ABSTRACT
What can archaeologists say about the initial period of contact between Europeans and indigenous peoples? To date, discussion has principally focused either on the adoption of exotic technology or on rapid population decline as indicators of culture change. But does the cultivation of potatoes really signal the end of traditional gardening, the use of a musket mean that all wars are fought along European lines, and does a lessening number of people result in the adoption of foreign lifestyles? If not, how does an archaeologist chart the cultural transformations; what material can produce useful information about the degree and type of changes; and more importantly, how are these to be interpreted?
