The article reports on archaeologists search for archaeological sites of the Maroons, runaway slaves of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries in West Indies. Archaeologists claim that Maroons have the ability to become invisible. The efficacy of their tactic has made them elusive to slavery. It states that the constant threat of recapture and castigation on the island of Saint Croix led them to hide in remote, defensible spots that were hard to see. Moreover, archaeologists face difficulties in predicting the locations of the Maroons because they are do not leave any evidence of their presence.
African American Research Center, Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Notes:
1 videocassette (45 min.), Documentary on the rural communities in Alcântara, Brazil (in the state of Maranhão), descendants of the quilombos founded by Blacks who had escaped from slavery. The documentary explores the communities' historical narratives, rituals, festivals, use of land and natural resources, and describes the displacement of families for the construction and expansion of the Centro de Lançamento de Alcântara (a launching base for rockets and satellites).
