Archaic Evidence at Bishop Hill
Bishop Hill, located in the interior of St Maarten, is an important site where evidence of the island’s Archaic period has been uncovered.
The site is notable for the discovery of a unique flint artifact, which was found in an isolated context during the archaeological reconnaissance conducted by M.P. Sypkens Smit in the early 1980s. The flint artifact, showing fine traces of hammering and retouch, is believed to date back to the Archaic period, a time when the first inhabitants of the Lesser Antilles lived by hunting, fishing, and gathering wild food.
This period is characterized by the absence of pottery, with stone and shell tools being the primary artifacts from this era. Although the find at Bishop Hill is relatively modest, it is significant because it provides rare evidence of Archaic period activity on St. Martin.
Most archaeological sites on the island are associated with the later Ceramic Age, making this discovery an important piece of the puzzle in understanding the island’s earliest human history.
The artifact from Bishop Hill suggests that there was some level of human activity in the interior of the island during the Archaic period, possibly involving the use of flint tools for subsistence activities such as hunting or processing plant materials.
References: Sypkens Smit, M.P. (1982). An Archaeological Reconnaissance of St. Martin. Nicholson, D. (1976). Shellfish Gatherers of St. Kitts: An Archaic Perspective.