Falemauga Caves

Falemauga Caves
	Falemauga Caves - large chamber (1957 photo)
	location in Samoa
Location	central ridge of Upolu island
Region	Tuamasaga district, Samoa
Coordinates	13°54′58″S171°49′20″W / 13.91611°S 171.82222°W
Site notes
Excavation dates	1940s
Archaeologists	Derek Freeman

Last updated April 10, 2024

The Falemauga Caves are large natural caverns in a series of lava-tunnels situated in the Tuamasaga district along the central ridge of Upolu island in Samoa. The caves have been studied by archaeologists in Samoa with evidence of human occupation in pre-history. They were also used as a place of refuge by the people of Tuamasaga.^[1]

Location

The Falemauga Caves are located in an inland area called Falemauga, about 6 miles south west from Apia, Samoa's capital. Entrance to the main system of tunnels is about five and a half miles south (inland) of the coastal village of Malie.^[1]

History

When Freeman studied the caves in 1941, they were all located on a plantation owned by a 'Mr. S. V. Mackenzie of Apia.' During his field work, Freeman stayed in Mackenzie's house in Falemauga, located about 900 feet from the caves. Prior to Mackenzie, the land had formerly been owned by a German, Herr Paul Ludwig Schroeder, whose son Mr. H. H. Schroeder, discovered the caves in 1914. The caves were visited in August 1914 by members of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force, which was occupying the country at the time. In 1920, they were visited by Dr. J. Allan Thomson, Director of the Dominion Museum in New Zealand.^[1] Other scholars who visited the caves include Jack Golson, who explored the caves in 1957 as well as eminent archaeologist Janet Davidson.

Geology

The caves are part of lava tubes, a result of old lava-flows near an extinct volcano called Sigaele^[1] in the island's volcanic interior. The islands of Samoa consist of high volcanic islands^[3] which have resulted in geological formations including caves and lava tubes, some which occur as water conduits and forming natural springs around the islands' coastlines, like the Mata o le Alelo Pool on Savai'i island and Piula Cave Pool on Upolu.

Archaeology

Freeman describes in his report the entrance into the tunnels as almost circular, and measuring approximately 50 ft (15 m) in diameter. The height above sea level at this point averaged about 1,555 ft (474 m).^[1]

The down-break opening had divided from what was once a single tunnel into two distinct sections, one to the north and one to the south. Freeman called the north section the North Cave and the south section the South Cave. The North Cave was a lot longer than the South Cave. Both caves were inhabited by Pe'ape'a ( Collocalia francica ), a species of swift and by many small bats.

North Cave

Entry into the North Cave was extremely confined and only four and one half feet in height and three feet in width. The length of the North Cave was 1,408 ft (429 m). Its width averaged at 25 ft (7.6 m) until at a distance from the entrance of about 850 ft (260 m), there was an amphitheater (maximum width 56 ft (17 m)) of considerable size which formed the center of a series of branches. The first branch was 150 ft (46 m), the second branch 900 ft (270 m), beyond which it was too confined for Freeman to measure. The height varied from 4 ft (1.2 m) at the entrance to 30 ft (9.1 m) in the amphitheater.^[1]

South Cave

In contrast to the confined entry to the North Cave, entry into the South Cave was 30 ft (9.1 m) wide and about 20 ft (6.1 m) high. Its length from the entry to termination was 513 ft (156 m), and there was no branching.

Findings

An elaborate system of rocky platforms were found in the caves, constructed mainly with pieces of fallen lava-rock and built up to a height of about 2 to 3 ft (0.61 to 0.91 m) above the cave floor. Freeman recorded 152 platforms, 129 in the north cave, and 23 in the south cave. He also found numerous umu cook sites, fireplaces, and kitchen-middens as well as several lumps of ele a type of red volcanic rock used as a natural dye for Samoan siapo or tapa, a traditional bark cloth material.^[1] He found 5 stone adzes, four in the North Cave and one in the South Cave, a common type of prehistoric adze found in Samoa. A small circular rubbing-stone was found by a platform, which Freeman surmised was used for sharpening and polishing.

Related Research Articles

Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands ; two smaller, inhabited islands ; and several smaller, uninhabited islands, including the Aleipata Islands. Samoa is located 64 km (40 mi) west of American Samoa, 889 km (552 mi) northeast of Tonga, 1,152 km (716 mi) northeast of Fiji, 483 km (300 mi) east of Wallis and Futuna, 1,151 km (715 mi) southeast of Tuvalu, 519 km (322 mi) south of Tokelau, 4,190 km (2,600 mi) southwest of Hawaii, and 610 km (380 mi) northwest of Niue. The capital and largest city is Apia. The Lapita people discovered and settled the Samoan Islands around 3,500 years ago. They developed a Samoan language and Samoan cultural identity.

