Morphological variability and temporal patterning in Rurutuan domestic architecture: Rectangular and oval-ended stone structures of the Austral Islands

Jennifer G. Kahn

doi:10.70460/jpa.v16i2.397

Authors

Jennifer G. Kahn https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6687-3806

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.70460/jpa.v16i2.397

Keywords:

Household archaeology, Site Proxemics, Chiefly Centers, East Polynesia, Specialized-Use Structures

Abstract

This article questions how surface stone architecture and site proxemics can inform on the pre-contact use of house structures on Rurutu Island (Austral archipelago) and their relationship to residential social status and/or occupational specialization. After exploring available linguistic and ethnohistoric accounts to understand emic conceptions of Rurutuan houses, I turn to a survey of the archaeological data, using specific site characteristics, like house form, house size, and architectural elaboration, to understand Rurutuan house types in later prehistory, both at the island-wide scale and with a case study focusing on the Tehaumatea chiefly center in Vitaria. Results demonstrate that Rurutuan house architecture varies substantially, with both house form, size, and architectural elaboration signaling house function and site status. While both residential and specialized house forms have been identified, their specific associations with class types are still murky, as most sites heretofore studied are from elite contexts. In terms of chronological shifts in house form through time, there are hints that Rurutuan houses both get larger and their surface architecture becomes more elaborate. These shifts may be due to social factors, like the accumulation of power by diverse social personae (chiefs, warriors, priests, and perhaps craft specialists) and increased chiefly competition through time, although this proposition must be tested with additional fieldwork.

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