Subject: uriutina, irriparacusi war chief
Culture: Timucua
Setting: Spanish contact period, northern Florida 16-17thc
Evolution:
Context (Event Photos, Primary Sources, Secondary Sources, Field Notes)
* Milanich 1996 p158-159
"Caciques and their chiefly aides were not the only Timucuan leaders. There also were war chiefs, chiefs who planned and led warriors on raids against other groups. The prefix irri- -- sometimes given as uri- or iri- -- meant war. Thus uriutina or irriparacusi meant war chief.
"It is likely that war chiefs led not only when an actual battle was to take place, but when the threat of such action presented itself. Because the invading French and Spanish colonists presented the threat -- often the reality -- of military action, war chiefs may have assumed more importance in the sixteenth century. The French and the Spanish probably did not recognize the existence of a dichotomy between war and civil chiefs. Indeed, many of the chiefs with whom the French had interactions in 1564-65 may have been war chiefs."Headdress
* Paterek 1994 p34
"Saturiba, chief of the Timucua, seems to have worn a crown of feathers. A headdress made of a stuffed eagle was a mark of honor indicating great war exploits. Some men wore a small stuffed animal as a hat."
Hair
* Milanich 1996 p55
"Both men and women wore their hair long. ... Men ... dressed their hair on the top of their heads, wreathed or entwined with grasses or moss. One account notes that at times men used their dressed hair as a quiver, sticking arrows into it for easy access."
* Paterek 1994 p34
"Men let the hair grow long and gathered it up into a topknot, into which feathers were fastened; during time of war, arrows were carried in this topknot. A fringe was left below it, all around the head. Out of the top was sometimes suspended an animal pelt or two."
Earrings
* Paterek 1994 p35
"Earrings consisted of large balls, ear spools, or a bone or bird claw thrust through the ear. A unique ear ornament was a small fish bladder passed through the hole in a pierced ear; this bladder, when inflated, shone like a pearl and was often dyed red to appear like a ruby. No nose ornaments seem to have been worn by these people."
* Milanich 1996 p57-59
"Both men and women wore long pointed fingernails which could be used as weapons. Both also had pierced ears in which inflated fish bladders were worn. Decorative earpins made from Busycon shell columellae also were worn in the ears as decorations."
Gorget
* Paterek 1994 p35
"Men wore large gorgets (eight to ten inches in diameter) hung about the neck; some authorities think they may have been worn as armor as well as ornament."
* Milanich 1996 p59
"Round gorgets made of copper probably originally mined in the Appalachian Mountains ... were worn by chiefs."
Jewelry
* Paterek 1994 p35
" Since clothing was minimal, there was great emphasis placed on ornamentation. ... Men ... wore strands of beads below the knees, at the elbows, and around the wrists; another favorite ornament consisted of disks of shells or metal fastened onto leather strips and worn around ankles or knees."
* Milanich 1996 p60
"Other than the items worn in one's ears, other personal ornaments included feathers, necklaces and bracelets made of small and large shell beads, bracelets of fish teeth, small copper disks, and freshwater pearls."
Cloak
* Milanich 1996 p59
"Chiefly individuals ... wore painted deerskin cloaks and painted bird plumes. These latter items were given as symbols of friendship and mutual respect."
* Paterek 1994 p34
"There is much mention of feathers in connection with Florida Indians, but the Timucuas seem not to have used feather mantles to any extent. One painting by Le Moyne shows the chief Saturiba wearing a deerskin mantle so long that it requires a man to walk behind holding the mantle up so it will not drag on the ground; it is fastened with a knot on the shoulder."
Club
* Milanich 1996 p160
"Saturiwa's warriors waged battle with bows and arrows and large wooden clubs. The latter were said to be 28 inches long and often were studded with embedded chert flakes. They were lethal weapons."
Body Art
* Milanich 1996 p59
"Chiefs and members of their families were painted and tattooed with designs in azure, red, and black. Other of the Timucua also decorated themselves with tattooing and paint. Some of these body decorations evidently were a mark of rank."
* Paterek 1993 p35
"The Timucua were probably the most extensively tattooed of any tribe of American Indians, the chief men and their wives more so than others, so it was indicative of social status. Some chiefs had the entire body covered with tattoos from neck to ankles to wrists; these were in geometric patterns as well as suggestions of scrolls and flowers, but there were no representations of animals. Women's designs were different from the men's. Tattooing was accomplished by pricking the skin with a bone needle until the blood started flowing, then rubbing in certain substances for color. Swanton mentions indigo, which would give a pale blue, but the most common material for tattooing was lampblack."
Loincloth
* Paterek 1994 p34
"Men wore a characteristic breechclout of deerskin wrapped around the hips and passed through the crotch. This seems to be the southern edge of the use of deerskin in Florida. In some cases, a fringe of shells hung below the breechclout, and at times an animal pelt was suspended in the back as a tail."
* Milanich 1996 p59
"Traditional clothing of the Timucua was minimal. The most frequently noted garment for men was a deerskin loincloth, sometimes painted. Woven palm fronds and fabric made from beaten roots also were used for loincloths."
