Tuesday, January 7, 2014

Jamestown: The Starving Time

The Starving Time at Jamestown during the winter of 1609-10
beginning after the departure of Captain John Smith.
During that time, 
the people of Jamestown was forced to eat rats and snakes
because they could not venture outside of the fort's walls
for fear of being attacked by Powhatan's tribes.
There were written accounts 
that indicated the settlers had resorted to cannibalism
but no concrete evidence had ever been found.
Until Jane.
Jane was a 14 year old girl
who died during the Starving Time.
Above is a rendering of her likeness based on her skull.
Also based on her skull
(a copy seen above)
were the indications of tool marks
(in red)
which proved that 
those at Jamestown
had no choice but to cannibalize 
the dead to survive.
During a trip to the Smithsonian,
I showed the Brat Child the exhibit
and explained it all.
Later that summer while vacationing, 
I asked the Brat Child if he would like to go to Jamestown.
His reply:
"Do they still EAT people??!"







2 comments:

  1. Love it. Can't wait to see him again.

    P.S. You guys left your ducky float here!

    (I'm only 3 months late in reporting it.)

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  2. I realized I left the ducky float sometime around 3am Sunday. There's a whole story about 3am and the Brat Child's upset stomach and our attempt to go home. Can't wait to get back down there.

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