Archaeological site of the Anse-à-Henry

Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The archaeological site of Anse-à-Henry, located on the island of St. Peter in the archipelago of St. Peter and Miquelon, is an exceptional testimony of pre-Columbian human occupations in the extreme north of America. Ranked a historical monument in 2021, it is distinguished by its southern location for paleoeskim remains, a cultural group usually associated with more northern areas such as the Canadian Arctic or Greenland. The excavations, carried out between 1999 and 2004 and then repeated in 2019, revealed lithic tools (stones to be ground, polishers) and traces of habitat attributable to four distinct crops.

The remains discovered cover a wide chronology, from -3000 to 900 A.D., and belong to two large groups: the Amerindian and Paleoeskim populations. For the Amerindians, two periods are represented: the Maritime Archaic (3000 to 1200 B.C.), marked by a coastal economy based on fishing and marine hunting, and the recent Indian (I-15th century AD), characterized by increased sedentarization and ceramic techniques. The Paleoeskimaux, on the other hand, are attested through two cultures: the Growater (800 to 100 B.C.), known for their polished stone tools, and the Dorsetians (100 to 900 A.D.), adapted to a subarctic environment.

The site plays a key role in understanding prehistoric migrations in North America, particularly because of its remote geographic location, more than 20 km from the Canadian coast. Recent excavation campaigns, led by archaeologists Réginald Auger (Canada) and Grégor Marchand (France), highlighted the urgency of preserving these remains threatened by coastal erosion. The plots protected by the 2021 ranking include the basement, ensuring the in situ preservation of artifacts. This site provides unique insights into interactions between human groups in an Arctic-temperate contact area.

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