Des pêcheurs de baleines aux joueurs de pelote. Tentative de contruction d'une identité basque au Québec

Abstract

Between 1990 and 1993, Laurier Turgeon's team carries out archaeological diggings in the middle of the Saint Lawrence, on the island of the Basques (Quebec). He discovers objects that confirm there had been a Basque presence as from the 16th century. In the lower part of the river, everybody considers this discovery as a confirmation of what tales of verbal tradition have long told: the Basque whalers were present when the town was founded. Today, these objects are exhibited in an interpretation centre that ad joins a fronton and a restaurant. This Parc de l'Aventure Basque en Amérique du Nord (Park of the Basque Adventure in North America) was inaugurated on 13th July 1996. Thisarticle studies what these objects have been exposed to when moved from theisland to the museum. How have these appliances been erected as marks of identity of a whole region that lacks any other reference of Basque culture other than that of a tenacious myth and this island, six kilometres from the coast?