Discussion

“As contemporary sources reveal, rats were commonplace on European sailing ships voyaging to the New World in the 16th and later centuries. In modest numbers these vermin were merely a nuisance to mariners; the greatest damage done by them on ships resulted from the gnawing into the casks of stored foodstuffs and contaminating the contents within with their urine and feces. Under exceptional circumstances, however, their depredations of the ship’s provisions could represent a very real danger to the well-being and even survival of the crew and passengers” (Armitage 1995a:23). A rat plague besieged the returning Spanish Indies fleet of 1622 and on one vessel alone several thousand rats were caught and killed both in port and during the voyage (Phillips 1986:157).

An analysis of rat remains from the Emanuel Point ship has identified all the specimens aboard as the species, Rattus rattus, commonly known as the black rat. As for the population size of the rats on board, several factors make an accurate estimate impossible.

Bone remains found at the wrecksite account for a minimum of 21 individuals, probably far fewer than the total population prior to the vessel’s sinking. It seems most likely that many of the rodents would have tried to swim to shore at the time of sinking, some perhaps drowning at the site. However, the remains found at the site should not be assumed to have perished at the time of sinking.

Previous studies have shown that ships typically supported a population of animals that spent their entire lives aboard, from birth to death—meaning that some of the remains could have been the result of natural mortality perhaps preceding the time of the ship’s demise. Others might have been merely unlucky passengers taken aboard with provisions.

“Analysis does reveal, however, that there must have been a well-established, core rodent-population on the ship, as evidenced by the presence of very young, subadult, and mature individuals, and both males and females” (Armitage 1995a:24). Confinement in the “dark recesses of the ship’s hull, away from the sunlight, and with a restricted diet (probably lacking in certain minerals and vitamins essential for normal metabolism/growth) clearly took its toll on some of these rats, especially the immature individuals, as evidenced by the limb bones afflicted by rickets, and by the poor dental health of some of the older individuals.”

Table VIII
Faunal Specimens Identified From The Emanuel Point Ship
Class	Order	Taxon	Element	No. of Specimens
Vertebrata	indeterminate	indeterminate	fragments	4
Vertebrata	indeterminate	small indet.	long bone	1
Vertebrata	indeterminate	medium indet.	rib fragment	1
Vertebrata	indeterminate	medium indet.	rib fragment
Vertebrata	indeterminate	medium indet.	fragment	1
Mammalia	indeterminate	very large indeterminate	rib shaft fragment	6
Mammalia	indeterminate	large/very large indeterminate	fragment	3
Mammalia	indeterminate	large indeterminate	rib fragment	1
Mammalia	indeterminate	large indeterminate	long bone shaft fragment	3
Mammalia	indeterminate	large indeterminate	flat bone fragment	1
Mammalia	indeterminate	medium indeterminate	rib fragment	1
Mammalia	indeterminate	med./large indeterminate	epiphysis indeterminate	1
Mammalia	indeterminate	med./large indeterminate	pisiform	1
Mammalia	indeterminate	med./large indeterminate	fragments	10
Mammalia	indeterminate	med./large indeterminate	long bone shaft fragment	1
Mammalia	Artiodactyla	small indeterminate	condyle	1
Mammalia	Artiodactyla	medium indeterminate	lumbar vertebra	1
Mammalia	Artiodactyla	Sus scrofa	rib fragment	1
Mammalia	Artiodactyla	Sus scrofa	humerus	2
Mammalia	Artiodactyla	Sus scrofa	tibia	2
Mammalia	Artiodactyla	Sus scrofa	lower tooth PM3	1
Mammalia	Artiodactyla	Sus indet.	scapula fragment	1
Mammalia	Artiodactyla	Bovidae sp.	rib fragment	1
Mammalia	Artiodactyla	Bovidae c.f. Bos taurus	ribs, vertebral end	4
Mammalia	Artiodactyla	Bovidae c.f. Bos taurus	rib epiphysis	1
Mammalia	Artiodactyla	Bovidae c.f. Bos taurus	thoracic vertebra	2
Mammalia	Rodentia	Rattus rattus	See Table VII	206
Mammalia	Rodentia	Mus musculus	tibia	2
Aves	Galliformes	Gallus gallus	tibia	2
Aves	Galliformes	Gallus gallus	ulna	1
Aves	Galliformes	Gallus gallus	femur	1
Aves	Galliformes	Gallus gallus	tarsometatasus	1
Aves	Galliformes	Gallus gallus	humerus	1
Aves	Galliformes	Gallus gallus	coracoid	1
Aves	Galliformes	Gallus gallus	second phalange	1
Aves	Charadriiformes	Scopacidae	upper beak cover/sheath	1
Aves	indeterminate	Scopacidae	coracoid	1
Aves	indeterminate	Scopacidae	cervical vertebra	1
Chondrichthyes	Lamniformes	Carcharinidae	vertebra indeterminate	2
Chondrichthyes	Selachii	indeterminate	vertebra indeterminate	2
Chondrichthyes	Rajifomes	family indeterminate	pharyngeal plate	4
Osteichthys	indeterminate	family indeterminate	spine indeterminate	6
Osteichthys	indeterminate	family indeterminate	scale indeterminate	2
Osteichthys	indeterminate	family indeterminate	vertebra indeterminate	1
Osteichthys	indeterminate	family indeterminate	fragment	2
Osteichthys	indeterminate	med. fish indet.	scale indeterminate	1
Osteichthys	indeterminate	med. fish indet.	ctenoid scale	1
Osteichthys	indeterminate	med. fish indet.	cycloid scale	1
Osteichthys	indeterminate	med. fish indet.	atlas vertebra	1
Osteichthys	indeterminate	med. fish indet.	thoracic vertebra	2
Osteichthys	indeterminate	med. fish indet.	precaudal vertebra	5
Osteichthys	indeterminate	med. fish indet.	caudal vertebra	4
Osteichthys	indeterminate	med. fish indet.	centrum vertebra	1
Osteichthys	indeterminate	med. fish indet.	ultimate vertebra	1
Osteichthys	indeterminate	med. fish indet.	vertebra indeterminate	3
Osteichthys	indeterminate	med. fish indet.	hyomandibular	1
Osteichthys	indeterminate	med. fish indet.	dorsal spine	1
Osteichthys	indeterminate	med. fish indet.	haemal spine	2
Osteichthys	indeterminate	med. fish indet.	spine indeterminate	4
Osteichthys	indeterminate	med. fish indet.	fragment	2
Osteichthys	indeterminate	Small fish indet.	centrum vertebra	1
Osteichthys	indeterminate	Small fish indet.	spine indeterminate	1
Osteichthys	Perciformes	Sciaenidae	caudal vertebrae	2
Osteichthys	Perciformes	Lutjanidae	dorsal spine	1
Osteichthys	Siluriformes	Ariidae	prefrontal	1
Osteichthys	Siluriformes	Ariidae	parasphenoid	1
Osteichthys	Siluriformes	Ariidae	pectoral spine	1
Osteichthys	Siluriformes	indeterminate	pectoral spine	1

The Emanuel Point Ship: Archaeological Investigations, 1992-1995, Preliminary Report

Table of Contents

Preface

Acknowledgments

List of Illustrations

List of Tables

Introduction

Historical Background

Archaeological Background

Ships Architecture

Disarticulated Outboard Hull Remains

Ship's Hardware

Galley Features

Organic Ship’s Debris

Vertebrate Faunal Remains

Invertebrate Remains

Botanical Remains

Ceramics

Ordnance

Armor

Other Materials

Conservation

Conclusion

Recommendations

References

Appendix

Discussion