Tools Used by the Taíno People

Pre-Columbian Caribbean Technology

The Taíno (Arawakan people of Greater Antilles & Bahamas) crafted tools from stone, shell, bone, wood, and clay—no metal.

Cutting & Shaping

• Stone Axes (Celt): Ground stone blades, hafted to wood handles. Felling trees, clearing land, warfare
• Adzes: Blade perpendicular to handle; hollowing canoes, shaping beams
• Gouges: Curved blades for carving wood, bone, shell (duhos, cemís)
• Chisels: Bone/stone; fine joinery

Drilling & Piercing

• Bow Drill: Wood shaft, stone/shell bit, bow string – fire starting, drilling shell/stone beads
• Pump Drill: Flywheel version for greater torque

Scraping & Smoothing

• Shell Scrapers: Conch/clam shells – cleaning hides, scaling fish, smoothing pottery
• Stone Scrapers: Flaked edges – wood, bone
• Polishing Stones: Water + abrasive stone – finishing wood, stone, shell

Food Processing

• Mortar & Pestle (Stone/Wood): Grinding cassava (yuca), maize, seeds
• Manioc Squeezer (Sebucán): Woven tube press – extracts cyanide juice from bitter cassava
• Griddles (Burén): Clay – baking casabe (cassava flatbread)

Containers & Carriers

• Pottery: Coil-built, painted (white-on-red); cooking, storage, ritual
• Baskets: Palm, reed, cotton – storage, transport, fish traps
• Gourds: Water bottles, containers

Fire Making

• Fire Drill / Fire Plow: Friction fire – essential skill

Tools reflect a sophisticated maritime-horticultural society adapted to island ecosystems.