Archeology


Potential Rupestral art (pictograph) archeological site (CIEJ-10) confirmed

Source: journal L'Épik
By Yvan Roy

(This is a translation of the original French text)
Rupestral art (pictograph)"The archaeological potential is confirmed; there are shards of pottery. There remains to make an thorough excavation and to try to see what else the cave can deliver. For the dating, it is in an Australian laboratory. One hopes to have of them the results this winter. The laboratiore is being equipped with new material which will be much more powerful and will require less organic matter for the dating."
For the dating, it will be done by an Australian laboratory. One hopes to have the results this winter 06-07. The laboratory is being equipped with new material which will be much more powerful and will require less organic matter for the dating."
Access is now forbidden.
"The public has no more access to the site since a door was installed. It was essential because we wanted to prevent access to the site, firstly for reasons of safety, so that people don't get hurt.
We are in the presence of a structure which is unstable; there are traces of rock fall at the bottom of the cave. Also, there are sometimes badly intentioned people who would have liked to dig or move things and that could disturb the archaeological context. Therefore, we wanted to make sure that there is no disturbance of the cave. Thus the Canadian service of fauna took the initiative of closing the access of the cave."
Extract from the interview with Daniel Arsenault Ph. D.(UQAM) Radio-Canada Sep 18, 06
"The drawing could be contemporary of this pottery, but that will remain to be confirmed by the dating. It is charcoal and it is a matter which is one of best for the dating with carbon-14. It will come to confirm if the drawing is 1000 years old, or a little more because they are hunters with javelins and not hunters with arcs and arrows; it is known that the arc and the arrow do not appear in the valley of the St. Lawrence until approximately 1500 years ago...
The fact that it's a drawing in a cave, in Quebec, it's a first; and the fact that it is made with charcoal, is unparalleled in Canada, one did not yet find a drawing of this genre (in Canada)."
Update: 27 april 07:
The results of the analyses should be known in June thus a month later than forcasted due to the use of new equipment in Australia where the tests are currently being made.

Evaluation of the maritime archeological potential for the island of Gros Cacouna
Evaluation of the maritime archeogical potentialSource: Le Bureau d’audiences publiques sur l’environnement (BAPE) (French)

Consult this document in the PDF format or in the SWF format (French)
(This is a translation of the original Franch text)
Some subjects in this document are :

 

  • short history of navigation on the St Lwrence,
  • archeological potential
  • list of known shipwreck in the area of Cacouna, and
  • recommandations

Discovery of a Rupestral art archeological site (CIEJ-10)

Presse Canadienne (PC) 01/02/2006
(This is a translation of the original French text)
The prehistoric pictograph scene, unique in the east of Canada, was discovered in a cave on the edge of the St. Lawrence river, about ten kilometers east of Rivière-du-Loup, close to Cacouna.
The age of the drawing of 20 to 30 cm, carried out with the charcoal, remains to be confirmed. Daniel Arsenault, specialist in rupestral art of the University du Quebec in Montreal, estimates that it could go back more than 1500 years.
Rupestral art represents the works carried out on rock faces. The drawing in question represents two hunters attacking a quadruped which is at their feet.
The sample taken did not make it possible yet to date the site by the carbon-14 method, but the use of javelins by the hunters lead the experts to believe that it would be a scene of the period of the sylvicole moyen, which corresponds to the first millenium after Jesus-Christ.
According to Mr. Arsenault, it the first rupestral art site discovered in the the lower St Lawrence. He believes that other caves of the kind exist in the area.
The place is not foreign with the presence of the Maliseel First Nation de Viger, of algonquienne origin, the smallest Amerindian reserve in Canada, located in the municipality of Cacouna.