatans invested thousands on man hours cutting down trees and reconfiguring spaces at the site. After AD 1200 the site appears as a truly monumental place of periodic ceremony involving Natives from across the region. By the early 1600s the Jamestown colonists not only forged a colony out the wilderness but also invaded a homeland occupied for hundreds of generations.

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Williamsburg, Va.: Can you tell us more about the people involved with the actual excavations of the site?

Martin Gallivan: The hard work of excavating this large and complicated site has been done, for the most part by William & Mary students who enroll in my summer field school class. The basic idea of the class is that students learn how to do archaeology in the context of participating in an on-going research project. The work is hard and the conditions are challenging. It's not unusual for the temperature to approach 100 degrees with high humidity. I'm continuously impressed with the William and Mary students who have made the project a success.

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Arlington, Va.: How did you find the students pictured in the Post article who worked at the Werewocomoco site with you?

Martin Gallivan: The students pictured in the Post photo include William and Mary undergraduates and members of the Pamunkey tribe. The William and Mary students are all participants in my archaeological field methods class. We've involved contemporary Virginia tribes, including the Pamunkey, in the project from the beginning. Ashley (wearing a brown shirt) has just started graduate school here at William & Mary. I'm excited to have Ashley join us not only because she's smart as a whip and works hard, but she's also a member of the Pamunkey tribe. As both a scholar and a descendant of the Powhatans who originally occupied Tidewater Virginia Ashley will undoubtedly have a different set of questions to the research.

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Alexandria, Va.: Can you tell us a little about the eight-tribe advisory council? What kind of guidance (if any) do you expect and/or get from them?

Martin Gallivan: Prior to beginning the excavations at Werowocomoco we recognized that the project offered the opportunity for a new kind of archaeology that is fundamentally collaborative. The advisory council to the project consists of representatives from contemporary Virginia Indian tribes descended from the Powhatans. These include the Pamunkey, Mattaponi, Upper Mattaponi, Chickahominy, Nansemond, and Rappahannock tribes. The advisory council has supported the research by providing advice with regard to how the site should be investigated and represented.

Our Virginia Indian partners work not only with me, but also with the other scholars in the Werowocomoco Research Group, as Brigid outlined in her story. In fact, I'm but one member of the team. For the past five years I've worked alongside colleagues at William and Mary, the Virginia Department of Historic Resources, and members of the Virginia tribes. The Werowocomoco Research Group includes Randy Turner, Danielle Moretti-Langholtz Dave Brown, and Thane Harpole. Bob and Lynn Ripley, who own the property, have also been exemplary stewards of the site and gracious hosts of the team. Every summer dozens of William and Mary field school students descend on the site, and the Ripleys not only put up with us, but they put us up in a farmhouse near the site.

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Wheaton, Md.: What are some of the most significant objects that have been found so far during the excavations?

Martin Gallivan: The most important objects we've found are probably the pieces of copper traded by the English to Powhatan at Werowocomoco. We know that Powhatan demanded - and received - such objects over the course of six meetings with the English at Werowocomoco from 1607 to 1609. Copper played a role as a high status items among the Powhatans. In fact, Powhatan controlled the flow of copper from the English into the region during the early days of the colonial era.

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Washington, D.C.: How long,prior to the arrival of the English, had Powhatan had his capital at Werowocomoco? Why do you think he left when he did?

Martin Gallivan: The site was occupied by Native communities for literally thousands of years prior to 1607. The archaeology we've done recently indicates that the village included monumental landscape features for 400 years prior to 1607. Powhatan himself probably came to Werowocomoco in the late 1500s. He likely moved there from his original home on the James River because it was a powerful ceremonial location.

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Fairfax, Va.: Do you have any sense yet what Werowocomoco can tell us about changing population concentrations and cultural influences in eastern Virginia -- given the size and age of the site, could it reflect Mississippian influences like those farther south?

Martin Gallivan: The evidence does not include any evidence of a connection to the Mississippian world of the Southeast, though it's now clear that the Powhatans constructed ceremonial places using earthworks and ditches that that paralleled the complex native societies of that area.

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Washington, D.C.: What type of ceremonies do you think took place in the holy space beyond the ditches that you have unearthed at Werewocomoco?

Martin Gallivan: It's difficult to say with any certainty what sort of ceremonies were held at Werowocomoco prior to 1607. The artifacts we've found include unusual pottery that was likely used in periodic feasts at the village. The Jamestown colonists did witness a male rite of passage (the Huskanaw) which took place in important Powhatan villages like Werowocomoco. The ceremony started at the edge of the village in a large circular track similar to the ditches we've found at Werowocomoco. feasts were a central part of these events. It's possible that similar sorts of rituals brought people to Werowocomoco.

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Political Correctness, USA: Any reason the article and the chat referred to the people as "Indians" rather than "Native Americans"?

When I opened the article, my immediate thought was about the Asian Indians, not the Native Americans.

Martin Gallivan: Finding the right term to apply to the indigenous societies of the Americas and their descendants is not easy. Like most archaeologists, I generally use the terms Indians or Natives alongside the names of specific communities like the Pamunkey or Mattaponi. Though contemporary Virginia Indians don't all agree on this, most tell me they prefer the term "Indian".

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Wheaton, Md.: What are some things about the area that makes it a good site for establishing a settlement or town?

Martin Gallivan: Like most villages int the Chesapeake the site is located along a major river -- the York (then called the Pamunkey). The river was the lifeblood of the community as a source of fish and shell fish. It was also a major transportation route. The site has excellent soils for the corn-beans-squash agriculture practiced by the Powhatans. It's next to wetlands -- loaded with useful plants and a great place to hunt. There are several fresh water springs. It's also elevated about 25 feet above the adjacent landscape and surrounded on three sides by water. It's easy to see whose approaching the village well before they arrive.

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Silver Spring, Md.: What are the prospects of the site being made public property and turned into an officially designated national historic site?

Martin Gallivan: The prospects are good. While there are plenty of historic sites that celebrate Euro-American history there are precious few that highlight native history. Werowocomoco is one such place.

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Toano, Va.: How are the William and Mary students involved? Must be an amazing opportunity to participate in this kind of research as a college student.

Martin Gallivan: Most of the William and students sign up for a summer field methods course and learn how to dig while assisting in the research. We also have graduate students at the college who work with me to teach the students basic archaeology. It's an incredible enjoyable experience. I'm fortunate to have the opportunity to do this for a living.

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Martin Gallivan: I'll sign off... Thanks for the thoughtful questions. This was fun (though I haven't typed this much this fast since I wrote my dissertation!)

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