Hawaiian Fishhook Classification, Identification, and Analysis, Nu'alolo Kai (Site 50-30-01-195), Kaua' i

Abstract

For the past decade, researchers at the University of Hawai'i have examined the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum's collection of artifacts excavated from the site of Nu ' alolo Kai on the Na Pali coast of Kaua'i (Figure 1). This site complex, located adjacent to the cliff on the nortlt side of the valley, was first identified by Bennett (1931 : 148-150) during his archaeological survey of Kaua' i. The Bishop Museum organized an expedition to the site in the late 1950s, mapping it in detail (Figure 2) and conducting extensive excavations (Soehren and Kikuchi n.d.). The objective was to sample a series of potentially deep and well preserved archaeological deposits in order to understand the settlement and subsequent development of Hawaiian culture. By all measures, Nu' alolo Kai fits this description, with cultural deposits in some features more than 2 m deep. Chronometric dating (see Kirch 1985: 100) and the presence of Euroamerican artifacts suggest the site was continuously occupied for as many as five or six centuries from ca. AD 1200 to 1300 through the first half of the 19th century. An incredible range of organic and inorganic objects has been preserved at the site. This article describes the assemblage of fishhooks from Nu'alolo Kai, witlt particular attention to: a) developing a classification of head and shank morphology; b) reliably identifying tlte attributes associated with the classification; and c) describing some oftlle patterns of variation in head shank morphology that are evident at the site.