| The appearance of specialized economies often coincides with the emergence of complex political organizations, when leaders first gained lasting authority over their neighbors. I investigate the relationship between these phenomena using data from southwest Florida. The Calusa chiefdom, one of the most powerful and enduring polities in the Southeastern U.S., possessed a unique economy based on gathered marine foods and implements made from wood, bone, and shell.;This study uses a three-pronged, multiscalar research strategy to test the hypothesis that the elite-organized production, distribution, and use of shell woodworking tools were key elements in the ninth century emergence of chiefdoms in the Caloosahatchee area. I explored the regional organization of shell cutting-edged tool production and consumption by examining curated artifacts from throughout Florida, submitting dozens of samples for radiocarbon dating and chemical sourcing studies. I then replicated these tools to enable the identification of production residues in archaeological contexts. Lastly, I investigated local production by excavating manufacturing locales on Buck Key and Useppa Island.;My results indicate that the Caloosahatchee area was a primary center for the intensive production of shell woodworking tools throughout the post-Archaic period, supplying both local woodworkers and people inhabiting the Okeechobee Basin area. Chronological data point to a substantial increase in local cutting-edged tool production after A.D. 800, just as the first mortuary, settlement pattern, and monumental construction evidence for chiefdoms appeared in the region. During this period, craft specialists engaged in intensive shell tool manufacturing within a limited number of villages located near prime whelk fishing grounds, including Buck Key and Useppa Island. The craft products, especially valuable shell tool performs, are preferentially found in elite contexts including caches associated with chiefly residences in centralized mound complexes. Elites apparently used the shell tools to supply woodworkers who provided them with large canoes, powerful religious items, and monumental buildings. This patronage was likely one of several strategies designed to establish and maintain elite wealth and power. This investigation provides an important and novel case for the global study of the role of craft economies in the emergence of sociopolitical complexity. |
