One of the most notable traditions of the Calusa was their use of shell mounds. And, although some of Cushings ideas about the Indians he had discovered and their relationship to tribes in the Caribbean and South America have not remained popular among scholars, his descriptive notes and insights are of unquestionable value. Gainesville: University Press of Florida, 2004. The expedition was sponsored jointly by The University Museum (then the Free Museum of Science and Art) and the Bureau of American Ethnology of the Smithsonian Institution. An analysis of faunal remains at one coastal habitation site, the Wightman site (on Sanibel Island), showed that more than 93 percent of the energy from animals in the diet came from fish and shellfish, less than 6 percent of the energy came from mammals, and less than 1 percent came from birds and reptiles. Marquardt, William H. (2004). Fontaneda lived with various tribes in southern Florida for the next seventeen years before being found by the Menendez de Avils expedition. At some point of time in their history, this tribe discovered that there was a wealth of fish in the waters, and began to exploit this resource. The Calusa tribe once numbered around 50,000 people, and Tampa was one of their largest towns. They were supported by the labor of the majority of the Calusa. Expedition Magazine. The Tequesta lived in the southeastern parts of present-day Florida. The Calusa gathered a variety of wild berries, fruits, nuts, roots and other plant parts. When the chief formally received Menndez in his house, the chief sat on a raised seat surrounded by 500 of his principal men, while his sister-wife sat on another raised seat surrounded by 500 women. Study guides. The Calusa men were tall and well built with long hair. The next day 80 "shielded" canoes attacked the Spanish ships, but the battle was inconclusive. The Calusa have long fascinated archaeologists because they were a fisher-gatherer-hunter society that attained unusual social complexity, said William Marquardt, curator emeritus of South Florida Archaeology and Ethnography at the Florida Museum of Natural History. Some of the "Spanish Indians" (often of mixed Spanish-Indian heritage) who worked at the fishing camps likely were descended from Calusa.[29]. The Calusa were a Native American tribe that lived hundreds of years ago on the island that is now Mound Key Archaeological State Park. Chumash Tribe Facts: The Chumash Name South Florida Archaeology and Ethnography, South Florida Archaeology & Ethnography Collection. The archaeology of the Calusa is important worldwide in that it illustrates the development of very pronounced hierarchy, inequality, monumentality and large-scale infrastructure by hunter-gatherer-fisher societies, said Chris Rodning of Tulane University, who was not involved with this research. [Online]Available at: http://fcit.usf.edu/florida/lessons/calusa/calusa1.htm, Florida Museum of Natural History, 2016. There is an eyewitness account from 1566 of a "king's house" on Mound Key that was large enough for "2,000 people to stand inside. "Chapter 10. The priests wore carved masks, which were at other times hung on the walls inside a temple. It seems a sad demise for such a powerful . The fact that the Calusa were fishers, not farmers, created tension between them and the Spaniards, who arrived in Florida when the Calusa kingdom was at its zenith, Thompson said. The Calusa case also illustrates remarkably sophisticated engagements with, and long-term large-scale management of, coastal and estuarine environments.. They left 1,700 behind. The pelican, wolf, and deer figureheads mentioned here (Figs. But our work over the past 35 years has shown the Calusa developed a politically complex society with sophisticated architecture, religion, a military, specialists, long-distance trade and social ranking all without being farmers.. Calusa beliefs included a trinity of governing spirits. (1993). It has been proposed that as fishing was a less time-consuming means of obtaining food than hunting and gathering, the Calusa were able to devote more time to other pursuits, such as the establishment of a system of government. From the time of European contact until their ultimate demise from conflict and illness around 1770, the Calusa successfully resisted, albeit with considerable bloodshed, intermittent efforts by Spanish missionaries to convert them to Christianity. The Calusa tribe lived along the Gulf Coat and inner waterways; their homes were built on stilts with roofs made from Palmetto leaves; these homes had no walls. The Spanish reported that the chief was expected to take his sister as one of his wives. Though eschewing agriculture once. Radiocarbon dating of carbonized wood, a deer bone and a shell verified the forts mid-16th-century date. After suffering decimation by disease, the tribe was destroyed by Creek and Yamasee raiders early in the 18th century. Lucy Fowler Williams is Keeper of Collections for the American Section. [24][25], In 1566 Pedro Menndez de Avils, founder of St. Augustine, made contact with the Calusa. The Calusa Domain. "Well, every indigenous group around the country has its own unique history and and accomplishments, but I guess what has interested archaeologists and anthropologists generally is that the Calusa managed to become very complex, politically complex," said Marquardt. These small fish were supplemented by larger bony fish, sharks and rays, mollusks, crustaceans, ducks, sea turtles and land