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In excavated waste heaps, researchers have found evidence that ancient Greenlanders may have been eating large amounts of bowhead whale. But these 4,000-year-old “dumpsters” are from millennia before humans had the technology to hunt down such massive prey. (NPR)

How long have people been whaling? Use our article to find out.

Teachers, scroll down for a quick list of key resources in our Teachers Toolkit.

Discussion Ideas

• How did scientists figure out the Saqqaq, or indigenous people of western Greenland, were eating bowhead whale 4,000 years ago?
  • Scientists lifted the lid on 4,000-year-old “dumpsters.” These trash heaps, called middens, are filled with ancient kitchen refuse. What did they find in the middens?
    • Bones. Scientists found thousands of bones from harp seals, ribbon seals, walruses, and caribou. Very few bones from bowhead whales were actually found.
    • Dirt. Scientists also examined DNA in the greasy soil of the middens themselves. This sedimentary DNA (sedaDNA) may include organic sources such as skin, meat, fat, urine, feces, and hair. SedaDNA revealed substantial evidence of bowhead whales.
      • “‘Sometimes the recoverable remains [bones and fossils] are not giving us the full picture …’ says one expert. Analyzing DNA in the soils has helped fill that picture in.”

 

• Why was the presence of bowhead whale DNA such a surprise? Don’t Arctic cultures traditionally eat whales?
  • Yes, whaling is an important part of many Arctic cultures, including the Saqqaq. However, most ancient whale refuse is from belugas and narwhals—much, much smaller whales than the great big bowhead. Hunting for bowheads requires specialized techniques, tools, and technology.
  • The middens are thousands of years older than Saqqaq bowhead-whaling technology. The culture did not have the “large multiple-person vessels, specialized harpoons and floats that came to the Arctic millennia later.”

 

• Scientists are puzzled as to how ancient Saqqaq could have consistently, successfully hunted bowhead whales. What are the three possible explanations offered in the NPR article? Which explanation would you pursue if you were an archaeologist studying the problem?
  • Very skilled, very brave hunters in single-person kayaks armed with small spears. “Maneuvering against the wind and tide, hunters can avoid detection and creep up on resting whales at the surface. ‘If you stab it with the lance just below the flipper, you can hit it straight into the heart,’” says one expert. Keep in mind, the largest spear from this period is 16.6 centimeters (6.5 inches) and these are 15-meter (50-foot) animals that weigh 80 tons. Like we said—hunters would have to be very skilled, and very brave.
  • Beached whales. Whales wash up on or near beaches all the time. Saqqaq communities likely took advantage of this meat and nutrient-rich blubber whenever they could.
  • Modern contamination. The four sites studied cover “the entire history of human occupation in Greenland, represented by remains from Thule, Norse, Dorset and Saqqaq cultures,” and “it’s not impossible that oils from dead whales [from later cultures] seeped into the archaeological sites over the years.”

 

• How might archaeologists dig further into this mystery?
  • Dig deeper into the trash heaps! Examine soils from other ancient Greenlandic and Arctic middens to compare the presence of bowhead whale DNA?
  • Study the DNA! See if sophisticated technology can narrow down the time period when the bowhead whale DNA may have been deposited? Compare the DNA of other midden finds, as well as living whales to see if there are any patterns?
  • Listen! Research oral traditions to see if any clues to truly ancient whaling techniques or consumption exist as myths, legends, or fairy tales? Compare these stories with what was available?

 

TEACHERS TOOLKIT

NPR: In Ancient Trash Heaps, A Whale Hunting Puzzle Emerges

Nat Geo: Big Fish: A Brief History of Whaling article

(extra credit, and a good read!) Nature Communications: DNA evidence of bowhead whale exploitation by Greenlandic Paleo-Inuit 4,000 years ago