Phase Two of a Stable and Radioisotope Study of Eastern Arctic Economies

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AbstractOPP-9977931Coltrain, Joan B.University of UtahDuring the Classic Thule period (ca. AD 900-1200) the people of the Eastern Arctic appear to have subsisted on bowhead whales. Residences consisted of semi-subterranean dwellings, with stone foundations, walled and roofed with whale bone, skins, and sod. Such sites are frequently located on low ridges with expansive views of bowhead sea lanes, surrounded by numerous food caches and extensive midden. Some researchers argue that with the onset of neo-boreal cooling, conditions worsened for whaling. A shorter ice-free season and less open water reduced the profitability of taking whales, while economic return rates from breathing-hole sealing improved. As a consequence, diets shifted from an emphasis on bowheads to reliance on ringed seal, and the Eastern Arctic entered the Modified Thule Period, the precursor to historic Inuit economies. This study uses stable isotopes to follow up on an earlier pilot study and test the hypothesis that an economic transition took place at the end of the Classic Thule period, from heavy dependence on bowhead whaling to reliance on the ringed seal. Results will fill significant gaps in the research on the peopling of the Eastern Arctic.