turtles, and land animals. In 1521 Ponce de Len returned to southwest Florida to plant a colony, but the Calusa drove the Spanish out, mortally wounding Ponce de Len. They were occupying this land and engaging in commerce, culture, religion, politics and family life . Fontaneda was shipwrecked on the east coast of Florida, likely in the Florida Keys, about 1550, when he was thirteen years old. You could hire a shaman and pay for his services. In a report from 1697, the Spanish noted 16 houses in the Calusa capital of Calos, which had 1,000 residents. It was not conserved and is in poor shape, but it is displayed at the nature center in Marathon. The Calusa people were an important tribe of Florida. Many people lived in large villages with purpose-built earthwork mounds, such as those at Horr's Island. Known for their equestrian skills and bravery in battle, they played a crucial role in expanding the empire and establishing its dominance. This article first appeared in the magazines fall 2020 issue. Marquardt notes that the Calusa turned down the offer of agricultural tools from the Spanish, saying that they had no need for them. The chief's house was described as having two big windows, suggesting that it had walls. The Beast with an insatiable Hunger for Human Flesh, Film Footage Provides Intimate View of HMS Gloucester Shipwreck, Top 8 Legendary Parties - Iconic Celebrations in Ancient History, The Spanish Inquisition: The Truth Behind the Black Legend (Part II), The Spanish Inquisition: The Truth behind the Dark Legend (Part I), Bloodthirsty Buddhists: The Sohei Warrior Monks of Feudal Japan, Caesars Savage Human Skewers Unearthed In German Fort, The Red Taj Mahal and the Dutch Hessings of India. AtAncient Origins, we believe that one of the most important fields of knowledge we can pursue as human beings is our beginnings. The archaeologists were surprised to discover the Spanish used a primitive shell concrete known as tabby to stabilize the wall posts of their wooden structures. Calusa v. Iroquois: Religious Beliefs. At the time of first European contact, the Caloosahatchee culture region formed the core of the Calusa domain. The fishing nets they used to catch food were made from palm tree fibers. Although the Calusa came to an end, some remains of their achievements can still be seen today. Radiocarbon dating of organic materials associated with the watercourts indicates they were built between A.D. 1300 and 1400, toward the end of a second phase of construction on the kings house. Later periods in the Caloosahatchee culture are defined in the archaeological record by the appearance of pottery from other traditions. The Calusa king, or head chief, was an absolute ruler. Before the arrival of Europeans in the Americas, Indigenous peoples who lived in the same region developed similar cultural traits based on their shared natural environment. Though not all have survived, carvings included a sea turtle, alligator, pelican, fish-hawk, owl, bear, crab, wolf, wildcat, mountain lion, and a deer, many of which were painted black, white, gray-blue, and brownish-red. When combined with historical and archaeological documentation, Cushings finds from Key Marco teach us about the Calusa Indians around the time of contact. In 1569, just three years after the Spanish fort was built, the Calusa attacked a Spanish supply ship, prompting more violence. 10 Innovative Medieval Weapons: You Would Not Want To Be At The Sharp End Of These! 4-8). They had a reputation from being a fierce, war-like people, especially among European explorers and smaller tribes. Seeing the work of the Calusa in these materials first-hand were really exciting moments for us.. A new tribe that entered Florida either from the islands or the north at the start of the Christian Era, the Calusa dominated South Florida with their statute, skills, and brutality. Directly beneath the chief was the nobility. The Calusa Indians did not farm like the other Indian tribes in Florida. It's one of Florida's most popular destinations for its turquoise coast and laid-back vibe. Photo source: Moving to Tampa, Florida Center for Instructional Technology, College of Education, University of South Florida, 2002. It has been speculatively identified as Calusa in origin. Rituals were believed to link the Calusa to their spirit world ( Art by Merald Clark. They determined that the enclosures, which were built on a foundation of oyster shells, walled off portions of the estuary, serving as traps and short-term holding pens for fish before they were eaten, smoked, or dried for later consumption. [10][11][12], Mollusk shells and wood were used to make hammering and pounding tools. The soul in the eye's pupil stayed with the body after death, and the Calusa would consult with that soul at the graveside. It was during this time that the team located the Spanish fort Fort San Antn de Carlos, named for the Catholic patron saint of lost things that historic documents said was built near Caalus house in 1566. The Calusa were one of the few tribes known to be shell collectors. After each meal, these shells were put to good use as building material and tools. The chief lived in the main village at the mouth of the Miami River. Little is known about Calusa religion. By the early 1600s the Calusa returned to Mound Key and reestablished their capital. However, archeological digs on Sanibel Island and Useppa Island have revealed evidence that the Calusa did in fact consume wild plants such as cabbage palm, prickly