Woven baskets characterized by a particular distinctive pattern have previously been found only in the immediate vicinity of the prehistoric village of Palea and therefore were believed to have been made only by the Palean people. Recently, however, archaeologists discovered such a ‘Palean’ basket in Lithos, an ancient village across the Brim River from Palea. The Brim River is very deep and broad, and so the ancient Paleans could have crossed it only by boat, and no Palean boats have been found. Thus it follows that the so-called Palean baskets were not uniquely Palean.
Write a response in which you discuss what specific evidence is needed to evaluate the argument and explain how the evidence would weaken or strengthen the argument.
The argument in question posits that the Paleans did not create the baskets found on the island of Lithos, but that they were found there by travelers from another tribe. While this evidence may indicate that the baskets were not made by Paleans, it will present no meaningful information as to how and when the baskets were found. In fact, the lack of Palean boats across the Brim River only strengthens the argument for the Paleans having been the creators of the baskets. Without boats, the Paleans would have a hard time traveling between the islands and the mainland. Thus, it is reasonable to assume that the basket makers would have left their baskets in the island’s location, and this fact alone would lend credence to the claim that the baskets were Palean. Additionally, the lack of Palean boats would mean that the baskets would not have been transported into the mainland by the rivers, which again makes it more likely that they were created by Paleans. The Paleans could have taken their baskets with them when they came to the island, or they could have left them on the island when they went elsewhere. When the Paleans returned to the island, the baskets would have been there waiting for them. Thus, the lack of Palean boats on the island does not disprove the claim that the baskets were made by the Paleans.
On the other hand, the fact that the baskets were made by travelers from elsewhere provides little insight into which tribe the travelers belonged to. It is difficult to say with any certainty whether the baskets were made by Paleans or travelers from tribes other than the Paleans. The Paleans lived in the region for at least 3,000 years, and it is possible that the baskets were made by Paleans from other villages or tribes. A more likely explanation is that the baskets were made by sailors from another tribe who had traded with the Paleans. When sailors from that tribe traded with the Paleans, they likely carried their baskets with them. If this is true, then the people on Lithos did not create the baskets, and the basket found there would be surprising indeed. The sailors could have taken the basket with them or, if they did not recognize their handiwork, could have thrown it overboard when they returned to their village. The absence of Palean boats on the riverbank also does not rule out the sailors’ theory. After all, the sailors could have dumped the basket into the river, thereby washing it away and making it impossible to find it.
This argument does not address the basket’s size. It is entirely possible that the basket was only found because it was unusually large and would have stood out on the riverbank. Several baskets have been found on the island of Lithos, and all of them have been large. In fact, several have been found that were so large that they required two men to carry them. If one of the baskets was on the riverbank, then it would be easy to mistake it for one of the others, and it would go unnoticed. The absence of Palean boats would not necessarily rule out the Palean explanation in this case, as it is possible that the basket was not visible to the naked eye.