The Mauna Kea Adze Quarry Project: a summary of the 1975 field investigations

Author:

McCoy, Patrick C.

Title:

The Mauna Kea Adze Quarry Project: a summary of the 1975 field investigations

Periodical:

Journal of the Polynesian Society

Year:

1977

Volume:

86

Pages:

223-244

Subject:

Keanakakoi Kalaukaakoi Mauna Kea Adze Quarry

Summary:

Basalt adze quarries and workshops are known on all the major Hawaiian islands. However, the one that is the by far the largest, most complex, and best preserved is the one that is located on the south slope of Mauna Kea on the island of Hawaii. This quarry extends from approximately the 8,600 to the 13,000 foot elevation, extends over an area of some 7.5 square miles, and is composed of a series of extraction areas and chipping stations. This article describes the primary research objectives of a field investigation that was done in 1975 by the Bernice P. Pauahi Museum through a one-year grant that was awarded by the National Science Foundation for a project entitled, "The Mauna Kea Adz Quarry Complex and Technology of Hawaiian Adz Manufacture" that was done under the direction of this author. It outlines the research design for lithic analysis, and presents some prelimary conclusions.

Label:

Archaeology - Mauna Kea Adze Quarry

Date:

1977

Collection:

Periodicals