Stepping-Stones or Barrier: The Movement and Impact of People throughout the Far Eastern Pacific

The vast ocean of the far eastern Pacific divides two great migratory peoples, the Amerindians and Polynesians. Whether or not members of either group overcame this barrier remains one of the greatest uncertainties in Pacific prehistory. We focus on the remote islands of the far eastern Pacific Ocean and combine fine-resolution archaeology, palaeoecology, and dating techniques to determine the antiquity and nature of occupation on these islands. Their role as stepping-stones for human migration and material exchange will be determined and the notion of these islands as pristine and unspoilt at the time of European discovery will be challenged.