he Sliammon traditional territory stretches from just below Toba Inlet to Saltery Bay ;
the  dinner fires  would light  up the  skies  from  Bliss  Landing  to  Saltery  Bay . The
entire area  encompassing approximately  37,000 hectares . The Sliammon  people were  known
to  have had  more  than  ten  permanent  villages . The  shell  middens  at  these  places
indicate the size of the settlements back  then. Some  middens are  in excess  of ten  feet
deep  and hundreds  of  meters  long . An  inch of  a shell  midden  site  may  take  three
hundred  years to  form. A "Midden"  site  is composed  of dark  soil in  which  there  are
broken  and  crushed  shells, bones  of  birds , animals  and  fish ; along  with  numerous
artifacts  left  as a  result  of  human  activities  over  many  years . Shells  in  these
middens can date sites and determine  which season  the shellfish  were  taken . Culturally
Modified  Trees (CMT's) and  shell middens  are the  most prominent physical  evidence left 
by  the  ancestors  of  the  Sliammon  people.

he Sliammon people had a  technology  that  took  thousands of years to develop ; which
dealt  with all  aspects of  their  everyday  lives. The  Great  Red  Cedar  was  the  most
prized  and  utilized  natural  resource  by  the  Sliammon  people ; almost  every  single
part  of the  tree served  a  purpose. For  example, the  roots were  used  for  baskets and
various containers, the bark  for  clothing, rope, blankets and  housing ; the  bulk  of  the
tree  for  transportation (canoes) ; the  branches  for  spiritual  cleansing. The  pitch  of
the  Douglas  Fir  was used as a medicine and in the process of waterproofing. 

tone was vitally  important  in  Sliammon  technology. It  was stone that  allowed the
giant  cedar  to  be felled  and it's bark to  be  pounded. It  was stone that cut  up  the
salmon  and  it  was  stone  that  heated  the  water  to  boil  it.

rchaeological  sites are  filled with pieces of bone- some remnants of  tasty feasts of
deer  and  bear ; others, finely  worked  tools, toys  or  ceremonial  objects. Deer  bones
- carved,  ground,  cut  and  polished  are  particularly  plentiful  among  the  artifacts
found in  the  Northern  Strait  of  Georgia. There  are awls  of various  lengths made  of
the  deer  ulna  and other long  splinters of bones  used for fish  hooks, for  the  points
of arrows, spears  and herring  rake  teeth. There are  also  mammal bones that  have  been
made into  chisels, harpoon  barbs, clubs and  wedges; and  there are  curved beaver  teeth
sharpened by  grinding and  used  as carving  tools.

one  artifacts  also  include  sea  lion, used  as dancers' necklaces or carved roughly
into  dolls  for  children ;  dog  and  bear  teeth  were  carved  and  worn  as  pendants.

rchaeological sites provide physical evidence that verify occupation  and use of  lands
and  resources . The   Sliammon  traditional  territory   has  been  largely   ignored  by
archaeologists  and recorded  sites are primarily  limited to coastal areas and the island
regions.

rchaeology is the study of artifacts and archaeological sites where there is human
history  of an  area beyond  the backward  reach of  living memory. It  is then,the job of
archaeologists to reconstruct past cultures through surviving material remains.

et  sites are when artifacts are sealed in the ground by layers of silt or by mudflows.
Artifacts made of plant  materials such as  baskets, fishing  lines and  wooden tools  that
would normally decay are sealed off from oxygen and preserved. 

ry sites are when archaeologists collect objects of bone and stone; and also samples of
pollen. Pollen  samples reveal  some of  the flora  used by  the occupants and indicate the
composition of  past vegetation. The analysis of bone fragments  will determine  what fauna
were present and which species were being used by the people.

ealed in the ground,the knowledge of the past waits to be released by scientists who have
the  skills to  interpret its  meaning. Unfortunately  many arhaeological  sites have  been
disturbed by pothunters - people who collect artifacts only as curious art objects ; and
the possibilty of understanding what the objects meant to their makers is forever lost.Now,
of course, laws  have been made to prohibit  pothunting in order to protect this  important
part  of  First  Nations'  heritage.