The site of La Poterie faces the Atlantic Ocean on the northeast coast of the island of Grenada. From the late 15th through the early 17th centuries, this village was inhabited by a Kalinago community. Their pottery, utensils, and ornaments show that they interacted with people in the Greater Antilles and the South American mainland. During the early colonial period, the Lesser Antilles saw a fusion of different peoples, some of whom had fled to the islands to escape the Spanish invasion and European colonization. The Kalinago people fought and resisted the colonizers, but also traded with them, as evidenced by the European artifacts that were found at La Poterie.
Excavations at the site of La Poterie, Grenada (photo by Menno Hoogland).
Text by Corinne Hofman & Menno Hoogland.
Photo top: Tivoli RC school visit to the archaeological site at la Poterie. Tivoli, St. Andrew, Grenada, 2017 (photo by Menno Hoogland).