Long Island is one of the most important and interesting archaeological sites that has been researched in the northern Lesser Antilles. Long Island is a small islet, located about 2,5 km (1,6 miles) off the northeast coast of Antigua. The islet has been known among archaeologists for its high-quality flint for more than 50 years. These flint resources are found all over the Lesser Antilles and are therefore of high interest for Caribbean archaeologists, given that they imply the existence of a trading network. Although the exact date of this archaeological site is still a guess, it is believed that people already came here during the Archaic Age (5000 to 200 BC), since some of the flint technologies that were used at Long Island are typical for this period.
Flint artefacts are often found in great numbers at Archaic archaeological sites. What is interesting, is that a lot of the flint that is found across the Lesser Antilles actually originated from Long Island. Flint from Long Island has been found at Archaic sites in Antigua, Barbuda, Nevis, Saba and St. Martin. The Long Islands flint is also found at sites from the Ceramic Age (400 BC to 1492 AD), although we do see a huge variation in distribution during this period. At the beginning of the Ceramic Age, there is a decrease in the distribution of the flint compared to the Archaic Age. This changes around halfway through the Ceramic Age and at its height, the Long Island flint is distributed all the way from Anguilla to Guadeloupe.
But how do archaeologists know that this flint came from Long Island? This estimation is based on careful evaluation of the flint’s characteristics, such as color and structure. By doing this, the researchers did not only find out that most of this flint originated from Long Island, but they also identified the most likely reason for this wide distribution. The Long Island flint seems to be of a higher quality than other types of flint found in the Lesser Antilles, which makes it relatively easy to work with.
Most of this high-quality flint can be found on one beach of Long Island, which is known among archaeologists as Flinty Bay. It is located on the eastern side of Long Island and a high number of flint cobbles can be found scattered around the beach. This flint, which varies in color from reddish-brown to yellow, is of the highest quality found so far on Long Island, or anywhere else in the Lesser Antilles for that matter. It is this flint that is found at most of the Archaic sites across the Lesser Antilles, while the lesser quality flint that can be retrieved at Long Island is mainly found at Ceramic sites. During the Ceramic Age, when pottery was introduced in the Caribbean, people would produce their own tools. Because of this, the flint technology became more simplified and there was no longer a need for the highest quality flint.
Text by Anouk van de Ven, based on original published research (see further reading).
Gijn, A.L. van, 1993. Flint exploitation on Long Island, Antigua, West-Indies. Analecta Praehistorica Leidensia 26, 183-197.
Hofman C.L. and M.L.P. Hoogland, 2003. Plum Piece, Evidence for Archaic seasonal occupation on Saba, northern Lesser Antilles around 3300 BP. Journal of Caribbean Archaeology 4, 12-27.
Keegan, W.F. and C.L. Hofman. 2017. The Caribbean Before Columbus. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Knippenberg, S. 2001. Flint collecting strategies on Long Island. Paper presented at the XIX Congress of the International Association for Caribbean Archaeology, Aruba.
Knippenberg, S., 2007. Stone artefact production and exchange among the Lesser Antilles. Leiden: Leiden University Press.