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The Ulus of the Kuna
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17154 |
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Section : |
CULTURE
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| Issue
Date : |
12 / 1990 |
3,359 Words |
| Author
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Tom Zydler
Tom Zydler is a freelance photographer and writer based in
Fort Lauderdale, Florida. |
Our goal was to find, by boat, the remaining indigenous cultures of the insular and coastal regions of the Caribbean Sea. Initially, it seemed a daunting task. All through the Greater and Lesser Antilles, the once numerous pre-European inhabitants have been replaced with populations foreign to the area. Small pockets of people who are aware of their Carib origins exist on the islands of St. Lucia, St. Vincent, and, most notably, on Dominica.
Having traveled south along the stepping-stones that the Leeward and Windward Islands once provided for the canoe invasions from South America, we reached the Caribbean coast of Venezuela. There it became obvious that the native tribes had either disappeared or retreated in to the interior. Colombia had to remain unknown to us, as her coastline offered a more threatening adventure than we were prepared to take on. We continued westward. On the lee shores of Golfo del Darien, under the shadow of the green mountains of San Blas territory of Panama - where the Kuna Indians live - we struck gold.
They must travel by boat
Off a small village of Anachucuna, a dugout canoe approached us. Propelled by a large spritsail, its boldly carved bow cut a straight course toward us, and it eventually rounded up alongside. Ten minutes later, as we gingerly boarded it to go ashore, we noticed that the boat felt unusually stable for a narrow canoe. In the village, we saw the intricately designed women's blouses. No less intriguing were the brilliantly colored beadwork on their arms and legs, the shiny gold rings on their noses, and their gold plate pendants. But what was most fascinating to me as a boatsman was the row
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