Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
Erin Smith
Dr. Rolland
ANT 220 A F
5 October 2009
The video was the first time I had heard about the Kennewick Man and I was struck by
how well-preserved the skeleton was and the questions its discovery created. I’ve always been
interested in archaeological and anthropological discoveries and mysteries and the complications
brought forth in the Kennewick Man case are fascinating. The facial construction was really
fascinating, especially the Kennewick Man reconstruction’s striking similarity to Patrick Stewart.
While the reconstructions aren’t exact, they do give a good general impression of how the person
However, I was not impressed by the NAGPRA, the Umatilla, and other Native
American tribes. Their complete disregard for scientific research and study left me with distaste,
no matter what the reason. This is due to the cultural differences between how I was raised in
Western cultural and how Native Americans are raised in their culture. I was taught from a very
young age that it is immoral and disrespectful to break, desecrate, or cut off any item or
archaeological site from study and research. On the reverse side of the argument, Native
Americans are taught to revere their ancestors and to treat their remains with respect. This
creates conflict between each cultural group. While one believes that scientific study and the
advancement of knowledge is important, the other believes that is is more important to treat the
remains of their ancestors with respect. The debate continues as to who owns what is in the
However, in the case of the Kennewick Man, science won and the remains are still
available for research. Science won because there was not enough proof that the Kennewick Man
was a distant relative of Native Americans, as he had Caucasoid features that were more akin to
the Ainu of Japan than Mongoloid features found in most Native Americans descended from the
Clovis culture. There are two theories account for the lack of Caucasoid features in modern
Native Americans, genetic drift and genetic flow, two evolutionary theories. Genetic drift states
that there are random changes in how often a gene appears in a isolated population, due more to
chance than natural selection. This happens when two different cultures interbreed, but only one
genetic make-up survives. Genetic flow, however, is the transfer of genes from one population to
The discussion about the genetic evolution of the early hunter-gather cultures in America
also leads to contemplation about conflict between early hunter-gather cultures. Many of the
skeletons with Caucasoid features found in the Americas had injuries found all over their bodies,
suggesting that life in the early Americans was difficult. In the end, however, while
archaeologists label the physical differences, it is important to remember that all traits and
definitions of the labels are created by archaeologists themselves- “the pencil typology” as
described by Harold Dibble. All are part of the same continuum, just in different parts.