pear, hog plum, acorns, wild papaya, and chili peppers. Or, were the Romans protecting something even more valuable than silver? Calusa means "fierce people," and they were described as a fierce, war-like people. They formerly held the southwest coast from about Tampa Bay to Cape Sable and Cape Florida, together with all the outlying keys, and extending inland to Lake Okeechobee. Though questions about the Calusa and the use of some of these artifacts remain unanswered, early eyewitness accounts and ethnohistorical research, together with new archaeological developments in Florida, enhance our understanding of the cultural context within which these objects were made and used. Florida Museum of Natural History Florida and Georgia archaeologists have discovered the location of Fort San Antn de Carlos, home of one of the first Jesuit missions in North America. Then, two things happened: either Chaos or Gaia created the universe as we know it, or Ouranos and Tethys gave birth to the first beings. So, we needed information on large-scale architecture, the timing and tempo of shell midden mound formation and the timing of large-scale public architecture., Florida Museum illustration by Merald Clark. The Chilling Mystery of the Octavius Ghost Ship, What is a Wendigo? Marquardt, Thompson and other University of Georgia colleagues and students began fieldwork at Mound Key in 2013, funded by the National Geographic Society. A Calusa alligator head carved out of wood, excavated at Key Marco in 1895, on display at the Florida Museum of Natural History. The other two souls left the body after death and entered into an animal. Each human had three souls, present in his shadow, his reflection in water and in the pupil of his eye. Penn Museum, 1991 Web. Those excavations revealed rarely preserved objects of wood, such as masks, figureheads, bowls, and tools, which survived because of the wet environment. By about 500 BC, the Archaic culture, which had been fairly uniform across Florida, began to devolve into more distinct regional cultures. 2). On Key Marco, among numerous mounds and ridges of earth and shell, he discovered a courtyard submerged in mud and bound by walls of conch shells. After the outbreak of war between Spain and England in 1702, slaving raids by Uchise Creek and Yamasee Indians allied with the Province of Carolina began reaching far down the Florida peninsula. Gainesville: University of Florida Press: Florida Museum of Natural History, 1991. Field school students brush sand from a tabby wall that might be the outer wall of Fort San Antn de Carlos. google_ad_client = "pub-8872632675285158"; Mound Key, an island west of Fort Myers, was the center of this large Calusa Empire. What was the Calusa religion? ed. Honestly, we have explored a very small sample of Mound Key and other nearby island sites., ln the next couple of years, Thompson added, Id like to return to Mound Key to look more closely at the fort and its structures to really delve into Calusa-Spanish interactions.. And to what extent does the occupational and architectural history speak to broader issues of Calusa complexity? The heir of the chief wore gold in an ornament on his forehead and beads on his legs. While there is no evidence that the Calusa had institutionalized slavery, studies show they would use captives for work or even sacrifice. It is recorded that in that year, the Calusa chief formed an alliance with the Spanish governor, Menndez de Avils. The fort was obviously a massive presence on Mound Key, both in scale and as an example of European culture, but it appears that native food procurement, living arrangements and much of Calusa daily life continued with only minimal changes, said archaeologist Traci Ardren of the University of Miami, who was not involved with the teams work. Mound Key Archaeological State Park is a shell midden mound in the Estero Bay that is estimated to have been inhabited over 2,000 years ago. Certain ceremonies were performed to seal the alliance (and perhaps also as a display of the might of the Calusa), and was witnessed by over 4000 people. Franciscan friar Fray Lopez, director of the unsuccessful 1697 mission attempt, described the Calusa temples as very tall and wide, with a mound in the middle and a structure on the mound enclosed with reed mats and containing benches around the walls. The men of the Calusa are recorded to have been powerfully built, and let their hair grow long. Apart from that, shells are said to have been used by the Calusa to make all sorts of things, including tools, jewelry, utensils, and even spearheads for fishing and hunting. They developed a complex culture based on estuarine fisheries rather than agriculture. At the time of European contact in the 16th and 17th centuries, the historic Calusa were the people of the Caloosahatchee culture. A reconstruction of a Calusa home and terraces, on display at the Florida Museum of Natural History. The courtyard was drained and cleared, exposing house posts, fishing nets, shell tools, bowls and drinking vessels, weapons, canoes, pottery, and extraordinary wooden masks and animal figureheads (Fig. Spanish conquistador Juan Ponce de Len landed on the east coast of Florida and . [14], The Calusa lived in large, communal houses which were two stories high. //-->. A dozen words for which translations were recorded and 50 or 60 place names form the entire known corpus of the language. Map of Calusa territory in Florida. But Widmer argues that the evidence for maize