Principal Investigator: Dr. Robin Torrence, The Australian Museum, Sydney
Principal Investigator: Dr. Robin Torrence, At first glance the scattered archaeological sites on this tropical Pacific island would seem to bear little resemblance to the much vaunted Pompeii. But they have one striking aspect in common: both were buried - and remarkably well preserved - by volcanic ash. Indeed over the past 6,000 years no fewer clan six eruptions have blanketed the 12-square-kilometer island in an ashen sarcophagus. In an ongoing investigation of Garua's early settlements Robin Torrence will lead a swashbuckling group of EarthCorps volunteers into the islet's hills to dig a string of test pits. Her mission: to learn how prehistoric peoples here lived and how they responded to repeated volcanic disasters.
In addition, volunteers will be able to help Torrence test two competing models of land fuse. One based on research in non-tropical areas of the world posits that village life began only after the advent of gardening about 3,500) years ago. The other more recently proposed model holds that cultivation in the Pacific does not necessarily indicate settled life and that permanent villages are a comparatively recent phenomenon in the region. Findings on Garua, where Torrence first began leading archaeological investigations in 1992, and in other parts of P.N.G. have already begun to challenge existing theories about the supposed primacy of certain areas of the world in the rise of civilization.
In a significant boost to indigenous ethnic pride, archaeology such as Torrence's work on Garua is beginning to show the people of Papua New Guinea that their history is as long, complex and important as other countries.
"Garua Island fits most people's concept of a Pacific Island paradise", Torrence writes in her Earthwatch proposal. "The island is set in an extremely beautiful area dominated by steep volcanoes surrounded by coconut and oil palm plantations… The many small villages are hardly visible except for stringers of smoke rising up through the trees and lights from the fires visible at night." Obsidian, a volcanic glass traded extensively in the past, spills out of outcrops throughout the lushly verdant island, which bears two low hills encircled by a narrow coastal plain and turquoise waters.
Volunteer Tasks Working with supervisors, volunteers will rotate through various field tasks, including excavating two- square-meter test pits, surveying site and finds, which previously have included well-preserved prehistoric tools and pottery. Volunteers adept at sketching and photography are welcome, though such skills are not required. Though teams will usually work under a canvas roof; heat and humidity can be high.
After flying into the airport at Hoskins, West New Britain, teams spend one night in the Walindi Plantation and Dive Resort before taking a hour boat to Garua, where Robin Torrence will meet them at the wharf. Volunteers stay dorm-style in a charming plantation manager’s house dating from the 1920s, complete with sweeping front verandah and large central dining-cum-living room. Team members assist a project cook in preparing hearty meals.
Dr. Robin Torrence, AB. Bryn Mawr College, M.A and Ph.D. University of New Mexico, is an Australian Research Fellow at The Australian Museum. She has excavated in Papua New Guinea since 1988, with the last four years devoted to fieldwork in Garua. Her research specialties include prehistoric trade, stone tools, and Pacific archaeology, to which must be added - if the tenor of her proposal is any indication - helping Papua New Guineans claim their rightful heritage as descendants of an ancient civilization.
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