Transport in Samoa includes one international airport situated on the north west coast of Upolu island, paved highways reaching most parts of the two main islands, one main port in the capital Apia and two ports servicing mainly inter island ferries for vehicles and passengers between the two main islands, Upolu and Savai'i.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Apia</span> Capital of Samoa

Apia is the capital and only city of Samoa. It is located on the central north coast of Upolu, Samoa's second-largest island. Apia falls within the political district (itūmālō) of Tuamasaga.

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The Samoan Islands are an archipelago covering 3,030 km² (1,170 sq mi) in the central South Pacific, forming part of Polynesia and of the wider region of Oceania. Administratively, the archipelago comprises all of the Independent State of Samoa and most of American Samoa. The land masses of the two Samoan jurisdictions are separated by 64 km (40 mi) of ocean at their closest points.

Savaiʻi is the largest and highest island both in Samoa and in the Samoan Islands chain. The island is also the sixth largest in Polynesia, behind the three main islands of New Zealand and the Hawaiian Islands of Hawaii and Maui. While it is larger than the second main island, Upolu, it is significantly less populated.

The Alofaaga Blowholes, also known as the Taga Blowholes, are a natural feature located in the district of Palauli, south west of Salelologa wharf on the island of Savai'i in Samoa. The entrance to the blowholes is in the village of Taga.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Apolima</span> Island in Samoa

Apolima is the smallest of the four inhabited islands of Samoa, in central South Pacific Ocean. It lies in the Apolima Strait, between the country's two largest islands: Upolu to the east, and Savai'i to the west.

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Taufusi is a village on the Samoan island of Upolu. It is part of the Vaimauga West Electoral Constituency, Tuamasaga District, in the Apia Urban Area of Samoa. The village had a population of 364 at the 2016 census. The village name in English means Swamp as it was a swampy area in late 19th century. Taufusi is bordered by Saleufi to the North, Tuloto to the East, Lalovaea to the South East, Mt. Vaea and Palisi to the South, Vaimea and Fugalei to the West.

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References

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Freeman, JD (1944). "The Falemauga Caves". Journal of the Polynesian Society. 53 (3): 86–106. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
↑ Hempenstall, Peter (2004). "Our Missionaries and Cultural Change in Samoa". The Journal of Pacific History. Vol. 39, No.2. 39: 241–250. doi:10.1080/0022334042000250760. JSTOR 25169695.
1 2 Keating, Barbara H. "The Geology of the Samoan Islands". In Keating, Barbara H.; Bolton, Barrie R. (eds.). Geology and Offshore Mineral Resources of the Central Pacific Basin (PDF). Springer-Verlag. Retrieved 26 January 2022.

External links

The Cave at Falemauga - A story, map and photos taken by a Peace Corps Volunteer in 1977

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[jps-1] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Freeman, JD (1944). "The Falemauga Caves". Journal of the Polynesian Society. 53 (3): 86–106. Retrieved 25 January 2022.

[df-2] Hempenstall, Peter (2004). "Our Missionaries and Cultural Change in Samoa". The Journal of Pacific History. Vol. 39, No.2. 39: 241–250. doi:10.1080/0022334042000250760. JSTOR 25169695.

[jij-3] 1 2 Keating, Barbara H. "The Geology of the Samoan Islands". In Keating, Barbara H.; Bolton, Barrie R. (eds.). Geology and Offshore Mineral Resources of the Central Pacific Basin (PDF). Springer-Verlag. Retrieved 26 January 2022.

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v t e Tuamasaga District: Itūmālō
Traditional centers: Afega and Malie
Villages	Apia (Country capital) Faʻatoʻialemanu Fagaliʻi Lalovaea Lauliʻi Lepea Letogo Lotopa Magiagi Tai Malua Matautu Moataʻa Mulinuʻu Pesega Sataoa Siumu Siusega Tafaigata Tanugamanono Taufusi Tuanaʻi Vaiee Vailele Vailima Vaimoso
Notable landmarks	Mount Vaea Vailima, former home of Robert Louis Stevenson Faleata Sports Complex, Taunaimato Vaisigano River
Archaeology in Samoa	Falemauga Caves Lapita plainware pottery & pre-historic earth mounds at Vailele
Education & Libraries	National University of Samoa Samoa College Apia Library List of schools in Upolu
Environment	Samoan plant names Birds of Samoa Mammals of Samoa Protected areas of Samoa
Electoral constituencies: Faipule Districts	Faleata East Faleata West Safata (2 seats) Sagaga Le Falefa Sagaga Le Usoga Siumu Vaimauga East Vaimauga West (2 seats)