cultivation by the Calusa depends on the proposition that the Narvez and de Soto expeditions landed in Charlotte Harbor rather than Tampa Bay, which is now generally discounted. According to Menendez, in 1566 the town of Calos contained a central mound where special masks were kept and where human sacrifices were made. Credit: Florida Museum of Natural History ). While the Calusa managed to survive that encounter, the 250 years that followed brought intermittent contact with other conquistadors, Christians missionaries, and in later years, English and French explorer-traders who vied for the territory, often with the help of native allies. People commonly occupied both fresh and saltwater wetlands. The Iroquois, on the other hand, placed the shaman at the head of all things spiritual. We could not anticipate the extraordinary preservation of organic materials down below the water table, Marquardt noted. It has also been stated that the Spanish were brought into a large temple, where they saw carved and painted wooden masks covering its walls. Native American tattoos Salvaged goods and survivors from wrecked Spanish ships reached the Calusa during the 1540s and 1550s. Upon learning that the Spaniards did not intend to provide food, clothing, and other gifts, the Calusa rebelled, tenaciously holding to their own beliefs and practices. All his subjects had to obey his commands. [8], The Calusa caught most of their fish with nets. Some of the survivors were sent to Cuba by the Spanish, while others may have merged with other Floridian Indians and eventually joined the Seminole tribe. As Cushing noted and as more recent studies have revealed, they dug extensive waterways or canals (sometimes as large as 4 feet deep, 20 feet wide, and 3 miles long) that crossed Key Marco and the rest of the region. Among other things. The Calusa also made fish traps, weirs, and fish corrals from wood and cord. 2014-05-02 14:51:47. The 2017 excavations were really exciting for a number of reasons, Thompson said. Detailed analysis and AMS dates led us to the realization that the structure went through at least three phases of building activity over several centuries, the earliest phase dating to around A.D. 1000.. [2], Juan Rogel, a Jesuit missionary to the Calusa in the late 1560s, noted the chief's name as Carlos, but wrote that the name of the kingdom was Escampaba, with an alternate spelling of Escampaha. Shells and clay were used by the Calusa to create the foundation of their cities. Eventually, in the 18th century, slave raids by English from the north, aided by Creek Indians, destroyed what was left of the already declining Calusa population. Undecorated pottery belonging to the early Glades culture appeared in the region around 500 BC. But the Spanish not only refused to fight Caalus rivals, they also wanted to convert his people to Catholicism, which eventually led to conflict between the Spanish and the Calusa. New Evidence Shows Humans Were Using Bows and Arrows in 52,000 BC. The Calusa built their entire way of life around the ocean and estuaries of the Gulf Coast, creating a vast empire by learning to manipulate their environment. There was little change in the pottery tradition after this. Schell, Rolfe F. 1,000 years on Mound Key; the story of the Caloosa Indians on . Tamara Jager Stewart is the assistant editor of American Archaelogy and the Conservancys Southwest region projects director. Their territory was bounded in northwest Florida by the Aucilla and Ochlockonee rivers, and . After A.D. 1000, the Calusa began to grow in size and complexity, wielding their military might, trading widely and collecting tribute along those trade routes that extended for hundreds of miles. The archaeologists recovered seeds, wood, palm-fiber cordage that likely came from Calusa fishing nets and even fish scales from the waterlogged levels. Along the southwest Gulf coast lived the Calusa (Caloosa) Indians. Calusa Religion Birdseye View of Calusa The sun deity appears to have been a universal creator. Historic documents say the Calusa then set fire to Mound Key and fled the island, which also prompted the Spanish to leave. One of the most popular Native American sports was lacrosse. Fruit and roots were gathered, and deer, bear, and raccoon were probably eaten as well. Senquene succeeded his brother (name unknown), and was in turn succeeded by his son Carlos. [2] The Tequesta tribe had only a few survivors by . ( Public Domain ), Featured image: Calusa people fishing. The watercolors illustrate the blue, black, gray, and brownish-red pigments found on many of the wooden specimens. They fished and hunted for their food and would catch things like: mullet, catfish, eels, turtles, deer, conchs, clams, oysters, and crabs. [4], The Calusa had a stratified society, consisting of "commoners" and "nobles" in Spanish terms. Five friars who stayed in the chief's house in 1697 complained that the roof let in the rain, sun and dew. Are there any Calusa people left? Tabby was an Old World concrete consisting of lime from burned shells mixed with sand, ash, water and broken shells. Carlos was succeeded by his cousin (and brother-in-law) Felipe, who was in turn succeeded by another cousin of Carlos, Pedro. We do not fully understand the complexities of what happened to them. After death only the last one remained with the body to be buried with it. Previous indigenous cultures had lived in the area for thousands of years. 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