Prehistoric Soapstone Mining
Soapstone has been and continues to be an important cultural element
in many native societies. In prehistoric times, it was a highly desired
material for articles such as cooking pots and lamps and symbolic items
such as figurines. More recently it is used for commercial purposes.
Soapstone is characterized by a soft soapy texture and is an ideal stone
for carving because it contains the mineral talc. It has been found at
prehistoric archaeological sites throughout Newfoundland and Labrador,
mostly as fragments of cooking pots and lamps, indicating its importance
as a component of prehistoric subsistence. Organic items do not usually
survive in archaeological contexts in Newfoundland because of acidic soil
conditions; soapstone, however, survives well, albeit rarely as a complete
artifact.
|
Small soapstone vessels from Fleur de Lys.
Soapstone vessels were used as lamps and cooking pots. Lamps were used
for lighting or for heating suspended cooking pots.
Reproduced by permission of Brent Murphy. Photo ©1997.
 (24 kb)
|
Natural soapstone outcrops occur throughout the province; however, one
outcrop in particular gives us explicit evidence of prehistoric mining.
This soapstone quarry is located at Fleur de Lys, a town on the Baie Verte
Peninsula, where extensive scars on the soapstone cliffs indicate centuries
of quarrying activities.
Fleur de Lys Soapstone Quarry, Locality 1.
Evidence of prehistoric soapstone mining is found in at least two areas
in Fleur de Lys; however, Locality 1 is the main outcrop. Extraction scars
on the cliff face enable archaeologists to reconstruct prehistoric quarrying
behaviour.
Reproduced by permission of Brent Murphy. Photo ©1997.
(56 kb)
|
|
Field work at this quarry was begun in the early 1980s by archaeologists
Christopher Nagle and Callum Thomson. It was not until excavations by Nagle
in 1997, however, that Dorset Palaeoeskimos could be directly associated with
the quarry. It is now a protected archaeological site with an active
research program under the direction of John Erwin, University
of Calgary. The site is also being developed for tourism purposes.
The Fleur de Lys quarry was visited by more than one prehistoric group.
Archaeological evidence indicates that Maritime Archaic peoples used it
approximately 4,000 years ago, while Middle Dorset Palaeoeskimos used the
soapstone approximately 1,200-1,800 years ago. The Middle Dorset have been
directly associated with this quarry, as their finished vessels correspond
in size with extraction scars on the quarry face. Other evidence of Dorset
presence includes lithic (stone) tools, including chert endblades (projectile
points), quartz crystal microblades, chert endscrapers, and flakes produced
from modifying tools at the site.
Archaeological investigations at Fleur de Lys indicate that this soapstone
was used primarily for functional purposes. It was the preferred material
for cooking and lighting utensils for many centuries, as it was durable
and probably held some spiritual significance as well. The cooking pots
and lamps created from Fleur de Lys soapstone vary from rectangular to
oval in shape and are approximately 20-25 cm wide and 25-30 cm long.
Mining Procedure
although soapstone looks particularly dense, it can be carved with relative
ease. Large crude stone tools were used to pry, chisel and scrape soapstone
from the face of an outcrop. These bulky quarrying tools were made from
a variety of materials including quartzite, a very hard, solid rock.
Hammerstones from Fleur de Lys.
Hammerstones were part of a larger tool kit used by the Dorset Palaeoeskimos.
These stones are natural rocks modified (usually on one end) by cultural
activities.
Reproduced by permission of Brent Murphy. Photo ©1997.
(25 kb)
|
|
Shaping the soapstone required smaller, more precise tools.
|
Quarrying tools from Fleur de Lys.
These tools were used at different stages during the quarrying process.
The three on the left are chisels and the two on the right are wedges.
Reproduced by permission of Brent Murphy. Photo ©1997.
(20 kb)
|
The mining operation at Fleur de Lys took place in stages. The size
and shape of the artifact was probably considered before quarrying took
place. Visualization of the finished product aided in the carving process.
Fleur de Lys soapstone quarry, 1997 excavations at
Locality 1.
Working slowly, in 1 sq. m. units, archaeologists expose evidence
of prehistoric cultures.
Reproduced by permission of Brent Murphy. Photo ©1997.
(57 kb)
|
|
At the quarry, removal scars across the cliff face reveal efficient
quarrying methods. After the first nearly circular chunk of soapstone (the
preform) was removed, the final edge that was separated from the parent
rock became the first edge for the next preform; thus only the first preform
had to have all four sides detached. This method indicates that the shape
of the vessel was decided before the chunks were removed. Some of the vessels
were probably carved at the quarry site, but it is more likely that they
were finished at another location.
|
Soapstone preform and vessel.
On the left is a crude piece of soapstone known as a preform. On the
right is a fragment of a finished soapstone vessel.
Reproduced by permission of Brent Murphy. Photo ©1997.
(30 kb)
|
Not every attempt at extracting a preform or creating a vessel was successful.
When weaknesses in the rock prevented soapstone from being detached, that
attempt was terminated and carving would begin on a nearby area. Prehistoric
mining was clearly a result of trial and error. Nevertheless, the many
scars attesting to successful removal of vessel preforms shows that the
Middle Dorset had an efficient mining operation at Fleur de Lys that may
have persisted for centuries.
© 1998, Cynthia O' Driscoll
Graduate Student, Master of Arts
Archaeology Unit, Memorial University of Newfoundland.
Related Articles on the Heritage Web Site
Aboriginal Peoples: Palaeo-Eskimo Peoples
