Description of Historic Place

L’Anse Amour National Historic Site of Canada overlooks the waters of the Strait of Belle Isle near the small modern community of L’Anse Amour in southern Labrador. The burial mound forms part of an ancient, multi-component archaeological site occupied by the Maritime Archaic people between 9000 and 3500 years ago. Formed by a low mound of large stones, the circular burial mound is 8-10 metres in diameter and situated behind what was the main habitation area. Within the mound is a small stone burial chamber underneath which was found the well-preserved skeleton of a child along with a number of artefacts. Official recognition refers to the 47 hectares of land in a single irregular polygon that contain the remains of many, once numerous, small, seal hunting camps.

Heritage Value

L’Anse Amour was designated a national historic site of Canada in 1978. The reasons for designation are:

— it is one of the largest and longest used Indigenous habitation sites in Labrador, representing the remains of many small camps; and,

— it features the oldest known First Nations funeral monument in the New World, created 7,700 years before present. The significance of this young person’s burial is centred on the associated ritual and symbology identified by the purposeful mound construction over the stone burial box., the placement of the body, the use of red ochre, and the artifacts placed in the grave, which includes the earliest known toggling harpoon in the world.

L’Anse Amour is the oldest known First Nations funerary monument in the North America, and is part of one of the largest and longest used Indigenous habitation sites in Labrador. The body, placed between two rows of upright slabs one meter apart, had been covered with red ochre, wrapped in a shroud of skins or birch bark, and placed face down, head pointed west, in a large pit 1.5 metres deep. Evidence also indicates the use of ceremonial fires and the cooking and consumption of food. Offerings were made of tools and weapons made of stone and bone. These included a walrus tusk, a harpoon head, paint stones and a bone whistle.

Source: Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada, Minutes, June 1978, November 1983, June 1984 and April 2022.

Character-Defining Elements

The key elements that contribute to the heritage character of this site include:

— the burial mound’s location on a site overlooking the waters of the Strait of Belle Isle in southern Labrador, which represents part of a series of camps occupied by the Maritime Archaic people between 9000 and 3500 years ago;

— the site’s coastal setting on a flat, open area near the small community of L’Anse Amour;

— the integrity and materials of the extensive surviving archaeological remains (discovered and as yet undiscovered) features and artifacts in their original placement and extent, including the in situ vestiges, the remains of tools and various discrete archaeological features both identified and as yet unidentified features that date to between approximately 9000 and 3500 years ago;

— the retention of the knowledge associated Maritime Archaic culture period artefacts and remains associated with the site;

— the viewscapes to sea, and from shoreline the site, and around the immediate vicinity that facilitate its recognition as an ancient habitation area for the Maritime Archaic people.