Octopus lures from the Mariana Islands found to be oldest in the world

An archaeological study has determined that cowrie-shell artifacts found throughout the Mariana Islands were lures used for hunting octopuses and that the devices, similar versions of which have been found on islands across ...

The study used carbon dating of archaeological layers to confirm that lures found on the Northern Mariana Islands of Tinian and Saipan were from about 1500 B.C., or 3,500 years ago. "That's back to the time when people were first living in the Mariana Islands. So we think these could be the oldest octopus lures in the entire Pacific region and, in fact, the oldest in the world," said Michael T. Carson, an archaeologist with the Micronesian Area Research Center at the University of Guam. The study, titled "Let's catch octopus for dinner: Ancient inventions of octopus lures in the Mariana Islands of the remote tropical Pacific," is published in World Archaeology , a peer-reviewed academic journal. Carson, who holds a doctorate in anthropology, is the lead author of the study, assisted by Hsiao-chun Hung from The Australian National University in Canberra, Australia.

The fishing devices were made with cowrie shells, a type of sea snail and a favorite food of octopuses , that were connected by a fiber cord to a stone sinker and a hook. They have been found in seven sites in the Mariana Islands. The oldest lures were excavated in 2011 from Sanhalom near the House of Taga in Tinian and in 2016 from Unai Bapot in Saipan. Other locations include Achugao in Saipan, Unai Chulu in Tinian, and Mochom at Mangilao Golf Course, Tarague Beach, and Ritidian Beach Cave in Guam. Known artifacts, unknown purpose—until now

University of Guam archaeologist Michael Carson at the 2013 excavation of Sanhalom, near the House of Taga, on the island of Tinian in the Northern Mariana Islands. The excavation uncovered an octopus lure artifact from a layer that Carson has since carbon dated to 1500–1100 B.C., making it the oldest known artifact of its kind in the world. Credit: Micronesian Area Research Center, University of Guam Read more

University of Guam archaeologist Michael Carson measures a cowrie shell from an ancient octopus lure from the Mariana Islands. Carson's published research on cowrie-shell artifacts found in the Mariana Islands has confirmed their use as octopus lures and has dated them to 1500 B.C., the oldest known artifacts of their kind. Credit: Hsiao-chun Hung, The Australian National University Read more

(Top image) A re-created example of an ancient octopus lure from Tonga housed at the Pitt Rivers Museum in England. The lure is made from two cowrie shells, each with drilled holes, bound to a stone sinker using a fiber cord. (Lower images) Exterior and interior views of cowrie shell octopus lures from (left to right) House of Taga on the Northern Mariana Island of Tinian, 1100–500 B.C.; Unai Bapot on the Northern Mariana Island of Saipan, 1500–1100 B.C.; and the House of Taga in Tinian, 1500–1100 B.C. Credit: Tonga lure image courtesy of Pitt Rivers Museum, Artifact Registration 1886.1.1279.2. Mariana Islands lure images courtesy of the Micronesian Area Research Center, University of Guam. Read more

Study sites in the Mariana Islands, shown within the Asia-Pacific region. Ancient octopus lures have been found at seven of these archaeological sites. Credit: University of Guam Read more