Papers by Alana Pengilley
Nature Ecology & Evolution
The initial peopling of the remote Pacific islands was one of the greatest migrations in human hi... more The initial peopling of the remote Pacific islands was one of the greatest migrations in human history, beginning three millennia ago by Lapita cultural groups. The spread of Lapita out of an ancestral Asian homeland is a dominant narrative in the origins of Pacific peoples, and although Island New Guinea has long been recognized as a springboard for the peopling of Oceania, the role of Indigenous populations in this remarkable phase of exploration remains largely untested. Here, we report the earliest evidence for Lapita-introduced animals, turtle bone technology and repeated obsidian import in southern New Guinea 3,480-3,060 years ago, synchronous with the establishment of the earliest known Lapita settlements 700 km away. Our findings precede sustained Lapita migrations and pottery introductions by several centuries, occur alongside Indigenous technologies and suggest continued multicultural influences on population diversity despite language replacement. Our work shows that initial Lapita expansion throughout Island New Guinea was more expansive than previously considered, with Indigenous contact influencing migration pathways and island-hopping strategies that culminated in rapid and purposeful Pacific-wide settlement. Later Lapita dispersals through New Guinea were facilitated by earlier contact with Indigenous populations and profoundly influenced the region as a global centre of cultural and linguistic diversity.
Archaeology in Oceania, 2019
Compared to elsewhere in Oceania, the history and character of stone axe-adze production and exch... more Compared to elsewhere in Oceania, the history and character of stone axe-adze production and exchange in the Bismarck Archipelago is very poorly known. To explore the feasibility of using geochemical analysis to trace past social interaction, we conducted a non-destructive portable XRF study of 97 ground stone artefacts from archaeological contexts in New Britain and the ethnographic collection at the Australian Museum. The study capitalised on the well-documented spatial distribution of geochemical variation resulting from the plate-tectonic history of the region. The results indicate that prehistoric communities in New Britain specialised in goods such as ground stone tools or obsidian in order to facilitate social interaction over a large region.
Archaeology in Oceania, 2021
The inter-island Kula exchange network within the Massim region of eastern New Guinea is unique i... more The inter-island Kula exchange network within the Massim region of eastern New Guinea is unique in its complexity, with the historically recorded configuration between the northern islands archaeologically visible between 1350 and 1500 AD (600–450 calBP). The southern islands were incorporated sometime later, and Tubetube Island formed a major hub in this southern extension of the Kula. To assess the timing and extent of Tubetube Islander involvement, excavated obsidian was used as a proxy to assess social connections with other island communities within the ambit of Kula. Forty-nine pieces from two sites, Lagisuna and Tupwana, spanning the relevant period were chemically characterised using pXRF and determined to have been sourced almost exclusively from western and eastern Fergusson sources, respectively. We argue social connections between communities were village specific. Lagisuna had connections with the West Fergusson source region outside of the ethnographically known Kula network from 1500 to 1650 AD (450–300 calBP). Tupwana had maintained historically recorded kinship connections with important Kula communities on Duau and Dobu in the East Fergusson source region over several generations by at least 1800 AD (150 calBP), and probably intermittently from 1500 to 1650 AD. Our results support an increasingly nuanced model for the past development of Kula exchange.
Technical Reports of the Australian Museum online
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Papers by Alana Pengilley